Fraud
From time to time fraudsters try to use the Ministry of Justice identity in an attempt to steal money from consumers. The most common types of scams are detailed below.
If you believe you have been a victim of this scam you should report the matter to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via the website.
Your reports will then be passed on to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau and analysed to see if they can be used as part of a police investigation.
You can help to stop scammers by warning your friends and family, and by making Action Fraud aware of any scams that you have encountered.
Telephone scams
We are aware of several scams including:
A scam where a telephone caller claims to be calling from a court and tells you that you have only a few days to avoid attending a court hearing and a fine of £5000, but you can avoid this by making a smaller payment to them immediately over the phone. This is not how the UK courts operate.
If a real court hearing was to take place you would be informed formally in writing and given sufficient notice for you to obtain advice before attending. Her Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service would never make unsolicited phone calls, demand money in advance to prevent a court hearing from taking place, or seek payment through cash vouchers bought in local shops.
A scam involving a telephone call from someone claiming to be from the Ministry of Justice or other government department. These callers usually have strong foreign accents and use fake anglicised names. Consumers are typically told that they are eligible to receive payments such as the repayment of bank charges or tax, compensation for mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI), or other debts.
Consumers are asked to provide personal information, such as bank account details and make an upfront payment, often by one of the following methods:
- Money Transfer: Payment can be requested via Western Union or the Post Office’s MoneyGram® service.
- Ukash Vouchers: Consumers are asked to purchase cash vouchers through a local high street shop and use the reference code to send the payment by email or over the telephone. If you have been a victim and paid money via the Ukash voucher scheme, contact UKash immediately on 0808 234 6244 (open 24 hours) to see if the payment can be blocked. For further information see the warnings on the Ukash website.
- Paysafecard: Consumers are asked to purchase payment cards through a local high street shop and use the reference code to send the payment by email or over the telephone. If you have been a victim and paid money via Paysafecard, contact the company immediately on 0845 021 3059 (open 24 hours) to see if the payment can be blocked. For further information see the Paysafecard website.
- Bank Transfer or Debit and Credit Cards: Scammers sometimes ask consumers to provide their bank or card details in order for them to withdraw payment. If you have already given out these details, you should contact your bank or card provider immediately to stop or check any unauthorised transactions.
These callers have no connection with the Ministry of Justice, or other genuine organisations.
They may already have some of your personal data, such as your name, address or bank details and may try to obtain more in order to commit identity theft. Do not pay any money unless you receive formal written information first and are absolutely confident the organisation involved is legitimate. Consumers are warned not to pass on personal or financial details to these callers.
Illegal use of Ministry of Justice identity and logos
In some scams fraudsters may falsely claim to be linked to the Ministry of Justice, or use the official logo or that of one of our agencies as letterhead to add authenticity to obtain bank or credit card details. Similar scams may involve the use of logos from other legitimate organisations, like the Metropolitan Police or the Office of Fair Trading.
In addition to using the logo illegitimately, fraudsters may use an email link to draw any potential victim further into the scam. The email address may appear to be similar to a legitimate Ministry of Justice internet link.
The Ministry of Justice takes seriously any attempt to misappropriate its identity or that of its agencies, associated offices and official logo’s and will investigate any such incidents of misuse and take appropriate action where necessary.
Any correspondence, like letters or emails with Ministry of Justice identity that request private information, should be treated with extreme caution. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of such communications, please contact us on 020 3334 3555 or online: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice#org-contacts
These pages are here to help you get the best from our website. In this section you will find guidance on access keys available, hearing our website with screenreader.
Accessibility regulations 2018
Ministry of Justice Digital & Technology team is committed to making sure our online services are accessible to all users and comply with level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines – WCAG 2.1, in line with The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
In order to help us achieve and maintain our objective we have commissioned The Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC) to carry out WCAG 2.1 AA level technical compliance audits, that will also include extensive testing by users with a wide range of disabilities.
An audit for www.justice.gov.uk is scheduled for 19th October 2020.
Our website accessibility objective
We are committed to ensuring that its corporate website is accessible to the widest possible range of people. We are actively working to increase the accessibility and usability of our website and in doing so we follow published standards and guidance.
We aim to achieve the standards required for compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 level AA using working practice recommended by the Guide to good practice in commissioning accessible websites (PAS 78), published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission and Guidance for government web teams issued by the Central Office of Information.
The website is designed to meet the following standards:
- W3C WAI Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 Conformance Level Double A
- Valid W3C XHTML 1.0 Transitional
- Valid W3C CSS 1.0
Accessibility assurance and improvement programme
To maintain the quality of this website the web team have a programme of accessibility assurance which means we test and review pages on the website using web development validation tools, online accessibility processes, expert review and testing by users with disabilities. A programme of work is being carried out in the first quarter of 2009 to refresh and re-test major areas of the website. Any outstanding issues will be reported to the website editorial board for resolution by December 2009.
The continuing quality of the website depends on controls and procedures applied to commissioning, design, coding and editorial policies.
Where documents or webpages are provided by external suppliers, they are required to conform to the accessibility standards and quality criteria which apply to the website as a whole.
To support these processes staff in the Justice web team maintain the appropriate level of expertise using online resources and courses provided by RNIB or other training suppliers.
New content published on the website is subject to a quality assurance process by trained and experienced staff, and is governed by the website editorial policy, which includes adherence to the needs of people with disabilities and the aim of providing appropriate content for the range of users of the website.
