Fake People's Postcode Lottery prize calls and social media impersonation
Impersonating: People's Postcode Lottery
What is this scam?
Fraudsters are impersonating the People's Postcode Lottery via cold phone calls and fake social media accounts, falsely telling victims they have won a cash prize and must pay a release fee or provide bank details to receive their winnings. Which? flagged a surge in reports in early June 2026. People's Postcode Lottery confirms it never contacts non-subscribers about winnings — you can only win if you have personally signed up and purchased a ticket.
Example scam message
Caller: 'Hi, this is People's Postcode Lottery — I'm delighted to let you know your postcode has been selected as a winner in this month's draw. You've won £2,500! To release your prize we just need you to cover a small administration fee of £35 by debit card to process the payment. Can I take your card details now?'
Red flags to look out for
- The message creates urgency — threatening a fine, missed delivery, or account closure.
- Links lead to unofficial domains that don't match the real company's website.
- You weren't expecting this message and can't verify the event it references.
- It asks you to confirm payment details or personal information via a link.
- The sender's number or email address doesn't match the company's official contact.
What to do if you receive this
- Do not click any links to update billing details.
- Log in to your account directly via the official app or website to check your subscription status.
- Forward the message to 7726 (free spam reporting).
- Report it to Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk.
Received this message?
Forward it to 7726 (free on all UK networks) to report it to your mobile provider.
You can also report it to Action Fraud
or email the NCSC at report@phishing.gov.uk.
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