Step 1 – STOP further payforit charges from the same source.
If you are receiving text messages like those above, you need to stop them to avoid further charges. Don’t ignore them. Don’t waste time at this stage arguing with your network. Your network will almost certainly tell you to go and negotiate with the third party company who have taken your money. They won’t take responsibility and are unlikely to help you. You need to take action to prevent further unauthorised charges to your account. The best way to do this is by phoning the number given in the received text. If you phone, you can ask for a full refund of the charges at the same time. Tell them you never knowingly subscribed to their service and that you require a full refund.
If you phone, record the conversation so that there can be no subsequent dispute about what was said.
If you prefer, or if you are within a ‘free trial’ period, you can send a STOP text to the shortcode given in the text. In the example above it is necessary to text STOP or STOP ALL to 83463 to prevent further charges to your account. ‘STOP ALL’ should stop all services on the given shortcode. This can be useful if you have, or think you might have, been signed up to more than one service. There are two problems with stopping the charges by sending a STOP text:
1. The text is chargeable (usually only 10p)
2. The companies sometimes take your sending of a STOP text as an indication that you accept the charges already made. This makes getting a refund more difficult.
You need to be sure to send the STOP message to the shortcode number in the subscription text. This text should be charged at your standard network rate. You should receive a confirmation text to confirm that you have been unsubscribed. Keep these texts until the whole matter is satisfactorily resolved.
Ask for confirmation of anything agreed in writing to avoid subsequent disputes. If they refuse to do this, send them an email outlining what you believe was agreed and asking them to contact you if anything in that email is disputed. Obtain delivery and read receipts for emails and retain these until the matter is resolved.
Basically, these companies are operating fraudulently and you should not trust anything they say. Judge them by their deeds and not by their words!
The charge receipt comes from Payforit and looks like this:
It is no use replying to this message, or indeed sending any message to Payforit.
Sometimes, all that is received is the Payforit receipt. In this case you need to identify the five digit number which is originating the charges.
If the Payforit receipt text is received without the accompanying sign up texts, you won’t know who to contact to stop the fraudulent subscription. In this case you have a deduction, but you don’t know what it is for. What to do if you can’t identify the originator of the charges
Try to approach the process in an organised and businesslike manner. Record calls and keep texts. Ask for written confirmation of anything agreed verbally. Most people get a full refund, but you do need to follow the process. You can rant all you like at your network, but the system makes it difficult for them to stop the charges. I agree that they could and should do much more, but if you delay in taking action yourself you will weaken your legal position.
If you’re not clear what Payforit is, look here.
Stopped the texts? Time for Step 2 – try to get a refund.
Hi Paul,
Just been caught out by parforit.org and loaded Mobi to the tune of about £20, please contact me via email.
Hi Chris
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Have you managed to get this sorted out?
Paul
Hi I have been caught out with the same thing they have taken £34 off me.. I don’t know how I can stop this … help please
If you’ve been caught out by a payforit scam you need to follow the steps on this website. If, after following those steps, you still need help, come back and post again on this website.
We are receiving over £200 a month to my partners phone contract bill. All it states is subscriptions but no code or anything. Vodafone are looking into it and getting back to us in 7 days. They said it is fraudulent. Is there anything we can do to claim the money back? You’re hell is much appreciated
I am a 79 year old lady and have experienced Premium SMS fraud from Remote Gamed Ltd. and would be interested to know if anyone else has faced a similar issue?
They took nearly £45 from my bank account without consent which is a lot for a lady in my situation. I haven’t as yet received a refund and all requests have been ignored.
It seems they have found away to steal money from peoples banks via their phone bills.
There is some good news though, from investigation the owners of this company Remote Games Ltd, Robert James Morley, Carl Barker, Gary Cooper and Colin Mc Caffery are going to soon face criminal charges, a huge fine and potential jail sentences for their actions.
Hi Margaret
Sorry for the delay in replying. My wife was scammed by Remote Games, so I am particularly interested in any information you have concerning them. Have you made a complaint to the Phone-paid Services Agency?
Remote Games did eventually refund my wife, but it took about 6 weeks.
Let me know if I can help in any way – I promise not to take so long getting back to you next time!
Paul
I have been charged £18 for a scam from this number. Sent the STOP message to which they confirmed my subscription will be cancelled after 24 hrs. O2 also said that they have blocked 3rd party charges to my account, which I thought might be more difficult to achieve after reading up on the subject. I will test this tomorrow using the bus information service.
Company details:
Tap2Bill Limited
5 St. John’s Lane
Farringdon
London
EC1M 4BH
United Kingdom
Lasevia Investments Limited
Service name: Classic Movies
Keyword: PFI Service
Service Type: Entertainment – non-adult
Service started on: 13 March 2018
Service ended on: Active
Do you advise to also ring them to ensure everything is cancelled?
If you haven’t already you should phone them to get your £18 refunded and confirm that your subscription is cancelled. Record the call. Also make sure that you report the scam to Phone-paid Services Authority. Lasevia have been reported several times in the past couple of days for these scams, so you are not alone. I’d be interested to know if you are able to confirm that O2 are able to block third party charges. Let me know how it goes.
Paul
Thanks Paul. That’s all done. Not holding my breath for the refund though. O2’s claim that they barred 3rd party charges seems to be non-sense……the bus information service you provided on another page gives me a response , and I was charged twice – 10p and 83p.
Thanks for reporting back Jonathan. Let me know if/when you get a refund. Hopefully the regulator will look in Lasevia ltd as you are not the only person reporting a problem and they claim to be using two step authorisation.
I had an exchange with O2 on Twitter last week at which they assured me that they could and would block third-party charges on request.
It would appear that this is not the case.
Just tried the bus information service again, and i still got a response. I will check my bill tomorrow to see if I have been charged.
So I contacted o2 again today who first said that the third party bar is in place and was initiated on the 10th April. So I asked why I had been charged again by the bus information service. After them trying to fob me off I actually got them to say that even though the block is in place, its actually useless and I’ll still be charged if I get scammed again. How ridiculous!!!
