The text messages warn people that they have a ‘parking penalty charge’ and that if they don’t pay on time, they might be banned from driving, have to pay more or be taken to court.
However, the DVSA does not issue or deal with parking fines, and has advised drivers to ignore the messages.
The scam text message is full of spelling mistakes and reads: “Dvsa notice for you: You have a parking penalty charge due on 2024/9/30. If you do not pay your fine on time, Your car may be banned from driving, you might haeve to pay more, or you could be taken to court. Please enter your license plate in the link after reading the information, Check and pay parcking penatly charge. Thank you again for your copperation. Dvsa.”
The initial text message has been followed up with scam reminders that say: “DVSA Fixed Penalty Office: Today is the last day to pay your ticket due to your long term delinquency, if you do not pay your ticket on time you may be required to pay more in the future and we reserve the right to prosecute you. Please be patient and open the link below to process your ticket. Thank you again for your co-operation.”
Another scam reminder says: “DVSA Fixed Penalty Office last notification: You have not paid your ticket within the stipulated time. Today is the last time to notify you to pay. We will ban your car from driving on the road starting tomorrow and transfer your parking ticket to the court. Please wait until you receive the information. Process your ticket as soon as possible in the link.”
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What to do if you receive a message
You do not need to contact DVSA if you have received the text message.
You can report scam text messages to the National Cyber Security Centre.
If you’ve been tricked into sharing personal information with a scammer, you can take immediate steps to protect yourself. For example, if you have shared your bank details, you should contact your bank to discuss how to keep your account safe.
If you think the scammers have the password to any of your accounts, you should change the password on any of your accounts that use the same password.
If you’ve lost money or been hacked as a result of responding to a suspicious text message, report it to Action Fraud.
