North Wales Police issue warning over DVLA fraud

Motorists across North Wales are being warned to stay alert after scam emails pretending to be from the DVLA began circulating, falsely claiming recipients owe road tax and must pay immediately.

North Wales Police’s Cyber Crime Team has received reports of residents receiving fraudulent messages designed to gather financial and personal information.

One such email carries the subject line “Update Your Road Tax” and falsely states that the recipient’s vehicle is “not legally allowed to be on the road.”

The email, sent from an address not linked to the DVLA, pressures the recipient to act quickly by clicking on a link to update their road tax, using language such as “this is the final (V11) reminder we will issue you” and warning of legal consequences if no action is taken.

In a statement, North Wales Police said:

“Scammers impersonating the DVLA have been targeting motorists in recent weeks with attempts to gather personal and financial details from them via scam emails.”

“The DVLA says it never asks for a reply to emails or text messages. Even if the text or email appears to be from the DVLA, if you’re asked for payment details or to log in to your account, it’s a scam. When applying for a DVLA service, check the website address and make sure you only use the official website.”

“Always verify any unexpected contact, no matter who it’s from before clicking on any links or sharing any personal or financial information.”

Officials say the most effective way to access DVLA services is by visiting the official government website at GOV.UK, and they urge people not to trust links in unsolicited emails or text messages.

Anyone who receives a suspicious message is encouraged to take action by:

• Forwarding phishing emails to the National Cyber Security Centre at [email protected]

• Reporting online scams to Action Fraud via actionfraud.police.uk

• Reporting misleading adverts to search engines