Emergency Family Scam Plan
A simple plan your family can follow the moment a scam is suspected.
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
When a scam is suspected, panic and pressure are the enemy. A short, agreed plan gives everyone clear steps to follow immediately — protecting money and accounts while staying calm.
Step 1: Pause and verify
The first and most important move is to stop doing whatever the scammer is pushing you to do, because urgency is the tool that stops people thinking clearly. Say out loud, even to yourself: 'I'm going to hang up and check this before I do anything else.' Call the person, bank, or organisation back using a number you already have on file — from a previous bill, the back of a card, or a saved contact — never a number given to you in the suspicious call, text, or email. If it's a request from a family member, use your agreed safe word or call another relative to confirm the story independently before sending anything at all.
- Stop contact and stop any payment
- Use the family safe word if a 'relative' is involved
- Call the person or organisation back on a known official number
Step 2: Protect money and accounts
Once you suspect a scam, move quickly to limit how much damage it can do, because the earliest window after a fraudulent transfer offers the best chance of reversing it. Call your bank's fraud line immediately to report the transaction and ask them to attempt a recall or freeze further payments. If any passwords or card details were shared, change them straight away, starting with email and banking, since scammers often use one compromised account to access others. If a card or account number was given out, ask the bank to cancel and reissue it rather than just monitoring for misuse. Acting within minutes, not days, makes a real difference to what can still be recovered.
- Call the bank on the official number
- Change passwords from a clean device; enable 2FA
- Disconnect any device a scammer had access to
Step 3: Preserve, report, support
Once the immediate danger is contained, take time to lock in the evidence and get proper support in place. Screenshot messages, save emails, and note down phone numbers, names used, and exact times before memory fades or messages are deleted. Report the scam to the relevant national fraud reporting service and to the platform it happened on, such as the bank, marketplace, or social media site, since this creates an official record that matters for any refund or investigation. Check whether your bank's fraud policy or card protections apply to what happened. Finally, check in on how the person affected is coping emotionally, not just financially — being scammed is distressing, and ongoing support matters as much as the practical fix.
- Screenshot and save everything
- Report to the national fraud service and platform
- Support the person without blame; watch for recovery scams
Frequently asked questions
Where should we keep this plan?
Somewhere everyone can find it quickly — saved in phones, printed by the home phone, or shared in a family chat. The point is that it's accessible the moment pressure and panic hit.