Really worried have I just fallen for a scam?

[Sidebeforeself]

Middle of day working from home. Intercom goes and someone asks if I have drooped a bank card. I would have normally just said no and put phone down but my husband had just left , with a friend I literally just met so it was feasible someone might have dropped it. Went to the door and it was a nice friendly young lad , dressed casually. He said he was walking past , that he lives around the corner and lived around teh corner saw it on our path. I said it wasn’t mine but it might be someone’s in teh flats and he just said ok and walked off.

qBut when I’ve looked at it it’s not a bank card is a Bet Fred card with a chip in it? Don’t know what they are used for.

Im worried now he was casing the house. Either just checking if someone was in to chance it, or sizing the place up.

Anyone heard of this? Not much I can do now but kicking myself . Let’s face it “Have you dropped your bank card?” Is designed to get you to your front door.

I don’t have a miserable existence thanks. Something felt off. I’d prefer reassurance rather than ridicule

Has DH asked his friend if he's dropped a Betfred card? It might just be that straightforward.

You’re overthinking it.

But if you’re worried about this sort of thing in general, get a ring style doorbell, stick up a couple of the wireless cctv cams in your front / back window and install a couple of sensor lights if you don’t have any

Why are you so anxious about someone having an 'insight into the property' ... is at a communal hall or just your own? Presumably anyone could ring you door bell and see inside unless you are one of those mumsnetters who never answers the door. It's never even occurred to me not to let someone see inside my front door - which is rarely locked anyway.

Do you by chance suffer from anxiety at all? You seem to be massively overthinking opening your door to someone.

I genuinely don't understand what you think you've fallen for. You just answered the door.

People on this website and answering the door - fucking hell 🙄

Well, to be fair to PP you are being ridiculous. You opened the door. That is all. People do it all the time and nothing bad happens.

Guard dog?! What kind of palace are you residing in?!

I don't really understand what he could have accomplished by talking to you at your door, is this the first time you've ever opened the door to a stranger?

This. I have never in real life come across a single person that puts so much thought into answering their door. Mumsnet seems to be full of people who are barely capable of functioning in the world.

im not one of those people who don’t answer the door!! That’s not what this is about . I have heard of scams to get you to the door . And I was worried I’d fallen for it. Thanks to those who have been kindly reassuring.

I know, I have never understood this either. If looking at someone's hallway is all it takes to plan a robbery then all the delivery drivers would have a nice little sideline in selling info about peoples hallways to the would be robbers.

and you can fuck off claiming I’m barely capable of functioning.

Even if you go to extremes and overthink about the worst thing that can happen here, it's really only that some person who thinks they have have conjured up an elaborate ruse using a betting shop card has knocked on the door and you have opened it, and told him you haven't lost your bank card.

And I think that's about it? You haven't fallen for a scam. You haven't given him anything. You haven't signed over your life savings, or lent him your car. If we stick to the facts, somebody knocked on the door and you opened it, and whichever way you look at it, that's a fairly reasonable thing to do.

OP. Do you have a back door or is there just one door for the flat? Sometimes you can get distraction thefts where one person distracts the owner at the front and another person comes in the house at the back.

A scam to get you to open a door = knocking.

Your DH is annoyed with you for... opening the door? WTAF?

What is the rest of the scam, householder answers the door ...... Then what?

Opening the door is devil's work🤭🤣🤣

See also answering the phone if you are not expecting someone to call.

Google Bet Fred card scam for better information. TBH, it sounds like a good deed.

I don't get it. Surely most people answer the front door unless they only feel safe to answer the door to people they know and are expecting. If you are one of those, why did you answer? It could have been any one of many kinds of people - a builder or gardener touting for business, a charity collector, someone from a church or political party etc etc.

You're just assuming he was up to no good because he is young, casually dressed and saying a card is a bank card even though it isn't, although it may actually have funds on it and he may actually have believed it was a bank card.

And...so he knows you are home and that no huge guard dog appeared. So he's probably not going to burgle you but next time when you don't answer because you're afraid it's a scam, he will break in and find you are there after all.

Do you live in a house or block of flats? You mentioned intercom and flats but say you live in a house?

I'm asking because if it was dodgy the thing that sprung to mind was that he wanted entry to the whole block and buzzed intercoms with a story to get in.

But you say he walked off so it doesn't seem like a scam, if anything just an attempt to see if anyone in.

We were burgled several times when I was growing up. The first attempt was a man ringing the doorbell. My mum answered and apparently he seemed really surprised and asked for directions to a random place.
We lived on a rural, private road, had a long driveway and very private, large house. No reason at all anyone would stop in, on foot, for directions to a place nowhere near us. No cars on drive as one was in the garage, my dad was out in the other. He got home about 10 mins later, went straight back out to find the guy.

He was a local criminal who then robbed a boy of his bike by threatening to smash his face in. Dad saw the kid crying and pulled over to check on him. He matched the description my mum also gave and the police knew who it was. Anyway, long story short, it does happen so don't feel totally invalidated by at least feeling puzzled.

God I wish this was the most I had to worry about

I know, the temerity of people thinking they can call without some kind of appointment to do so 😆😆😆