Yes, it would seem that O2’s ‘charge to bill’ bar is ineffective against at least one method of third party charging. To be fair to them, the bus information service is not a ‘Payforit’ service, but does involve you being charged to receive a text. To confirm that Payforit is blocked (or not) you could try making a small donation to one of the charities which accept this method of payment.
So we now know that Three and O2 are unable to offer protection against third party charges. What about EE and Vodafone? Anyone?
Hi I too have had 4 payments of £4.50 taken from my O2 account this month. I can’t find the email I received from Lasevia so I can stop it. Do you have any contact details for them. Thanks Bob
Lasevia Ltd is based in Cyprus. They use shortcode 83463, so sending STOP ALL to 83463 should stop further charges. They have a helpline number 03300538806 which you can call to request a refund. Some consumers have reported obtaining a refund without too much difficulty. If you are refused a refund, there are various steps open to you, including a Small Claim against O2, citing their negligence in allowing a known scammer to have access to your account.
Can someone help me please.
I received a text last week along the lines of thanking me for signing up to pay for it. No idea what that is. It just popped up whilst I was browsing internet. I stupidly ignored the text an deleted it as thought it was a scam an didn’t take much notice. Until today when I received a message from Giffgaff saying I had auto topped up and a message from pay for it thanking me. I have NEVER signed up to any sites or subscriptions so how do I stop them stealing my money an report it?
Help please.
Hi Debbie
The first step is to identify what company is charging you. As well as the payforit receipt, you should have received at least on other text with information on how to contact this company. It will have come from a five digit number. If you can’t find this text, check that you are not blocking any texts.
If, after following this advice you are unable to identify the source of the charges, take a look at https://payforitsucks.co.uk/cant-identify-originator-charges/.
If you can find a phone number for the company, it’s best to phone them to complain, cancel the subscription and demand a refund. If possible, record this call and ask for a text or email confirmation of what has been agreed.
This should be done as a matter of urgency, to prevent further charges being applied to your account.
You should then complain to the Phone-paid Services Authority, the process for doing this is described on this website.
If there are other issues not covered on the website, let me know and I will advise. Please let me know how you get on.
Paul
Sent STOP to the code but have not received a txt back to say I have unsubscribed
What was the number you sent to, and what was the name of the service you were subscribed to? Is there a phone number you could ring?
If you re still having a problem, give me this information and I can advise further.
Hope you manage to get it sorted out, and don’t forget to put in a complaint to PSA.
I’ve just been told I’ve been signed up to some books service I didn’t request by Lasevia. When I try sending STOP to the number given (83463) it doesn’t send. All the advice on-line suggests you should phone the number provided (0330 053 8808) to cancel too. I did this, but it just seemed to be a loop with the same menu, and I was concerned it was another scam charging a premium rate, so I hung up.
Hi Jennifer
Lasevia ltd have been appearing in quite a few reports recently. They use shortcode 83463 which is also used by a number of other scam services. Sending STOP ALL to 83463 should work and will be charged as a standard shortcode text message, 10p on most networks. If you are on PAYG, and have no credit, this might be why the text didn’t work. Or you may have blocked premium rate texts.
Calls to the 03 number will be included in any calls package you have and aren’t premium rate, so don’t worry about that. It’s a good idea to record any phone call, if only to be able to prove the difficulty you had! Often these phone lines are unmanned at the weekend, but there is usually an automated option to unsubscribe. If you cannot get a result on the number you have been given, you could also try calling Tap2Bill who are the company with overall responsibility for this shortcode. Their number is 0333 003 0599 (again this is not a premium number but treated as a standard call).
Hope you manage to get this sorted out, and please make a complaint to PSA about this company as I know there are a number of other similar cases.
Let me know if you need any more help.
I was charged, 89p and 10p. So looks like the person I spoke to at O2 was telling porkies.
bodyin8 charged Me – £23.00 contacted P.S.A they gave me the relevant email to complain to as I have no way signed up to this rubbish. The response obviously states all was above board as they are not likely to want to be seen a fraudulent operation (which they are!) I get the impression if I go back to the P.S.A it is a waste of time?
If you did not sign up to Bodyin8 you should complain to PSA and get a case number. Although PSA do not pursue individual cases, they do use reports to build up evidence that a company is in breach of it’s Code of Conduct.
Bodyin8 will probably issue a refund without much argument, but don’t let this deter you from complaining that they charged you without consent. Whether or not they refund you, insist on seeing proof of when and how you signed up to their ‘service’.
It is important that you do register a complaint, to help get this company closed down as quickly as possible and fined. PSA can issue and have issued fines of £250,000 for each breach of the code.
Complaining might not benefit you financially (if you have received a full refund), but will help protect consumers in the future. One of the reasons that these scams continue is that only about 5% of affected consumers complain.
heya, ive recently found out that payforit is a reall thing and is stressing me out…..
Anyway, i have texed ‘stop all’ to 83463 and i havent got a reply from them. Can someone help?
Hi Jemma
It’s a bit worrying that you got no reply when you texted STOP to 83463. Make sure that you keep the text you sent and that you record any phone calls.
If you have tried these methods and not managed to stop the subscription you should go back to your mobile network. Tell them you have done what they asked and it hasn’t worked.
Also, make sure that you file a complaint with Phone-paid Services Authority and get a case number. Be insistent as they don’t like registering complaints. Let me know if you need any more help.
Paul
I also have just learned I have been charged £4.50 per week from a company called Lasevia for a subscription to classic movies. I’ve never heard of this service before and certainly never subscribed. I text STOP to the number shown in the text. No confirmation that I’d unsubscribed arrived so I called the phone number. It is apparently a filter service – the call handler said she was only able to collect my data and pass it on to another company. What to do now? Contact my bank? Complaints authorities? Any idea of the likelihood of a refund?
