OfficeResponse

To what lengths should we go to prevent the world’s villains from taking advantage of our services? I’m moved to write after reading about convicted fraudster Cameron Thurston, 35, who had been a client of a telephone answering service at KBC Harrow Exchange.

The information age has made life harder for cheats, scammers and fraudsters to adopt fake identities and to set up bogus companies but it still goes on and a mailing address with a telephone reception service all helps with their deceptions.

The dual South African-British national was a director of import-export firm Synergy Services Ltd and he was the sixth member of an organised crime gang to be sentenced for his part in helping to steal £17m from the exchequer using what is known as a “Carousel Fraud”.

A few years ago we had a new customer who purported to be a representative of a London based Recruitment Company and attempted to order various items from local businesses with the invoices being sent to his “employer” in London. Fortunately his activities were discovered before he could cause any major damage.

You can’t be too careful and we insist on a number of safeguards before we accept a new client for mailing addresses and telephone answering combined. Specifically we check company status with Companies House and we require copies of ID and proof of address for all users of mailing address facilities.

It’s amazing how many new business enquiries disappear when we explain our procedures for the services they require.

Martin Blain
Sales Director