What to do if you paid a fake delivery fee
A fake delivery fee captures your card details. The small charge is often followed by larger attempts.
Quick answer
A fake delivery fee captures your card details. The small charge is often followed by larger attempts.
- Contact your bank and block the card
- Review recent transactions
- Note the website used
- Keep the message as evidence
Do this now
Contact your bank to block the card and watch for further charges.
Understanding what happened
Fake delivery-fee scams ask for a small 'release', 'customs', or 'redelivery' charge for a parcel - an amount low enough that paying feels easier than checking. The immediate loss is usually small, but the real goal is often your card details, which you entered to pay.
Once a scammer has your card information, they can attempt larger charges or sell the details on, so the fee itself may be the least of the problem. Some of these pages also capture the one-time code from your bank, which can authorise a payment you didn't intend.
Because card details are involved, the priority is your bank: blocking the card, disputing the charge, and watching for further attempts. The steps below treat the situation as a card-detail exposure, not just a small refund, which is the safer assumption.
First 5 minutes
- Contact your bank and block the card
- Review recent transactions
- Note the website used
- Keep the message as evidence
First 24 hours
- Order a replacement card
- Watch for fake bank 'fraud team' callbacks
- Report the scam text
- Report to your fraud authority
What not to do
- Do not pay anyone who promises to recover your money for an upfront fee
- Do not act on follow-up messages claiming to be the fraud team
- Do not delete evidence before saving it
Evidence to save
- Screenshots of the message and sender details
- Phone numbers, usernames, links, and account or wallet addresses
- Transaction references, receipts, and amounts
How to report
Report through official channels for your area.
Find official reporting links for your country in the reporting directory.
- Do not use phone numbers or links from the suspicious message - look up the official ones yourself.
- Report quickly if money was sent or ID documents were shared; speed improves your options.
- Keep your evidence - see how to save scam evidence.
Beware of recovery scams: no legitimate service guarantees getting your money back for an upfront fee.
This is general safety information, not legal, financial, or cybersecurity incident-response advice.
Frequently asked questions
How quickly should I act?
As soon as possible. Fast action - especially contacting your bank - gives the best chance of limiting harm or stopping a payment.
Will I get my money back?
Sometimes, if you act quickly, but there is no guarantee. Be very cautious of anyone who promises guaranteed recovery for an upfront fee - that is a recovery scam.