Hi Louise
Lasevia feature prominently in the current crop of ‘Payforit’ scams. They are based in Cyprus, but operate through a UK based processor called Tap2Bill. Details are here: https://payforitsucks.co.uk/scams-using-shortcode-83463/
It would be worth giving Tap2Bill a ring to see if they can help. Insist on a refund as you didn’t agree to these charges.
If you have been unable to confirm that your ‘subscription’ has been stopped, you should go back to your mobile network. Tell them that you have done as they asked, but it hasn’t worked. They should then help you.
You should put in a complaint to the Phone-paid Services Agency, as described on my website. Please do this regardless of whether you get a refund. It is fundamentally wrong that these charges can be applied to consumers’ phone bills without their consent. Let me know if you need any further help or support.
Paul
John
I am in exactly the same deadly embrace. I phoned the number and was told I would receive a call back. No point ranting as they are conditioned criminals. Contacting O2 next though from all responses here it looks like this will not be too useful. Wonder if anyone has felt the need to cancel their service with one of the providers as a last resort
Hi John
As you say, it can be very frustrating, not to say time-consuming, dealing with these scams. The scammers rely on most people giving up because it is not worth the time and effort required to pursue relatively small losses. Of course by taking small amounts from a large number of people, these scams can be very profitable!
Cancelling your service with O2 would probably be counter-productive. O2 claim that they ‘only allow trusted partners’ to make third party charges to your account. https://www.o2.co.uk/charge-to-mobile
None of the other mobile networks has a great record in dealing with these scams. At present they all pass the buck back to the consumer to sort it out.
O2 claim to be able to put a ‘charge to bill’ bar on your account which they claim will stop ‘Payforit’ charges, but this has yet to be proved effective.
If you continue to have difficulty contacting the ‘service provider’ which has charged you, the advice of PSA is that you should then go back to your network and tell them of your difficulty. Keep all messages and record all phone calls, so that there can be no subsequent dispute about what was said. If O2 fail to help you in these circumstances, I think you would have a good chance taking action against them in the small claims court. As far as I know, no case has ever got this far though, as they always settle when put under this kind of pressure.
Do make sure you register your case with the PSA. They are pretty useless as a regulator, but can issue large fines against the worst offenders.
Let me know how you get on.
Paul
Thanks Paul. I will call O2 and let you know how I get on. Small claims court would work I’m sure but it should not have to be like this. It’s outrageous that the phone providers allow this to happen
Hi Paul
After a couple of brusque calls with the perpetrator I seem to be unsubscribed and my money has been refunded to PayPal. The company concerned is Samardia which says I activated this which is nonsense. I will pursue with O2 next as this is outrageous. If banks are held to account for credit card payments you did not authorise then the mobile operators should also. I will let you know how I go and what response I get back from both O2 and the PSA. Do you know at all if any MP is making a stand on this?
Hi John
Congrats on getting your money back. Samardia really need to tell you EXACTLY how and when you signed up. They are supposed to be able to do this, and if they can’t you should update your case with PSA with this information. It isn’t enough for them to say you signed up – THEY HAVE TO PROVE IT.
A recent article http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-4191988/MP-condemns-firms-charge-unwanted-phone-texts.html named John Mann MP as taking an interest in these scams.
PSA will take a long time to respond, although they normally tell you whether they are pursuing your complaint further within a couple of weeks. If they choose not to pursue your case it is worth insisting on proof that you consented to the charge. PSA do have a complaints mechanism which might be worth invoking if you are not satisfied with their actions (or lack of them!).
Keep me informed of your progress,
Paul
My wife was caught by this scam on her birthday.
She received a message (she thinks it may have been through Facebook Messenger, but can’t find it) with a link to a birthday card. She opened the card, said “how lovely, but it doesn’t say who it’s from”. Soon after, a text arrived from 30090009 (she’s on giffgaff, if that’s relevant) which said “PayForIT Charge” and nothing else.
Every seven days since she has had the same text message again, and every one is charged at £4.50 on her giffgaff account. Some birthday present!
There was no original message giving details of the charge, unless it was hidden somewhere in the birthday card.
The PayForIt messages don’t say who the charge is from.
mobilepaymentsupport.com says there are no subscriptions on her number.
So she doesn’t know who is taking the payments, only that they originated with a birthday greeting from an unknown source.
The only options left seem to be to complain to giffgaff and see where that takes her (all the time being charged £4.50 every week) or close her giffgaff account and get a new mobile account with a completely new number (not a transfer), with all the inconvenience that involves.
It’s easy to see in hindsight how this scam works. All the scammers need is to know your birthday (e.g. from Facebook) and send you an online card with the “signup” embedded in it. Once you open it on your phone, they’ve got you – forever, it seems. PayForIT sucks alright!
Hi Mike
You are discovering just how ludicrous this system is.You get a receipt for your payment, but you don’t know who to contact, or where the payment went. Make sure you are not blocking the receipt of premium texts.
It might be worth sending STOP ALL to 83463 as this number seems to be associated with about 50% of the reported scams.
Failing this I would ask a GiffGaff agent to identify where your money is going. I have found GiffGaff to be pretty hopeless at this, but escalate it to a formal complaint if necessary. The ‘Payforit’ rules EXPECT the networks to help you to identify the source of the charges if you are unable to, and GiffGaff should be taking this responsibility seriously.
You can also ask the Phone-paid Services Authority for help in identifying the charges if you are having difficulty.
Once you have identified the source of the charges, make sure that you make a complaint to PSA and ask for a refund of the charges already taken from the company who took your money.
Good luck with this. Let me know if I can offer any further help, or if you encounter difficulties following this advice.
Paul
Thank you Paul. Our main problem is identifying who is taking the money. The initial message and payment receipt came to a phone which has since died and can’t be recovered as it won’t charge (broken usb socket). Later payment receipts came to the replacement phone, which doesn’t have premium texts blocked.
In the short term we have (we think) prevented future payments being taken by reducing the account balance to less than the £4.50 being taken. (On giffgaff, premium text payments – also premium rate calls and photo messages I think – are taken from account balance, rather than monthly goodybags, which cover noemal calls, texts and data, so you can use the phone with a goodybag even with a zero payg balance). The problem is to identify the source of the scam. We will try 83463 to stop payments and contact giffgaff as you suggest. If successful,we’ll then move on to getting the money back.
