Call from pensions service 0800 023 2076

Annabee
Annabee Posts: 653 Forumite
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EDIT: Turns out it's not a scam at all! Thank you to everyone who commented. I will leave this up for information:

............................................................................. 

Like a lot on here I have booked a callback from the Future Pensions Centre.

Woke up late today (9 something) and got a call from the above number, so I answered and they said it was the callback. I had a number of questions, which they couldn't answer and they asked me to confirm my date of birth and National Insurance number, which I did.  

It only clicked after I put the phone down, Then I called the actual Future Pensions Centre (down as Prosper Wealth Management - I know it's legit because I had previously gone through all Martin's links).  Of course they were closed as it's a Bank Holiday!  I feel so stupid!   Just warning people to beware.  What could they do with my NI number and D.O.B., does anyone know?  And what should I do now?

They obviously realise that people are waiting anxiously for these calls, and they are taking advantage of that.   
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Comments

  • Dazed_and_C0nfused
    Dazed_and_C0nfused Posts: 17,243 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Fifth Anniversary Name Dropper
    Annabee said:
    Like a lot on here I have booked a callback from the Future Pensions Centre.

    Woke up late today (9 something) and got a call from the above number, so I answered and they said it was the callback. I had a number of questions, which they couldn't answer and they asked me to confirm my date of birth and National Insurance number, which I did.  

    It only clicked after I put the phone down, Then I called the actual Future Pensions Centre (down as Prosper Wealth Management - I know it's legit because I had previously gone through all Martin's links).  Of course they were closed as it's a Bank Holiday!  I feel so stupid!   Just warning people to beware.  What could they do with my NI number and D.O.B., does anyone know?  And what should I do now?

    They obviously realise that people are waiting anxiously for these calls, and they are taking advantage of that.   
    Maybe DWP have got (agency?) staff doing overtime to try and catch up with the backlog?
  • p00hsticks
    p00hsticks Posts: 14,317 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    My understanding from these boards is that due to the huge number of callbacks requested they are doing some sort of initial triage service just asking people to confirm their details before they do the full callback. Whether this was such a call it's difficult to say. 
  • Annabee
    Annabee Posts: 653 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    edited 26 May at 11:28AM
    OK, so it might be legit then I suppose.  And I have just flagged the number up as a scam on here and blocked it and marked it as spam on my mobile!

    But it does seem odd that they are calling on a bank holiday.  And I did wonder, what was the point of the call if they can't answer any questions?    Just to get my NI details?  And then that made me start to question it.

    But to be fair  the guy did not sound scammy if you know what I mean. Not your typical foreign call centre where you can hear phones ringing and other people talking in the background, as you often get on dodgy phone calls.  And when I rang back it was an official sounding message that said it was part of the pensions service, there was no option to speak to anyone though.
  • Ayr_Rage
    Ayr_Rage Posts: 2,435 Forumite
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    I guess they are working overtime to clear the backlog.

    I would bet my pension it was a genuine call.
  • Annabee
    Annabee Posts: 653 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    I will try and find out tomorrow and if I discover it was a legitimate call then I will ask MSE to have this thread deleted. 
  • p00hsticks
    p00hsticks Posts: 14,317 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Annabee said:
    I will try and find out tomorrow and if I discover it was a legitimate call then I will ask MSE to have this thread deleted. 
    Keep the thread up here for reference and help to others, but perhaps change the thread title...
  • UnsureAboutthis
    UnsureAboutthis Posts: 222 Forumite
    100 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper
    always double check via a Gov.uk site

    https://www.gov.uk/future-pension-centre
  • molerat
    molerat Posts: 34,372 Forumite
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    edited 26 May at 2:13PM
    Annabee said:
    I will try and find out tomorrow and if I discover it was a legitimate call then I will ask MSE to have this thread deleted. 
    Unlikely you will be able to find anything out as the people you can speak to will have no idea what is happening in the background and who is actually making these screening calls. Also the ones taking calls may not have anything to do with contacting people. There was a post a while back where the person was told in no uncertain terms that no one at DWP was contacting people which we know to be untrue. 

  • Annabee
    Annabee Posts: 653 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    Oh dear, I am none the wiser then. It doesn't seem to be a very satisfactory system all round. 

    They don't have my bank details or anything like that (and I would have instantly been on the alert if they'd asked for that, even though I'd just woken up). However I am still wondering if a scammer could do any damage with just my NI number and D.O.B., does anyone know? 
  • Dazed_and_C0nfused
    Dazed_and_C0nfused Posts: 17,243 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Fifth Anniversary Name Dropper
    Annabee said:
    Oh dear, I am none the wiser then. It doesn't seem to be a very satisfactory system all round. 

    They don't have my bank details or anything like that (and I would have instantly been on the alert if they'd asked for that, even though I'd just woken up). However I am still wondering if a scammer could do any damage with just my NI number and D.O.B., does anyone know? 
    Given the previous posts why do you think it could still be a scam 🤔 
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