The Prize That Costs Money
You have won a competition you never entered, and collecting the prize requires a small delivery fee, a tax payment, or your identity details.
What it looks like
- A text, email or social media message: you have won a phone, a car, a shopping voucher.
- A small fee is required to release it — "delivery", "tax", "processing".
- There is a deadline: "claim within 48 hours or forfeit".
How to spot it
- You cannot win a competition you did not enter. That alone is the whole answer.
- Real prizes never require a payment to release them. Where tax applies, it is deducted from the prize, not collected from you.
- A prize that asks for your ID, your bank details or your card is not a prize.
- Spelling mistakes and a non-corporate sender address are strong signals.
What to do
- Do not reply. Replying marks your number as live and brings more of them.
- Report and delete.
- If the brand is real, check its official account — genuine promotions are announced there.
If it already happened
- If you paid a fee, ask your bank for a chargeback.
- If you gave ID or bank details, tell your bank and ask them to flag applications made in your name.
- Block the number. People who reply once go on a list and get targeted again.
Common questions
They used the name of a brand I know.
Using a brand name is free, and it is the part that works. Check the brand's own site or verified account; real promotions are announced there.
I only gave my name and address.
Not a serious financial risk, but those details make the next attempt more convincing. Be more sceptical than usual about messages over the coming weeks.