Mike
Hi Mike
What you are doing with your GiffGaff account makes absolute sense. The scammers can only take from your airtime balance and can’t touch a goodbag. Just make sure auto-topup is switched off.
GiffGaff are REQUIRED by PSA to help you in these circumstances, so don’t take any nonsense and escalate to a formal complaint if necessary.
If premium texts are not blocked, you should be receiving texts indicating who is charging you.
You have identified one of the many problems with ‘Payforit’. You get a receipt saying money has been taken from your account, but this text doesn’t tell you who to contact about the charges! This information is in separate texts which sometimes seem not to arrive.
Keep me informed of how you get on with this and come back to me if I can help further.
I have just found 2 on my bill one for funny video and one for nuyoo fitness . I have been caught for about £25 which three have refunded half… I have sent the stop all and stop texts but no reply. Anyone else not had a reply but it’s stopped?. I don’t really care so much about claiming £12.50 back but just want it stopped three will not block it.
Hi Darren
As a first step I suggest that you phone Nuyoo and Remote Games Ltd (who are responsible for the funny videoa ‘service’). Make sure that you subscriptions are stopped and insist on a full refund of charges already taken. If they refuse to refund, insist on seeing their evidence that you consented to the charges.
It is a disgrace that once one of these scams has been initiated, none of the networks is able to stop it. If I tell my bank that fraudulent charges are being made to my account, they will stop them. The same should apply to fraudulent charges to phone accounts.
It is also a disgrace that Three are one of the few networks unable to place a bar on ‘Payforit’ transactions. Three subscribers have no choice but to remain exposed to these scams.
Let me know if any further help or advice is needed.
Paul
Paul,
Thanks for the tip about turning off auto top-up on giffgaff, we had forgotten that.
Have tried STOP ALL to 83463 even though we don’t know if that’s who is taking the money; no reply yet (though not sure if replies come from there anyway).
The next £4.50 weekly payment is “due” on Friday 11th May; it will be interesting to see what happens, now that the airtime balance is down to less than £2. Unfortunately we can’t leave it like that permanently as it prevents international use and the occasional premium call or message. The minimum top-up is £10, which of course would be enough for the scammers to take a couple more payments.
Premium texts are set to allowed, and always have been. It looks like there has never been any message of any sort to say who is taking the money.
Next step is to complain to giffgaff. Your links to PSA documents will be a great help with that.
Thanks for what you are doing with this site; without it we, and a lot of other people I’m sure, would be completely in the dark about what’s happening to our mobile accounts.
Regards,
Mike
I have had this issue as well I’ve done the stop all to the message and have had nothing back
Hi Emma. If you didn’t get a reply to the STOP text, it’s probably best to ring the Customer Service line in the texts you have received. Make sure that you are unsubscribed and insist on a full refund of any money already taken.
Hi,
I have been affected by the same scam. I rang my network (3) who were not helpful at all. The woman I called knew exactly what I was talking about which I feel shows how many of their customers have been affected by this.
The text I received was from ‘books4you’ something I have no idea what is… I have texted STOP and STOP ALL to the 5 didgit number in the text sent but have not received any response – is this normal or will they just continue to charge me.
I am hesitant to call as I am unsure how much the number will cost to ring.
Thanks for any help
Hi Martha
I’m afraid Three seem to be affected by these scams more than some of the other networks. The customer services number for Lasevia’s Books4You service is given as 0330 053 8806. This is a standard rate landline number (charged the same as 01 and 02 numbers and covered by any inclusive minutes in your contract).
Call them and ensure that the bogus subscription has been stopped. Also insist on a full refund of any money they have taken from you. Make it clear that if they don’t refund you will go to the Small Claims Court. They know they would lose and always pay out in these circumstances.
You might also like to add to the reviews of Lasevia Ltd on Trustpilot. https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/lasevia.com
It is a disgrace that the networks allow companies like this to take money from your phone account.
Hello, I’ve been getting charged £3 from taptronic for fitguru, which has been news to me. I’ve not sent STOP message as don’t want to hamper any refunds but the helpline (0330 223 1099) doesn’t appear to be working or at least nobody talks when I’ve called it. Any suggestions?
Hi Rich
The Fitguru website gives a different helpline number of 0333 212 4631. It might be worth calling this number. If the number they have given you is wrong that is useful piece of additional evidence when it comes to getting a refund. If you can’t get through on the phone, I’d record the call so that you can prove that you tried. Then send the STOP message to stop further charges. Complain to the Phone-paid Services Authority, and include in the complaint the fact that the help line was dead and that you have a phone log and recording to prove it. Let us know how you get on.
I received 4 text messages of free trials by Tap2Bill in August. One time I attempted to call the Customer service number in the text, straight after hanging up I was signed up AGAIN, just to reiterate how important it is to check the number on the PSA Authority website rather than the text message.
I emailed them demanding to opt me out of the service and no longer contact me. They responded all services had been removed and heard nothing from them for a month then this week I was billed £4.50. Seems neverending!
It is more than outrageous. Its about time that an independent regulator was appointed to sort out the mobile operators with much more power over fines than the current one has. In the banking sector firms can be fined billions for this sort of behaviour. For the mobile operators its a tap on the shoulder. Until this self interest is ended this will carry on.
Hello,
I received the dreaded text from books4you this morning, I’m not entirely sure where this may have come from. No money was taken from my account immediately so I contacted 02 and told them I wanted the 2 different bars put on my account hoping this would take affect before money was tried to be taken out. Also asked if any charges had already occurred and was told no. I look a few hours later and £4.50 had now been taken. This is when I replied to the text ‘stop all’ and got an instant reply saying I’d been unsubscribed.
Should this be the end of it or should I still call up on Monday and make sure I’m unsubscribed and try for a refund?
Thanks for your help.
