Should you pay a firm to recover money lost to a scam?

If you have lost money to a scam and someone contacts you offering to get it back for a fee, the approach is very likely to be a second scam. Recovery scammers promise they can recover stolen funds and hacked accounts, typically for a fee, but they cannot actually recover the money¹. At least £185.4m has been stolen by recovery scammers in the past year, and between November 2024 and November 2025 Action Fraud received 5,553 reports related to recovery scams².

The free routes work. If you contact your bank, you may be able to recover money you have lost in unauthorised or unexpected payments³. The Financial Ombudsman Service is free to use if your bank refuses a refund you think you are owed⁴. Genuine law enforcement agencies will never ask you to pay them to get back money you have lost⁵.

This page explains how recovery scams work, the warning signs, how to get money back through your bank at no cost, and where to report a recovery approach.

Recovery firms that ask for a fee are usually a second scam

A recovery scam is when fraudsters target those who have been victims of scams and ask for a small fee to recover their lost funds⁶. The pattern is consistent across the different names it goes by. Investment recovery scams involve criminals pretending to be from real companies and saying they can get your money back⁷. Recovery room scams are where fraudsters approach pension savers who have been scammed, offering to help them get their money back for an upfront fee⁸.

The reason these approaches are so often fraudulent is simple: the money is usually gone, and no private firm has a way to retrieve it that your bank does not. Recovery scammers promise they can get you your money back for a fee, but they cannot, and any money you pay them is lost as well¹.

The same warning applies to firms offering to write off debts. Claims by firms claiming to write off credit card debt are misleading and could cost you more money, especially where firms ask for upfront fees⁹. Debt write-off companies should be treated with particular wariness if they ask for upfront fees to do the job¹⁰.

Recovery approaches also come back around. People who have been scammed once are known to be contactable, and the same details circulate. Computer software service fraud scammers return to contact previous victims, requesting payment for a fake malware protection service or a new subscription fee¹¹. Investment scam victims are warned to be alert to follow-up scams, where criminals contact them again pretending they can recover their money for a fee¹².

How recovery scams work

Recovery scams work by exploiting the fact that a victim is already motivated to get their money back and may not know which routes are free. A recovery scam is when fraud victims are targeted by "professionals" claiming to be able to recover lost money, only to be scammed again².

The mechanics vary. Some approaches come by phone, some by letter, some through social media or review sites. Recovery room scammers send fake letters with the Insolvency Service logo, say they are calling on behalf of the Insolvency Service, impersonate a legitimate employee of the Insolvency Service, and also refer investors to social media accounts of Insolvency Service employees¹³. They also use spoofing, where the caller ID and telephone number seen by an investor is not the scammer's details but are legitimate phone numbers used by the Insolvency Service or other organisations¹³.

Some recovery approaches are more elaborate. A fraudulent letter seen by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme promises the return of some invested money if a trade reference number can be provided, then encourages the customer to call the scammer and pay for a temporary licence¹⁴.

The fee structure is often a percentage. In one case study, a victim was told it would take 7 to 10% of the recovered funds². That structure is designed to sound like a success fee, but the recovery never happens.

Recovery scams: £185.4m lost across 5,553 reports

The scale of recovery fraud is significant and growing. At least £185.4m has been stolen by recovery scammers in the past year, and between November 2024 and November 2025 Action Fraud received 5,553 reports related to recovery scams, resulting in £185.4m in losses².

For context, authorised fraud losses across the UK were £576.4m gross in 2025¹⁵. Recovery scams are therefore a substantial share of the total fraud picture, and they hit people who have already lost money once.

The good news is that the legitimate reimbursement system has been paying out. Over the past 12 months, victims were reimbursed £249.6 million, and 88% (£316m) of the money lost to APP scams has been reimbursed to victims between 7 October 2024 and 31 March 2026¹⁶. That reimbursement comes through the bank, not through a recovery firm.

Warning signs of a recovery scam

The warning signs of a recovery scam overlap with those of other frauds, but a few are specific to the recovery context. You are asked to pay money to get your money back¹. You are contacted out of the blue after having money stolen¹. You are rushed to decide in a short timeframe¹. The person knows a lot of details about the scam you fell for¹.

Other signs come from the wider fraud picture. A common warning sign is being contacted unexpectedly about an investment opportunity, and legitimate firms will not contact you out of the blue¹⁷. In computer takeover scams, a cold caller may offer you a refund or compensation for the inconvenience¹⁸. Refund scams involve unsolicited contact claiming you are owed a refund, requests for personal information such as bank account details or passwords, pressure to act quickly, overpayment and refund requests, and strange payment methods like gift cards, wire transfers or cryptocurrency¹⁹.

A recovery approach that combines several of these is very unlikely to be genuine. The single most reliable test is whether the firm asks you for money before it has recovered anything.

Getting money back through your bank, free of charge

The legitimate route to recovering money lost to a scam runs through your bank, and it does not involve a fee. If you contact your bank, you may be able to recover money you have lost in unauthorised or unexpected payments³. For unauthorised payments initiated through a third-party provider, your bank must refund you immediately, unless it has grounds to suspect fraud or negligence, and if the third party was at fault the bank can recover the funds from them²⁰.

