They claim to help businesses reduce their business rates but what they actually do is convince you to part with your money and then do nothing. They were formerly a company called Lawson Merryweather but they have gone bust and the directors set up this new company eighteen monts ago walking away from their debt! They publish three different trading addresses one of which belonged to Lawson Merryweather.
Their new scam appears to be that they trawl the VOA website looking for businesses who have appealed their rates with other companies. In my case someone called Megan called and said that she was calling to let me know that the company I was using had bad reports and she felt she had to let me know! I questioned why she felt the need to out of the blue to go to the trouble of contacting me and she got very shirty and I got the distinct impression that her company had actually lodged the bad reports to be able to refer to it and therefore entice me to go with them!!!!
I then researched the specialist ratings company and found out the above together with reviews advising not to use them:
Example from 192 directory
Aimee - 10 July 2013 13:28
Do not trust these people, Formerly Lawson Merryweather, mrs sandra leech directory. They take your money claiming they will change your rates, Take lots of money then go bankrupt
This is a very strange way to conduct business by trying to get clients by slagging off other companies and to be so devious as to find out who has appealed from a public forum website and knowing that they want to appeal their rates then to go to the trouble of looking them up and contacting them like they are do gooders trying to help! I was very suspicious when Megan called me and even more so now that I have looked them up. I tried to ring them back to discuss further but surprise surprise they don't answer the phone.
Don't normally go to the bother of reporting things like this but felt I should as this seems to be a new way of scamming by acting like they are trying to help for no apparent reason.
The Ratings Specialists Ltd Reviews
THINGS TO BE AWARE OF WITH THIS SCAMMING COMPANY.
They claim to help businesses reduce their business rates but what they actually do is convince you to part with your money and then do nothing. They were formerly a company called Lawson Merryweather but they have gone bust and the directors set up this new company eighteen monts ago walking away from their debt! They publish three different trading addresses one of which belonged to Lawson Merryweather.
Their new scam appears to be that they trawl the VOA website looking for businesses who have appealed their rates with other companies. In my case someone called Megan called and said that she was calling to let me know that the company I was using had bad reports and she felt she had to let me know! I questioned why she felt the need to out of the blue to go to the trouble of contacting me and she got very shirty and I got the distinct impression that her company had actually lodged the bad reports to be able to refer to it and therefore entice me to go with them!!!!
I then researched the specialist ratings company and found out the above together with reviews advising not to use them:
Example from 192 directory
Aimee - 10 July 2013 13:28
Do not trust these people, Formerly Lawson Merryweather, mrs sandra leech directory. They take your money claiming they will change your rates, Take lots of money then go bankrupt
This is a very strange way to conduct business by trying to get clients by slagging off other companies and to be so devious as to find out who has appealed from a public forum website and knowing that they want to appeal their rates then to go to the trouble of looking them up and contacting them like they are do gooders trying to help! I was very suspicious when Megan called me and even more so now that I have looked them up. I tried to ring them back to discuss further but surprise surprise they don't answer the phone.
Don't normally go to the bother of reporting things like this but felt I should as this seems to be a new way of scamming by acting like they are trying to help for no apparent reason.