Adam
Hi Adam
Usually, the unsubscribe process works, so you should not receive any further charges. I’d certainly insist on a refund of the £4.50 (+the cost of sending the STOP ALL text). O2 should have explained to you that the ‘charge to bill’ bar on your account will not be effective against existing subscriptions. If they didn’t do this you could ask them for a refund of the £4.50. Failing this, you should ask Lasevia ltd, who run Books4you, for a refund. If they refuse you can then pursue Tap2Bill Ltd, who handled the payment on behalf of Lasevia.
Make sure you leave a review of Lasevia Ltd on Trustpilot (so that O2 can see the kind of company they are allowing to take money from customers accounts).
Also report the business to the regulator, as described on this website.
Books4you is a blatant scam – nobody in their right mind would pay £4.50 per week to read 20 unnamed ‘classic’ books, when they can subscribe to Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited for £7.99 per month. The ‘service’ has only one purpose – to exploit the vulnerabilities of the ‘Payforit’ system.
Please don’t let the scammers keep your money,
Paul
Hi. I have today discovered that charges have been made to my daughter’s phone bill (she’s 14, so I am the registered bill payer). She has never received any text messages, so how do we go about cancelling? Also, how can I find out how she supposedly started subscribing?
Thanks
If you’ve received no text messages, make sure that no messages have been blocked on the phone. If you can’t identify who has charged you, your network is supposed to help you with this.
Once you know who is charging you, you are entitled to ask them when and how they obtained your daughters consent. However, they are often unwilling or unable to provide this information and offer a refund instead.
Thanks, Paul. My network provided the contact details of both services, but they are now both claiming that they have no record of my daughter’s number having received any messages, and say that I must have the wrong contact details.. Eventually discovered that my daughter had been deleting the messages, which is why I had trouble finding them on her phone..I have managed to get screenshots of 2 messages which clearly state the name of the services, so we’ll see ow they respond to that. Will keep you posted – next step will be the PSA..
I may have received a text like this but unknowingly I deleted the text and now I seem to be getting charged £4.50 every 6 days. Is there anything I can do about it
Jake,
Try following the advice here.
Hi, I have found I am being charged through Vodafone for something called Bodyn8, which I did not ask for. I remember a text but ignored it as I thought it was scam by reply. Now I don’t have a text to refer back to and no way to reference where this is from. I’m assuming its Payforit linked. Without reference to a text is there anything I can do?
My mum has been victim to this, she has not given consent and does not wish to subscribe to any of these scammers such as TxtNation and Nexgen Ltd. She only uses her mobile for basic use and does not play games. She doesn’t even have the account set up with her bank card stored for any use of downloading apps to her mobile. As with her basic knowledge of the phone and internet she is extremely vulnerable to these scamming companies.
I have been to 02 with her & despite having replied STOP to the text messages, the issue still persists. First month they have charged £40 prior to knowing that have to send the STOP text back to them. Now that we have sent and requested STOP they have now charged £66 between these 2 awful companies, TxtNation and Nexgen Ltd. My poor mum is panicking, having a meltdown and already she has anxiety and this does not help her mental health at all. Not only does it affect her. It affects me too as I have to help sort it out for her as English is not her first language nor do I live in the same area as her and so makes it difficult to sort this out immediately.
02 staff also made an error as they have put a spending cap on the account to prevent further charges. Called 02 Customer Services and they checked the mobile account to find that The Bar service has not been applied in the first place and this can’t be done in an 02 store, it has to be done via 02 Customer Service which the 02 advisor didn’t even know at the time. Feel of The Bar service had been applied sooner it could’ve prevented further £66 being charged. My mum cannot afford these kind of ridiculous charges and basically stuck as sim only contract does not end till end of 2019.
02 could only advise to contact TxtNation and Nexgen directly to put stop to this continuation and also to get a refund. These companies should be banned from doing this.
GiffGaff are now advising:
“you can then block your device from receiving these charges in the future by disabling the feature here: https://www.giffgaff.com/call-services ”
The only applicable setting here is “Incoming premium calls and texts”, which can be set to “on” or “blocked”.
So I assume this is now their official way of turning these off. Incidentally, there is also a suggestion here:
https://labs.giffgaff.com/idea/16712363
… which can be voted for to get giffgaff to require opt-in for incoming premium services.
Tim,
You have unfortunately dealt with an agent that doesn’t understand how these bar work. GiffGaff are currently unable (or unwilling?) to bar these charges. Barring incoming texts WILL NOT stop the charges. But it will stop you seeing the information you need to stop them.
‘Payforit’ subscriptions are not strictly premium texts, although they are shown as such on your GiffGaff usage statement. ‘Payforit’ charges are applied directly to your account by a ‘third party’ which has acquired your phone number. GiffGaff make no check that you have consented to these charges, and refuse to allow you to bar them.
Hi, Just realised I have been charged by Megapromo in December £2.50 and January £2.50 . The text messages do not offer a Stop option they just tell me to go to website and login. I have tried the various telephone numbers for them I have found online but none of them work I have tried to email via their contact page and that just sticks and goes nowhere. I have sent an email to them directly but I am not optimistic. So how do I stop this? and how do I get a refund? Is it worth talking to O2? Thank you
The megapromo web page gives the five digit shortcode as 80845.
Details on the PSA website are:
80845
Customer care number
0203 318 8164
Customer care email
help@megapromo.co.uk
Customer care website
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd has not provided this information
Search result provided by
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd
Service connected on
03 July 2018
Service terminated on
This service is still operating
Name of service
Mega Promo
Type of service
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd has not provided this information
Service description
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd has not provided this information
How much does this service cost?
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd has not provided this information
If you would like to find out more about this service or have a question about it, then you should contact the service provider below.
Terra Mobile Consulting Ltd
Dimokratias 25
Limassol
3012
Cyprus
If you don’t get a response from their published phone number and published email address, you should ask O2 for help. Also report them to PSA.