The timing matters. Scam victims must be reimbursed within five UK business days unless the bank or payment provider needs to gather more information²¹. If your bank or payment service provider does decide to reimburse you, it may deduct an excess of up to £100 for each scam claim²².

If your bank refuses a refund you think you are owed, the Financial Ombudsman Service is free and easy to use⁴. The ombudsman can tell the business to put you back where you would be if they had not made a mistake, for example by reimbursing the money you have lost to the fraud or scam²³. Where the ombudsman finds the business treated you unfairly, it will tell them to put things right²³.

The ombudsman also has powers in cases involving fees. If it finds instances of unfair or unauthorised fees, it will usually tell the credit broker to refund the fee, sometimes with interest, refund additional costs incurred, and pay compensation for distress or inconvenience²⁴. If the ombudsman thinks you have lost money because you received the wrong advice, it will tell the financial adviser or insurance company to put things right, and may also tell them to pay you compensation for any distress or inconvenience you have suffered²⁵.

The free recovery route: bank first, then the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Where to report a scam and a recovery approach

Reporting a scam is free and it creates a record that can help your bank and the police. The route is Report Fraud, formerly known as Action Fraud, which gives a crime reference number²⁶. Report Fraud handles complaints about fraud and scams²⁷. It can be contacted by calling 0300 123 2040 or visiting www.reportfraud.police.uk³. Where a bank or other business has treated a customer unfairly, the Financial Ombudsman Service can tell the business to put the customer back where they would be if the mistake had not happened, for example by reimbursing money lost to the fraud or scam²⁸.

If you have paid a fake ticket seller or shared financial information with a criminal, contact your bank immediately²⁸. If you think you might have been scammed on a holiday booking, contact your bank immediately and report it to the police at Report Fraud²⁹.

Reports of scam emails to report@phishing.gov.uk have resulted in the removal of over 250,000 scams³⁰. That route is for emails, and it helps take the infrastructure down even where money cannot be recovered.

Reporting in Scotland

The reporting route differs in Scotland. You can report recovery scams to Report Fraud, or call the police on 101 if you are in Scotland¹. If you live in Scotland or the fraud happened there, contact Police Scotland on 101³¹. Report Fraud also directs people in Scotland to report to Police Scotland by calling 101³². Advice Direct Scotland can be reached on 0808 164 6000, and Consumer Advice Scotland can be contacted on 0808 164 6000 or at consumeradvice.scot³³.

What to do if you have already paid a recovery firm

If you have already paid a recovery firm, contact your bank as soon as possible and report it to Report Fraud³. If the firm was providing a financial service, you can complain to the firm and then take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which is free⁴. If the firm was not authorised, your options are more limited, so report it and seek free advice from MoneyHelper or a debt charity.

What does dialling 159 do?

Dial 159 and you will be connected to your bank's fraud department¹⁷. It is intended for use by consumers, and provides an easy route back to safety when you get an unexpected phone call about a financial matter³⁵. Banks handle the calls³⁵.

The service exists because calling your bank back on a number a scammer gave you can reconnect you to the scammer. If the scammer has recently called you, it is important to use a different phone line to call your bank or wait at least 15 minutes before you contact your bank, as research has found that scammers can keep the line open to listen in to your call²⁶. Some guidance suggests waiting 10 to 15 minutes after hanging up on a dodgy call before calling the company back on a trusted number³⁶.

Why do scammers target people who have already lost money?

Scammers target millions of people every year³⁷. People who have already lost money are a particularly attractive target because they are known to respond to contact, and their details are already in circulation among fraudsters.

Investment scams sometimes target older people by promising high returns on their pension if they invest it in their company or opportunity³⁸. Once a person has engaged with one scam, the same details are used again. The ScamSmart campaign exists to increase awareness of the tactics used by scammers to help potential victims spot fraud attempts³⁹.

The follow-up approach is deliberate. Investment scam victims are warned to be alert to follow-up scams, where criminals contact them again pretending they can recover their money for a fee¹². The recovery approach is a second bite at the same victim, using the first loss as the hook.

Is a small upfront fee a sign of a recovery scam?

A small upfront fee is a warning sign, though not conclusive on its own. Recovery scammers typically ask for a small fee to recover lost funds⁶. Debt write-off companies should be treated with particular wariness if they ask for upfront fees to do the job¹⁰. Claims by firms claiming to write off credit card debt are misleading and could cost you more money, especially where firms ask for upfront fees⁹.

Some legitimate services do charge upfront. If your travel insurance claim is comparatively small, for example a claim for medical treatment that is less than £500, some insurers may ask you to pay upfront⁴⁰. Tax refund companies offer to claim expenses for you and charge a fee which is usually a percentage of the refund you get, and they often charge a fee based on the size of the refund⁴¹. HMRC has issued a warning about using companies like this, having found that some of these firms are making inflated or incorrect claims which can lead to HMRC asking the taxpayer to pay the money back⁴¹.

The distinguishing factor is not the fee alone but the combination: an out-of-the-blue approach, a promise to recover money that has already gone, and a request for payment before anything is recovered.