In the past few years, scams have become a topic of daily conversation. Australians are reporting more scams than ever to the consumer watchdog, the news is telling us they’re becoming more sophisticated and ads are warning us to be vigilant. Yet, I remained convinced it would never happen to me or anyone in my close circle.
Then my parents were scammed. “My world collapsed”: Mark and Yvonne Geraets have struggled with feelings of embarassment and guilt since being scammed. Credit: Justin McManus In March, my parents Mark and Yvonne Geraets, both of whom are retired and living in Melbourne, were contacted by an HSBC representative about shares in Victorian registry bonds.
After thorough research, including vetting the representative’s LinkedIn profile and speaking with what claimed to be an anti-money laundering department at HSBC, my parents transferred about $300,000 from their New Zealand Westpac retirement fund into the scammer’s Australian NAB account. At the time of the transfer, Westpac confirmed the name of the account, which was meant to be under my parents’ names. However, once the HSBC representative began encouraging them to invest more money, they became suspicious and a few days later they were informed their money had gone into a different, unknown account.
Loading “My world collapsed,” Mark says. “I felt ill and breathless. It was one of the most horrid feelings I’ve had.
” Today, a few months on, they have managed to reclaim about $100,00.
