East Suffolk Council

Premises licence holders alerted to scam

Premises licence holders are being alerted to a scam that has been attempted in many local authority areas, including East Suffolk.

East Suffolk Council is urging businesses with premises licences to be aware of fraudsters posing as council officials.

The scam starts with a call or text message claiming that your premises licence is running out or expiring, or that you have outstanding annual fees. On some occasions the fraudster has actually visited the premises.

The fraudster asks traders to pay outstanding fees or renewal fees into a personal account.

These fraudsters can seem very convincing, sometimes having accurate information such as the fee amount or the names of real council staff.

Premises licences do not expire or run out. Any fees due will be handled by the council through the usual process, and licence holders are never asked to pay or provide financial details over the phone for licence fees. Any legitimate requests for payment will be made in writing with details of how payment should be made. 

If you're ever in doubt about someone claiming to be from the council, contact the council directly to verify their identity.

If you think you may have been the victim of a scam, you should report this to Action Fraud via their website or by calling 0300 123 2040.

East Suffolk Council’s Licensing Team can be contacted by email at licensing@eastsuffolk.gov.uk.