Hi Paul,
Thank you for your quick response and info. I managed to get most it from PSA but didn’t find their 80845 STOP number from the Megapromo website so thanks for that I have now text them STOP but no response yet. I have tried the phone number it doesn’t work. I also tried to message them via their website and the just sits there saying Please Wait so I have emailed them direct via the email address above.
I also spoke to O2 via their live chat the guy gave me 4 numbers to text STOP to 68680, 65557, 82223 & 89999 he also credited £10 to my account as a good will gesture!
I’m still going after Megapromo though as it’s outrageous that these companies can just do this when ever they like to whoever they like. I’ll let you know how I get on. This website is great by the way!
Hi Paul, I have been charged twice on my o2 bill for £4.50 each time, and once for receiving a PayforIT text message which costs £3.75. You’ll bet that o2 didn’t want to know about this, but have placed a block on my number to stop it happening in the future. I wonder if it will actually work or not!? I want to contact the service who stole my money for a refund but I only received the receipt text message, which came from number 30090009. I can’t find the number to text STOP to, and the MPS doesn’t find anything on what my number might be subscribed to. o2 tell me that the charges are from Wahoo London Ltd. Are you please able to help me find out how I can contact them to cancel and get a refund?!
The 30090009 number is used by a company called Tap2Bill who are what is called a level 1 provider. They provide the payment gateway to a number of scam services. You can call Tap2Bill on 0333 003 0599 or email them at customer.service@tap2bill.com. However if O2 have told you that it is Wahoo Ltd, it’s probably worth contacting them directly. They can be called on 03300538651. They can be emailed at helpdesk@wahoolondon.com. The company address is Wahoo London, 124 Cromwell Road, Kensington, London, SW7 4ET. The director are Michael KENNEDY and Jonathan KENNEDY.
If they refuse to give you a full refund, it will be a simple matter to get a resolution using the Small Claims procedure.
Thanks so much for your quick reply! I’ll get straight on this!
Just a note to say thanks for your work on this site – I had a pop-up on a reputable cycling website (I think delivered through an ad-service) then received a text from JamJar Mobile telling me they would charge me £4.50 each week. I didn’t know payforit even existed until I found this site!
O2 have refunded the money but their well-meaning support staff were adamant that O2 does not supply customers numbers to third party sites. Not true, I think..
I’ve reported JamJar to the Phone-paid Services Authority and am using a variation of your excellent GDPR template letter to complain to O2. Thanks again.
Hi Paul,
I just received this morning a message that I have been subscribing to pay 4.50p to hdwallpapers. shop
Since I have a goodybag, no payment has been withdrawn from my account.
What will happen if I will never reply to their number and they will continue to send me messages?
Is it possible to come after me in the future, when the total payment they will expect from me will considerably increase?
Because I intend to not reply to their number since I saw a lot of people didn’received a reply back.
Also,can changing your number stop the subscription?
Thank you!
Hi Samuel
Money can only be taken from your airtime credit,so if you only ever use goodybags, you will be OK. However, if you ever top up your airtime credit, the £4.50 may then be taken. So it is probably best to ask them to cancel the subscription.. This should also stop you receiving any further text messages.
Changing your number may stop the messages, but is unnecessary and probably not a good idea, unless changing your number will be very easy for you (and your contacts). Phone their number, during working hours Mon – Fri, to ensure they cancel the subscription. They are unlikely to argue as they have no way of taking any money!
Well they got me too for 4.50 and I can’t be bothered to go through this crap for a refund. I can’t believe such an awful criminal thing is allowed… It’s blantant theft
I discovered yesterday that Demon Games have been charging my account £3.00 a week through Vodafone for a subscription that I did not sign up for. Looking back through my texts I did receive a message from Demon Games which I assumed to be spam and didn’t read. It seems I should have texted back STOP to cancel this subscription that I never signed up for. Did I click a pop up by mistake? Who knows. If I did that should be enough to sign up for a subscription service.
Vodafone are no help and refuse to accept any responsibility even though they are allowing their system to be used to take these scam payments . After an hour online chat to them I was told I would receive a refund for the £18 charged to my account after I threatened to cancel my contracts with them. I received a text later that night stating the charges ‘were correct and no refund will be issued’. I will be leaving when my contract expires this year.
I’m so angry about this because I have just been robbed through my mobile account and didn’t even know it had happened. I don’t even know what games Demon Games sell. I don’t play games on my phone.
I’ve spoken to them and they said they can refund 4 weeks (£12) through Paypal which I’m still waiting for but doubt I will see. I then received an unsubscribed text from them confirming the ‘cancellation’.
Seriously, if it’s that easy to get mugged on your phone I’m thinking I’ll stop using it. I’ve lodged a complaint with PSA. Apparently the parent company is PM Connect, the directors of which have won awards for Entrepreneur of the Year. Nice.
Nick, you really shouldn’t accept a partial refund. You are entitled to see proof that you consented to the charges or receive a FULL refund. PM Connect are a member of CommsADR which gives you an easy way to make your claim. https://www.commsadr.co.uk/createclaim/. Insist on a FULL refund or:
• Screenshots of the subscription workflow where you were alleged to have signed up for this service.
• A description of what the service you are supposed to have subscribed to provides? Is this a newsletter, access to a web portal?
• Any evidence that after supposedly signing up for the service, you actually used it
• The complete web server log of the subscription, including the User Agent strings containing all device details (browser, device type, device IP address) together with dates and times.
• Full company details of the company operating the service, country of registration, full name of company, company number and registered company address.
• The company’s disputes procedure including details of any ADR scheme you can use if you are refused a full refund.
Most people do manage to get a full refund from this company if the are persistent. Don’t let the scammers win!
***UPDATE*** I contacted the CEO/Director of Vodafone and a representative from his office replied to say they will issue a full refund for the charges and an additional goodwill credit of £29. It seems you have to go to the top to get the issue sorted but Vodafone have rectified the situation. I will be checking my bill closely for now on.
I’ve been gotten by this scam also, Modo Games are the ones who got me. The response from Three has been absolutely pathetic, I intend to leave Three (after more than 10 years with them) but I am unsure who to go to. Are there ANY phone companies in the UK that don’t allow this kind of nonsense to go on? If there are none that do, are there any that at least offer me the option of blocking premium texts?
