HMRC arrest-warrant robocall — press 1 — SCAM
Got the classic automated message: 'This is HMRC. A warrant has been issued for your arrest. Press 1 to speak to an officer.' Played twice in one day from different CLIs.
If anyone reading this is unsure: HMRC does not threaten arrest by phone, full stop. Arrest is the police's job, not HMRC's, and any genuine action follows due-process steps in writing first. HMRC's own scam contact list makes this explicit.
Do not press 1 — pressing connects you to a real scammer who will work the script harder. Just hang up and forward any related text to 7726.
2 replies
- Ben C.12 days ago
Three of these in the last week here. All from different spoofed 0300 numbers (which makes it worse because 0300 reads as 'official'). Reported all to Action Fraud — got the reference numbers back, no further action expected but the aggregated data does help apparently.
- Yvonne F.10 days ago
Tip: my elderly father got caught by an earlier version of this in 2024 and was talked into buying £400 in Amazon vouchers. The 'HMRC officer' said the vouchers were how the courts now accepted bond payments. That detail alone should have made it obvious, but he was scared.
If you have older relatives, please walk them through the red flags in common UK scam patterns — voucher requests, urgency, secrecy.
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