INTERIM FUNDING FOR APP VOLUNTARY CODE TO BE EXTENDED TO JUNE 2021

UK Finance has announced that a group of seven signatories to the voluntary Authorised Push Payment (APP) Contingent Reimbursement Code have agreed to extend until 30 June 2021 the interim funding to compensate eligible victims of APP scams where the customer, sending and recipient banks have met the standards expected of them under the Code.

The Code, jointly developed by the banking industry and consumer groups, was launched on 28 May 2019 and sets out increased consumer protection standards to help protect customers from APP Scams.

Katy Worobec, Managing Director of Economic Crime at UK Finance, said:

?Fraud is a crime which has a devastating emotional impact on victims and its proceeds fund serious criminal activities which damage our society. The industry's primary focus is therefore on stopping fraud in the first place, supporting the prosecution of criminals responsible and helping customers know steps they can take to stay safe.

?It is right that those who fall victim to these scams through no fault of their own should be compensated. However, over a year since its launch, the voluntary Code is not working as intended, with a lack of consistency in customer outcomes and a lack of clarity for signatories in how they should implement it.

?While a long-term, system-wide solution to tackling this threat is developed, the seven Code signatories that have provided interim funding for compensation since launch have therefore extended this temporary arrangement for a further six months. This will give the government time to introduce new legislation and to engage with regulators on a long-term, sustainable funding model and we will continue to work closely with them to do so.?

PEOPLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES MORE LIKELY TO FALL VICTIM TO A SCAM

More protection should be written into the forthcoming Online Harms Bill with online technology companies required to do more to police and prevent harmful content, according to the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (BBC News). Its recent report showed that people with mental health issues are three times more likely to fall victim to a scam.

Martin Lewis, who founded the charity, said vulnerable people were "easy prey" for online criminals, particularly during the pandemic. He said: "the UK already faced an epidemic of scams, but now lockdown has accelerated it, especially online.?

UK Finance highlights the top ten Covid-19 scams to look out for, and urges customers to always follow the advice of the Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign to protect yourself from scams.

Separately, Mark Zuckerberg threatened to withdraw investment from the UK if it did not soften its stance towards Facebook (The Times, p5, £). In response, Matt Hancock, the culture secretary at the time, said he wanted to work with Silicon Valley to make sure any new laws regulating social media were ?proportionate and innovation-friendly?. The discussion took place just two months after the Cambridge Analytica scandal, where it was revealed that a political data firm had gained access to private information on up to 87 million Facebook users without their consent. A DCMS spokeswoman said: ?We are completely committed to tackling online harms and have set out tough, world-leading proposals that will make the internet safer for UK citizens.?

NEWS IN BRIEF

The UK announced today it would extend a ban on commercial landlords evicting tenants until March 31 next year, providing more breathing space to companies hit hard by the coronavirus crisis (Financial Times, online only, £).

The president of the eurogroup of finance ministers, Paschal Donohoe, is aiming to revive the bloc's banking union project this week as he said Brexit and Covid-19 have reinforced the need to solidify the single currency's foundations (Financial Times, p4, £).

The UK is set to suspend tariffs against the US over subsidies, in an attempt to broker a post-Brexit trade deal (City AM).

A government plan to deliver discounted starter homes has been scrapped, leaving 85,000 young people waiting for an affordable place to live, according to a report by the Commons? Public Accounts Committee (The Guardian, p21).

LATEST BLOGS

Jennifer Tankard, Principal, Invoice Finance and Commercial Finance, explains how UK Finance's Let's Talk Business guide is an important starting point for businesses looking for assistance.