Hi Nick,
Three are now by far the worst network for Payforit scams. They make no effort to protect their customers and are the ONLY MNO not to allow you tp place a charge to bill bar to protect yourself from these scams.
EE currently offer the best protection. They allow a charge to bill bar AND have had a two-factor authorisation requirement since February 2018.
O2 have belatedly introduced a two factor authorisation rule in May this year. However, enforcement is patchy and I can’t really recommend them. O2 allow a charge to bill bar.
Vodafone offer no protection, but unlike Three they do allow you a charge to bill bar to protect yourself.
Some of the MVNO’s don’t allow Payforit at all. I believe this is the case with Lycamobile. There are probably others.
I hope this helps you, and that you successfully recover your money from Modo Games.
Does anyone know how I would find the shortcode for texts from wapstar? Just discovered Payforit have taken £85 as my other half was ignoring and deleting the texts as he thought they were spam.
The shortcode used by Wapstar is 83463. There have been a lot of complaints about this “service” recently.
You need to send a STOP text to 83463 and then set about getting your money refunded.
Customer care number
0330 053 5841
Customer care email
assist@careformobile.com
Customer care website
Remote Games Ltd has not provided this information
Search result provided by
Remote Games Ltd
Service connected on
20 November 2018
Service terminated on
This service is still operating
Name of service
Wapstar
Type of service
Entertainment – non-adult
Service description
Wapstar is a service that gives access to Games, Funny videos, Game Guides & more.
How much does this service cost?
Weekly subscription for £4.50 per week.
If you would like to find out more about this service or have a question about it, then you should contact the service provider below.
Remote Games Ltd
Remote Games
PO Box 5501
Manchester
M61 0PL
United Kingdom
Thank you – I’ve sent the text and emailed them. They replied saying that £45 had been ‘spent’ and they would refund it.
I’m wondering if the phone is subscribed to two different things as £85 has been taken.
It could be that you were “subscribed” to two services – in which case the problem is identifying which.
You should also check the amounts yourself, by asking your network for an account statement. Your network has a duty to identify the source of any “third party” charges on your account. If they are difficult, you can insist on this information using GDPR.
The 83463 shortcode is used by a number of dodgy “services”.
Hi Paul,
Just want to say that you’re an angel! Absolute life-saver.
Found out that over £500 has been deducted in over 3 years, and yes as a Three customer there was no way for me to opt out.
After lots of emails back and fort, where initially £40 was offered with an ‘exceptional above their current terms’ of £175 after a few emails – UME Limited has finally accepted to refund the full amount owed.
Many many thanks, really appreciate the website with the clear guidelines. Absolute life-saver!
After recently upgrading my sons phone who’s just just turned 16, and going through a few things with EE I’ve found out that since April 2016 ifitness have been charging £3 per week added on to the bill. Not having a paper bill sent through paying 4 Bill’s at the same time and paying direct debit I’ve never checked. After a long chat with EE and a rather unhelpful conversation with ifitness I’ve had to speak to PSA. I’ve never given permission for this and my son would have only been 11/12 at the time so a minor who doesn’t have the authority to do this as I’m the bill payer. Fuming to say the least and not holding my breath for a refund. This needs to be stopped its fraud and theft
Hi Hayley. EE introduced rules to prevent auto-subscription scams like this back in February 2018. Indeed they were the first network to do this.Unfortunately the rule changes didn’t apply to existing “subscriptions” like yours.
If you have already “discussed” the matter with iFitness, you will need to use pursue the matter further with PMConnect, which is the company rsponsible for this “service”.
First, you need a statement form iFitness or PMConnect that they are not prepared to discuss the matter further. If they just fail to respond to emails, keep the details of the emails sent.
Legally, under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, the burden of proof rests with the service provider and not with you. If they can’t prove consent to charge, you are entitled to a FULL refund together with any costs you have reasonably incurred in obtaining it.
As a first step, I suggest that you then raise the matter with CommsADR here: https://www.commsadr.co.uk/createclaim/
In your complaint you should insist on proof that you consented to their charges. Ask for:
• Screenshots of the subscription workflow where you were alleged to have signed up for this service.
• A description of what the service you are supposed to have subscribed to provides? Is this a newsletter, access to a web portal?
• Any evidence that after supposedly signing up for the service, you actually used it
• The complete web server log of the subscription, including the User Agent strings containing all device details (browser, device type, device IP address) together with dates and times.
• Full company details of the company operating the service, country of registration, full name of company, company number and registered company address.
• Details of the Accredited Payment Intermediary(API) which handled the payment
Also, draw attention to this BBC Watchdog research which shows that any supposed proof of consent may have been generated fraudulently.
https://www.surecloud.com/services/blog/bbc-watchdog-research-paper-payforit
The outcome of ADR is binding on PMConnect, but will not be binding on you. If you remain dissatisfied, you can pursue the matter further, through the Small Claims procedure.
Let me know if further, more specific advice is needed.
Thanks for the advise I have sent them an email asking for proof of my authorisation and proof of it even being used my son doesn’t even know what it is he just received a text once a month starting free message so he assumed it was spam I’m awaiting there reply
Thanks for the advise I have sent them an email asking for proof of my authorisation and proof of it even being used my son doesn’t even know what it is he just received a text once a month starting free message so he assumed it was spam I’m awaiting there reply
Update. I’ve had an email back off them offering me a full refund for the 180 charges they took totalling £540 and will receive a text to take to the post office to cash it within 14 days kinda think this is another scam
That’s good news. These companies know that the charges are unlawful if challenged. Although the method of refund is somewhat unusual, it isn’t a scam. However, it is ridiculous that these companies can’t refund back to the account from which the money was taken. Can you let us know when you have received your refund?
