It looks like an invoice – but is actually an offer. Hundreds have felt cheated by the “offer” to have their relatives’ graves maintained.
– This year we have received 95 notifications and since 2019 there are a total of 372, says Hanna Bornstedt, supervisor, Consumer Agency.
People all over the country have been affected by the scam. As early as three years ago, the first reports started coming in to the Swedish Consumer Agency.
Now a new mass mailing has gone out – and like a letter in the post, people’s bad conscience has been reminded.
– In this case, consumers thought it was an invoice and then paid it because they thought they had to, when in fact they seem to be dealing with an offer, says Hanna Bornstedt.
“Invoice from the church”
The advertising mail comes from a company that works with the maintenance of grave sites. It is designed to allude to people’s bad conscience and benevolent approach to the church. The company’s offer for the care of grave sites is also strikingly similar to an invoice, which appears to come from the various dioceses of the Swedish Church.
The Swedish Consumer Agency has noted that notifications regarding fraudulent “invoices” increased during the spring.
– This year we have received 95 notifications and 14 questions about guidance during March-April. We have understood that it is quite a lot of money, up to SEK 2,000-3,000, but it varies, says Hanna Bornstedt.
The Swedish church is also well aware of the problem. In the past, they have had disputes with companies that, via the principle of public disclosure, tried to access their register of people whose relatives are buried at the resting places of several different parishes.
That’s how you should act
The Swedish Consumer Agency urges those who feel misled by the burial invoices to contact the company in question in the first instance. But Hanna Bornstedt also invites people to get in touch with the work.
– If you feel misled, you should contact the company and dispute the agreement and have it declared invalid. Then you must get in touch in writing and explain that you thought it was a demand for an invoice and that you dispute the invoice or demand reimbursement, she says and continues:
– Then you can also regret it, you have 14 days to regret it when it comes to distance contracts, which is what this is seen as. Then you don’t need to state any particular reason, you can just contact the company and say you regret it.
If enough reports are made against one and the same company, the agency can initiate an inspection.
– We urge consumers to go in and report if they have received an invoice like this that they think is a payment requirement, but is actually an offer. When there is an opportunity for our lawyers to initiate supervision, we initially contact the company and explain what we think is wrong, so they get a chance to fix it.