The Ministry of Justice Disability Equality Scheme (7.3.1) confirms that, in providing information, we seek to ensure that the information is:
- Clear, comprehensive, accurate and relevant
- Appropriate to the reader or user of the information
- Proportionate to the subject matter
- Targeted and timely
- Accessible to all our customers
Exceptions and alternative formats
Where testing or review shows that accessibility criteria are not being met in some part of the website, the web team will take remedial action or will contact the owners of the document to fix the problem. In some cases there can be practical difficulties in delivering a solution. Currently known exceptions to the website accessibility standards are:
- Some forms available for download are not in a fully accessible format. In these cases, alternative formats are available on request
- In the Procedure Rules, the category index pages are not fully accessible to users of assistive software because the word “link” is used more than once as link text. As an alternative, the website search engine provides focussed searching within the relevant set of Procedure Rules
- In the Procedure Rules, PDF copies of the Rules and Practice Directions are provided in addition to the html version. Because of the legacy content of these documents, they may not be fully accessible. This content is provided in an accessible format on the website as html webpages
Feedback
You can help us to maintain the quality of our website by giving us your comments and suggestions for improvement. Please let the web team know if you have a problem using this website. We will do our best to investigate and fix any issues as part of our ongoing programme of improvements.
In this section you will find guidance on finding your way around the website, help with portable document files and RSS feeds.
Access keys are designed to help users who may have difficulty using pointing devices.
This site uses the UK Government’s access keys standards. The following access keys are available on our website:
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The site is designed to meet a wide range of accessibility requirements and we are keen to hear from you if you have any specific access needs. Your comments and suggestions to help us make our website more informative or easier to use are welcome.
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Fri, 7 November 2014
Throughout 2014, we’ve been moving content from the Justice site to GOV.UK.
It’s all part of our aim to make information simpler, clearer and faster to find and use. As we move each organisation onto GOV.UK, we’ll redirect you to the right…
Speeches
It is important that those who meet the criteria for public funding – or indeed those with means who may be considering privately funded litigation – come to see family mediation as something more than a viable alternative to going to court.
I hope they would come to see it as the default way to resolve disputes.
Ministry of Justice Press on Twitter
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Consumers in England and Wales will find solicitors more competitive, more efficient and easier to access as new High Street providers are announced today.
Today three firms have been given approval to operate as Alternative Business Structures (ABSs) including Co-operative Legal Services, Lawbridge Solicitors Ltd and John Welch and Stammers,
ABSs remove existing restrictions on legal firms allowing them to offer more competitive services to customers by joining up with other businesses, such as high street shops, banks and supermarkets, to offer legal services alongside other products.
To mark the occasion Justice Minister Jonathan Djanogly visited Co-operative Legal Services Headquarters in Bristol.
He said:
‘This is a huge milestone for UK legal services and the future of Alternative Business Structures.
‘ABSs introduce more competition in the market place, delivering competitive pricing, higher standards of product and more choice for the consumer.
‘Our UK legal services are unrivalled around the world and these changes will allow them to reach new heights, as solicitors’ firms develop new markets, seek external investment and join up with other businesses to offer different products to consumers and provide opportunities for growth’
Thursday, 29 September 2011 Tuesday, 27 September 2011 Monday, 26 September 2011 Monday, 26 September 2011 Wednesday, 21 September 2011 Thursday, 15 September 2011 Wednesday, 14 September 2011 Wednesday, 14 September 2011 Tuesday, 13 September 2011 Monday, 12 September 2011 Friday, 9 September 2011 Thursday, 8 September 2011 Tuesday, 6 September 2011 Tuesday, 6 September 2011 Tuesday, 6 September 2011 Thursday, 1 September 2011
Victims of crime will now be able to hold the criminal justice system to account thanks to a statutory new Victims Code, Helen Grant announced today. Friday, 29 March 2013
New laws will give relatives of missing people help to deal with their loved ones’ affairs. Wednesday, 27 March 2013
The Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling presided over the swearing in of this year’s 84 Queen’s Counsel (QC) and 8 Honorary Queen’s Counsel. Wednesday, 27 March 2013
Jocelyn Hillman, explains how the charity Working Chance is helping female offenders move across the social divide. Friday, 22 March 2013
Female offenders should receive more targeted support to break the cycle of crime and abuse many of them face, Justice Minister Helen Grant said today. Friday, 22 March 2013
Family Justice Minister Lord McNally has called on mediators to lead the way in promoting out of court solutions to help separating families. Thursday, 14 March 2013
Legal services across the UK hold the key to boosting global economic growth, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said in a speech to international legal practitioners today. Thursday, 14 March 2013
Jeremy Wright sees first hand the positive work done by ‘Unlocking Potential’, a project funded by Chelsea FC and the Premier League to steer young people away from crime. Wednesday, 13 March 2013
Amendments made to the Crime and Courts Bill announced today will put an end to millionaire criminals refusing to reimburse the taxpayer for the free legal advice they receive. Monday, 11 March 2013
Tough, new enforcement action will be taken against convicted criminals who do not pay their legal bills when they can afford to. Tuesday, 5 March 2013
Supporting bereaved families during an inquest will be at the heart of the new coroner system. Friday, 1 March 2013
Updated: Tuesday, 14 March 2017