Hi there, I am being scammed by some thing called Modo Games which after a bit of research is under the company Tap2Bill. I am with Three at the moment and all they do is say to stop it by sending 60229 and the message STOP. I have tried this countless times and and it has not stopped. Also I have been given an number 01494750500 which is for refund but it just repeats that they will come back to you and to leave your number and name. This is not working and I wish to get my money back. Three haven’t been helpful and I am trying to find ways of getting a refund for something I have not subscribed to. Please help.
Hi Makhan
I’m particularly interested in this scam. What charges have been made? What texts have been received?
There appears to be two versions of this scam – one is a subscription for £4.50 per week, the other is a one-off charge of £40. Which is yours?
Remember that these companies don’t work evenings and weekends. Call them during working hours to insist on your refund. Also make sure you leave a review of ModoMobi on Trustpilot https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/modomobi.com
Also make sure you report your problem to the Phone-paid Services Authority.
https://psauthority.org.uk/for-consumers/report-an-issue
Please keep me informed, and let me know if I can offer further help.
Hi Paul I tried doing the STOP to 60229 but still money is being taken out. It is a £4.50 per week scam and Three haven’t been helpful at all. You Have made more help trying to stop this than them. Is the PSA free to report? Thanks for the advice and I will try to get a refund.
There is no charge for reporting them to PSA. Also, if you are unable to resolve the matter any other way, you could try CommsADR. Again their services are free. Have you checked that you are not blocking the sending of Premium Rate texts on your phone or on your account? This is the most common reason for STOP texts not to work. You can phone them on 0330 058 6512. There appears to be an automated unsubscribe option on that number, or you should be able to speak to someone during during working hours Mon-Fri.
Hi
am being charged/scammed through IDMOBILE £4.50 X 2 by GETFITCOACH.have tried texting STOP ALL TO 66299 but the texts fail to deliver;any advice appreciated;have blocked premium calls/texts,is this the reason for the failed texts?
Yes, premium rate bars are ineffective against these scams and will prevent you sending the STOP text. Remove the bars and send the STOP text. You should get a text back saying the subscription has been stopped. Then ask your network for a “charge to mobile” or “charge to bill” bar which is the ONLY bar effective against Payforit scams. Be aware that some networks (notably Three and GiffGaff) are unwilling to put such a bar on accounts. Most others will comply if asked.
Once you’ve stopped the charges, follow the advice on this website to obtain a refund. The company taking your money is based in Cyprus, so if they refuse a refund, go after the Level 1 provider, Oxygen8 Ltd.
Oxygen8 Communications Limited,
12th Floor, Lyndon House,
58 – 62 Hagley Road,
Birmingham,
B16 8PE,
United Kingdom
Tel: 03333137900
thanks Paul;the STOP ALL text has now sent,would you know how long i will have to wait for a reply; if this does not work or takes too long,i have been thinking that a way out of this is to cancel/end my monthly pay as you go with idmobile and start again with a new tel no;would this put a stop to it?
If you didn’t get a response to the STOP text, it’s probably best to phone them. The PSA give their number as 0208 089 9319.
Changing your number will stop the CURRENT scam, but you still need a “charge to bill” bar to stop being caught by them in the future.
I wouldn’t normally recommend changing your number though. Most people find it very inconvenient and you should have no problem getting the charges stopped. on your current number. If you’re on PAYG, remember that these scams can only take money from your airtime credit and can be avoided by buying a bundle of calls, texts and data.
We’ve just been scanned and possibly going on for last 4 months only just realised on last bill. The phone is in my name and. used by my 17 year old son. I’ve put a spending cap on his contract. I don’t know where to start with all the charges. We’re with 3 mobile.
I’m sorry, I missed this post. The payforitsucks website is being phased out. If you need help, please contact us at https://psconsumers.org.uk/contact
Im sorry but why is this website being phased out ? This should be a testimony to the fraudulent behaviour of telecom companies.
I have just finished my complaint with Three after being charged 36 pounds by some 3pointer.tv app. The funny part from this is that they have been texting me the STOP message since 2018 when i first got this pay as you go number, but i did not bother reading it as i assumed it was SPAM. I kept receiving messages untill last year in August when i decided to go for a 2 year unlimited contract with Three and all of a sudden i start getting charged ! I filed a complaint with Three who told me that the company will call me and fix the problem. Ive been called by a number that showed SPAM on my phone, a person Mike telling me that he deals with this daily and lots of people click on pop-up windows and thats how i got registered. The nerve on this guy, i`ve been using addblock since it was invented. Ive told him that the amount that needs to be refunded is from the date they have started sending me texts about it, not just for the 2nd or 1st charge they managed to get, before me noticing. Mike said he will escalate it further, two weeks pass the number he called me from is not in service, company is unreachable. I call Three to deal with the issue, they just close the complaint and said will send me a deadlock letter.
They are hand in hand with the companies that do this, there is literally no incentive for them to stop this. I want to take this to court, is there anybody out of all the defrauded people that have done this or want to do this as a group litigation order ?
I dont care about the 36 pounds, i care about the fact that they have used my credential to bind me to a contract without my knowledge, they are in breach of data protection, they have hidden this service in their contract without informing customers about it or allowing them an opt in scheme.
Currently waiting for the deadlock letter so i can take this further with the Obudsman and the PSA, but somehow i dont feel like that is enough. Any other suggestions ?
The Payforitsucks website is being phased out (because “Payforit” ceased to exist in December 2019), but is being replaced by the psconsumers.org.uk website. We will continue to assist consumers through the new website. We can offer further advice if you contact us through the new website. The best approach is to use the Small Claims procedure to both recover your money and uncover the fraud.
My wife has just noticed this scam as well and she called up sky , her provider.
Sky have taken action by adding two zeros to this number when it attempts to send to our phones effectively blocking it.
I would recommend anyone subjected to this scam to call their provider and ask them to take action and then contact the company responsible as mentioned in so many replies for a refund.
I would also recommend that people sign up to the TPS.
THE TELEPHONE PREFERENCE SERVICES, this will prevent all telemarketing calls , I haven’t had one in 5 years and you can add as many numbers as possible,