Daniel Baxter pulls off the fake sticker

SCAMMERS are targeting drivers trying to do their bit for the environment with fake signs at electric car charging points.

The New Journal can reveal that lampposts across the borough are being checked after stickers sending people to a dodgy website were found covering up the real pay point.

Daniel Baxter, 64, uncovered the con while trying to charge his environmentally friendly car near his home in Primrose Hill.

“I was pretty alarmed,” he said. “It was a very high quality forgery – everything was the same apart from the QR code. I felt worried that I could have had my money stolen and that other people could have their money stolen.”

The company which runs the street charging points, ubitricity, is now inspecting the details on each lamppost.

Mr Baxter said: “There are not enough ­charging points around anyway, so it is really aggravating to find that some of them have been compromised by crooks.”

He usually scans a QR code on the lamppost to authorise payment and start charging his electric car. But when he scanned last week, he was directed to an unfamiliar website.

Realising something was not right, he peeled back the sticker to reveal the real details. He said he believed he uncovered the scam while it was still a work in progress, because the fraudulent QR code did not link to an active website where he could input his bank details.

The fake sticker and the real sign

In an email to Mr Baxter, ubitricity said: “We take this matter very seriously and now we have forwarded this to our internal team for further investigation. We understand the critical need to prevent such incidents in the future and are diligently enhancing our security protocols to prevent any recurrence.”

While they need to be charged up often over a few hours or overnight, electric cars are regarded as better for the environment due to the lack of toxic emissions. Users are exempt from the congestion charge and do not have to pay road tax.

Councils have been regularly urged to increase the number of charging points to encourage more drivers to make the switch. In Camden, there are 248 lamppost charging points managed by ­ubitricity and 72 “rapid charge” points run by Source London.

A Camden Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of similar cases that have been reported to ubitricity in several locations across London. On each occasion the QR code has linked to an inactive website and no customer details have been compromised.”

They added: “Ubitricity’s partners are now undertaking an inspection of all charg­ing points to check that the signage is correct. We advise all motorists who use our electrical charging points to be vigilant for any addition­al stickers or signs, and if in any doubt to call the freephone number provided.”

The New Journal approached ubitricity for comment last week but have not yet received a response.