ClarySage wrote on Aug 24
th, 2006 at 8:53pm:
There is a similar one doing the rounds - a card is pushed through letterbox to say that a parcel is awaiting delivery............only problem is you have to dial a premium rate number which starts charging at somewhere around £15!!!!! BEWARE!!!!!!
It is not actually possible to be charged £15 unless you held on the phone for more than 10minutes. I remember that scam a while ago.
The highest charge possible from a landline is £1.50 per minute (mobile companies do charge more - around £2 odd I think).
If you read
this .pdf file from ICSTIS they state, and I quote:-
Quote:To put your mind at rest, the reference to £15 is an urban myth. It is not possible for a £15 charge to be made on connection. We also have a number of measures in place in our Code of Practice to ensure that consumers are protected from unexpectedly high charges. Calls and texts cost a maximum of £1.50 per minute. The particular service referred to in the chain e-mail used a recorded message which lasted a maximum of 6 minutes - making the total cost £9. Under the Code, all service providers must state clearly in promotional material the likely costs for calls to each service (either per minute or total charge inclusive of VAT).
It was discussed on MSE forum
here about 2 weeks ago although the scam is a lot older than that.