Romance Schemes: Recover Your Lost Funds
Romance scammers con thousands of people out of their money every year, and their techniques are becoming ever more sophisticated. We believe that romance scam victims deserve justice, and we fight hard on their behalf to reunite them with their lost funds. If you’ve fallen foul of a romance scam, contact us so that we begin working to retrieve your money.
At Westbridgeclaims, we work tirelessly to assist our clients who have been victims of various types of romance scams. Our team of recovery experts will leave no stone unturned to track down the scammers and the funds that have been lost. We also provide a range of informative guides to help you avoid romance scams in the future.
Key points
Are romance scams common?
Unfortunately, yes. More money is lost annually to romance scams than any other FTC fraud category.
Where do romance scammers find their victims?
Dating websites and apps are commonly used, but scammers also set up fake profiles on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook to lure in their victims. In the latter case, the scammers may send you a friend request, or an unsolicited message, possibly claiming that they know one of your other friends or went to the same school as you, to open up a line of communication.
What is a romance inheritance scam?
This type of romance scam is where a con artist will convince the person they're in a ‘relationship’ with that they should get married as soon as possible so that a large inheritance can be accessed. If the victim agrees, then the scammer will attempt to persuade them to send a significant sum of money to cover their plane ticket and relocation costs.
Can a profile reveal a romance scammer?
Whilst it’s impossible to be sure from a profile alone if you’re contacted by or matched with a potential partner on a dating site, it’s vital to have a careful look at their profile. Is it complete, or is it sketchy? Be wary of partially completed profiles, those with just the basic sections completed, or that feature no photos, or images that are blurry or indistinct.
What questions can I ask to help spot a romance scammer?
In most cases, the scammer will masquerade as someone who was brought up or now lives relatively close to you when, usually, they’re in another country altogether and may never have set foot anywhere near your location. So, asking where they grew up is helpful. A scammer is likely to give you a vague answer, so be sure to ask for particulars. If they say they grew up in the Chicago area, ask which street or suburb they lived in.
You could also ask what school or university they attended and their favorite restaurant in the area they claim to have previously lived.
Ideally, ask if you can have a video chat as soon as possible; this is one of the very best ways of checking whether someone is who they say they are.
What is the fastest-growing romance scam?
The ‘Pig Butchery’ romance scam, which first surfaced in 2020, is becoming increasingly popular with con artists. This scam involves the mark being persuaded to invest in a fraudulent business proposition, often related to digital currency.
What’s the biggest romance scam to date?
In 2021 eight Nigerian men appeared in a court in South Africa, charged with undertaking a decade-long scam that involved more than one hundred American women. Over seven million dollars was stolen from the scammers' victims over this ten-year period.
I lost money to a romance scam. Is there anything I can do to get my money back?
If you found yourself entangled in a romance scam and lost money, as a result, there are still means to recover some or all of these funds.
