Information is available from the Trading Standards Institute to help consumers. Please note the county council is not responsible for this information.
In the guide
This guidance is for England, Scotland and Wales
Have you seen an advertisement, received an email or been handed a leaflet or business card claiming that you can earn money from home or in your spare time? You need to establish if this is a legitimate business venture or, as is most likely, a homeworking scam. These scams rely on lots of people sending off money on the promise of high earnings in return, but in reality you are unlikely to receive any payment and may be recruited to become part of an illegal pyramid-selling scam.
These scams can involve bogus online surveys or assembling products at home where you often have to buy expensive kits as a start-up. When you send your finished products back ultimately they will fail the quality check, regardless of how well you have done the job.
There are steps you can take to try and ensure the company you are dealing with is legitimate.
In all cases, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. It's important to remember that all scams are fraud and therefore a crime.
Typical scam homeworking advertisement
You may have seen this type of advertisement before; perhaps in the jobs section of the local newspaper, on information boards in your local store, a small flyer delivered to your home, placed on the windscreen of your car, via social media, online, by email or text message.
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HOMEWORKERS REQUIRED URGENTLY EARN £500 NO QUALIFICATIONS OR PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE NECESSARY THERE ARE LOADS OF COMPANIES AND CONTACTS OUT THERE AND WE NEED YOUR HELP! TO START EARNING CASH SEND AN EMAIL TO SOMEONE@ANYTOWN.CO.UK, PHONE ANYTOWN 000666, CLICK ON THE LINK OR MESSAGE FOR DETAILS. |
In times of financial hardship, people are drawn to advertisements of this type, which promise an easy way to make a lot of money at home. The advertisements may be worded differently to the example, but the common thread is that they promise high earnings for relatively little work, an up-front fee is usually payable and the details of the actual work to be done is vague.
Bogus online surveys
There are genuine survey sites that allow you to take part in online surveys for cash. However, there are scams associated with paid online surveys that you should be aware of. There are fraudsters that will claim they can sell you lists of online survey companies that will help you earn thousands of pounds to work from home. You will be charged a fee to access lists of companies when in fact they are easily searchable online. The claims of high earnings are misleading. Make sure you know who you are dealing with and research any business you want to work for.
Envelope stuffing scheme
Typically, the details of the scheme will be advertised using social media or even through its own website. The advertisement will give you sufficient information to capture your interest by giving prominence to the possibility of high earnings for relatively easy envelope stuffing work.
The advertisement will prompt you to ring a contact number or send an email and a website may entice you into registering with a scheme. The wording of some schemes is very clever; read it carefully and look for the catch. This catch is usually payment of a fee. You pay the fee, only to find that you have bought a 'pack' that you have the right to promote and re-sell to others. That is where the envelope stuffing comes in. Your so-called income would come from other people buying a copy of the pack from you.
Some scheme operators are so confident in their ability to catch people out that they include accurate information buried within their terms and conditions on what the scheme really involves.
This type of envelope scheme is just one of many. Other schemes involve:
Assembling products at home schemes
Other homeworking schemes require you to buy kits for assembling products at home. The assembled goods are then returned to the organiser for payment. The products can include lampshades and Christmas decorations.
So how do these schemes work? You respond to advertisements and receive the initial information. You may be required to pay a registration fee and will also have to buy the un-assembled products in kit form.
Once the kit is received, you will be expected to assemble the products and return them to the organiser. The documents will state that for every correctly assembled product, you will be paid a fee. However, the organiser has complete control over whether the product passes their 'quality check'. Your products will never pass quality control and you will never be paid. In some circumstances, the organiser may ask you to part with more cash to buy more kits, but the outcome will remain the same. You will be left with useless, expensive products that you have paid for and spent time assembling, which have been rejected.
Homeworking checklist
Not all homeworking opportunities are scams. The following tips may help you to determine whether or not a homeworking opportunity is genuine:
In all cases, if it looks or sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Homeworking scam: what are my rights and who do I report it to?
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 prohibit commercial practices that are unfair to consumers. If a trader misleads you or engages in an aggressive commercial practice and you make a decision to purchase goods, services or digital content that you would not otherwise have done, the trader may be in breach of the Regulations. If you have been misled or the trader has behaved aggressively, report your complaint to the Citizens Advice consumer service.
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 also include a list of specific trading practices that are banned, one of which is pyramid selling. A pyramid-selling scheme, which relies on individuals obtaining fees from recruiting other individuals to the scheme rather than from the sale of goods, services or digital content, would breach the Regulations. If you come across a scheme of this type, report it to the Citizens Advice consumer service.
If you enter a contract because a trader misled you or because the trader used an aggressive commercial practice, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 give you rights to redress: the right to unwind the contract, the right to a discount and the right to damages. See the 'Misleading and aggressive practices: your right to redress' guide for more information.
If you have been the victim of fraud via a homeworking scheme you can report it to Action Fraud or for advice call the Citizens Advice consumer service.
If you see advertisements for homeworking schemes that you think are misleading, you can refer them to the Advertising Standards Authority or you can report them to the Citizens Advice consumer service. The UK Code of Non-Broadcast Advertising and Direct and Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) sets out the rules for non-broadcast advertisements, direct marketing communications and sales promotions. Section 20 of the code covers the Advertising Standards Authority's expectations of employment, homework schemes and business opportunities.
Key legislation
Last reviewed / updated: October 2020
Please note
This information is intended for guidance; only the courts can give an authoritative interpretation of the law.
The guide's 'Key legislation' links may only show the original version of the legislation, although some amending legislation is linked to separately where it is directly related to the content of a guide. Information on amendments to legislation can be found on each link's 'More Resources' tab.
For further information in England and Wales contact the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 2231133. In Scotland contact Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 164 6000. Both provide free, confidential and impartial advice on consumer issues.
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The county council is not responsible for this information.
