An outfit calling itself 'Construction Card Scheme Online UK' is offering the full range of CSCS cards – including CPCS plant operator, IPAF PAL cards, CCDO (Certificate of Competence of Demolition Operatives), Gas Safe and CSCS Gold Card site supervisor – for prices ranging from £200 to £800.
It appears to be a scam that is simply taking money of would-be construction workers seeking a short-cut to qualification. Our call to the listed phone number went straight to voicemail.
A spokesperson for CSCS said: “CSCS has investigated the website in question and is working with its legal representatives to ensure the website is shut down as soon as possible.
“Initial investigations suggest those responsible are taking payments but not actually delivering any health and safety tests, training or qualifications. No cards or qualifications have been issued as a result of this fraudulent activity.
“Qualifications and training are an essential part of gaining a CSCS card so any organisation offering cards without them should always be avoided and, where possible, reported to CSCS.
“CSCS continually strive to shut down illegal sites and amend third-party sites who infringe CSCS copyright in order to gain an advantage by misleading applicants. We urge those within the construction industry to remain vigilant and only use official application services - CSCS.uk.com or any of our 38 partner card schemes.
“CSCS also continues to call on employers and principal contractors to carry out thorough electronic card checks at site gates, as this is the only means to accurately determine if a card is fake or has been fraudulently obtained.”
The first organisation to sound the alarm was the National Federation of Demolition Contractors (NFDC), which, together with the National Demolition Training Group (NDTG), issued an alert, saying: “NFDC and NDTG are advising the industry to be aware of a website ‘Construction Site Card UK’ (ccsouk.com) and corresponding Instagram account advertising various construction industry job cards, including CCDO, with no tests or examinations.
“As a reminder, NDTG is the only issuing authority for CCDO cards and this organisation is not approved to either deliver CCDO courses or issue CCDO cards. Please do not use this website. It is alleged that those who have fallen victim to its claims have made payments upfront and received none of the promised deliverables.”
Carl Hassell, group director (job cards) at NOCN, which runs the Construction Plant Competence Scheme (CPCS) card scheme, said: “This investigation is being led by CSCS on behalf of the partner card schemes. The website is blatantly offering various construction cards without the need to test. This is an advanced fee money scam, not a carding scam. They do not send applicants any card. This website is linked to several others of a similar nature currently advertising on various social media platforms. The investigators are doing everything they can to close down the various sites, this type of fraud is dangerous and not acceptable.”
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