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DVSA warns of fake parking fine text messages threatening ‘driving ban’

Emily Sergeant

Motorists are being warned about fake text messages about parking fines, threatening them with a driving ban if they don’t pay.

Not long after it became known that Manchester tops the list of UK places to motorists most often receive a parking ticketThe Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is now warning of fake text messages currently circulating nationwide, threatening recipients with a range of terrifying measures if they don’t pay up.

The scam messages warn people that they will receive a ‘parking ticket’ and that if they do not pay on time they may have to pay more or appear in court.

There are even threats of banning people from driving if they do not pay the fine.

⚠️We know people are still receiving text messages about parking fines that appear to be from the DVSA.

This is a scam. Find out what to do if you received this text message at 👇 https://t.co/mKShfEw5Oc

— Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (@DVSAgovuk) September 24, 2024

The first text message sent by the scammers, posing as the DVSA, read: “DVSA message to you: You have a parking fine due on 2024/9/30. If you don’t pay your fine on time, you could be disqualified from driving, have to pay more or be taken to court.

“After reading the information, enter your license plate number in the link, check and pay the parking fine. Thanks again for your purchase. Dvsa.”

Recipients of the texts have noted that there are several spelling errors in the text, including ‘haeve’, ‘parcking’ and ‘copperation’, all of which indicate that the message is not from a real source. Government source.

Scam messages with follow-up reminders have also been sent to some phones, stating: “Today is the last day to pay your fine due to your long-term default” and “if you do not pay your fine on time, you may have to pay more in the future and we reserve the right to prosecute you”.

Another follow-up message also threatens a ‘ban on driving on the road from tomorrow’ and falsely states that authorities will ‘transfer your parking ticket to the court’.

The DVSA wants motorists to know that they do not issue or process parking fines.

Read more:

If you have received one of these scam messages, we recommend that you report it to the National Cyber ​​Security Center. hereand if you think you have been scammed and shared your personal information with a scammer, don’t worry. You can take immediate steps to protect yourself.

Find out what to do if you think you’ve been scammed here.

Main image – Samuel Regan-Asante (via Unsplash)