Scam offering free grand piano targets music lovers

Fraudsters are currently circulating emails claiming to offer a free grand piano, allegedly from a widow looking to find a new home for her late husband's instrument. The sender typically states that the piano is in excellent condition and has brought joy to their home. They express a desire for it to go to someone who will truly appreciate and care for it, often suggesting that recipients forward the message to a dedicated student, teacher, family, or church.

Potential victims who respond to these emails are told that the piano is currently being held in storage several hundred miles away. The scammer then requests an upfront payment to cover the costs of delivery. Once the victim pays the requested amount, usually between £100 and £500, all communication ceases. Experts note this is an advance fee fraud, where criminals solicit payment for goods that do not exist.

The British music shop and piano dealer, Forsyth, reported that they have been contacted by individuals seeking advice after receiving such offers. The business stated, “Fortunately, we were able to rescue them before they responded to any requests to cover the cost of shipping, or insuring the piano, but we’ve heard of many others who have fallen for it and lost significant amounts of money – because the truth is, there is no piano.”

Macauley Sykes of Sykes & Sons, a specialist piano workshop based in Stockport, confirmed that this is an unfortunately common scam. He added that the fraud has targeted individual musicians, churches, and educational institutions. Sykes warned, “Where people should become cautious is when an unusually valuable instrument, particularly a modern Yamaha or Steinway grand, is supposedly being given away by a stranger, but cannot be viewed or collected in person, and money must first be sent for delivery.”

Unlike many other phishing attempts, these emails often do not require the user to click a link or open an attachment. The messages frequently claim to be from a woman whose husband has recently died, or sometimes appear as if they were forwarded by a family friend. In other instances, the emails claim to originate from a church or an organisation that is closing or lacks the space to keep the instrument.

Experts advise that such emails should be ignored or deleted. If an email does happen to contain a link, users are warned not to click it. Suspicious emails can be reported by forwarding them to [email protected].