ACCC reveals extent of scam losses in Darling Downs and Queensland in 2020

Scammers took advantage of the pandemic to con unsuspecting people in 2020. Find out how much money was reported lost to scams across the Toowoomba region.

The Covid lockdown last year was profitable for scammers targeting people across the Darling Downs and Queensland, with close to $6 million lost to scams.

According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commissions’s Targeting Scams report in 2020, there were 39,298 reports from people from Queensland. Of those reports, 24,388 included a postcode.

Scamwatch received 7713 reports where people included a postcode for south west Queensland between 4334 – 4737, including Toowoomba.

“Of those 7713 reports, 915 involved a financial loss and the total loss amount was $5,836,438,” an ACCC spokesperson said.

“The average lost per report, only for reports where there was a loss, was $6,379.

“The scam type with the largest losses for reports with a postcode within 4334-4737 was investment scams, with more than $2.2 million lost.”

In total, scam losses totalled $32,184,253 in Queensland in 2020, an increase of 17.9 per cent compared to 2019.

Across Australia, investment scams accounted for the biggest losses, with $328 million, and made up more than a third of total losses. Romance scams were the next biggest category, costing Australians $131 million, while payment redirection scams resulted in $128 million of losses.

Breakdown of scam losses in 2020.

“Last year, scam victims reported the biggest losses we have seen, but worse, we expect the real losses will be even higher, as many people don’t report these scams,” ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard said.

“Unfortunately scammers continue to become more sophisticated and last year used the Covid-19 pandemic to scam and take advantage of people from all walks of life during this crisis.”

People who detect a scam, whether or not they have lost money to it, can report scams and learn more about how to get help on the Scamwatch website at scamwatch.gov.au.