Hundreds of scammers flogging FAKE poppies online as Royal British Legion slam ‘fraudsters’

THE Royal British Legion has slammed a fresh wave of fake poppy scammers ahead of Remembrance Day. 

Hundreds of lowlifes have flooded sites like eBay and Amazon with false listings for red poppies to "actively defraud" patriotic Brits.

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And it is thought not a penny earned from their sales is actually going to charity, with scores of online salesmen not making it clear if the money made is for a good cause.

Poppies are worn as a show of remembrance of those who served Britain - and money raised goes towards supporting the Armed Forces community.

The Royal British Legion (RBL) confirmed that when buying genuine red poppies online, they can only be purchased through official channels.

But a search on the eBay site for "red poppy brooch" brings up 455 results, and "remembrance poppy" brings up 2,887 results, including stickers, window decals and face masks.

The Royal British Legion's has just 123 items for sale.

Meanwhile on Amazon, "poppy badges and pins 2021" has 762 results.

Just one of the badges featured in the first four listings is from RBL.

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And one scammer even advertises their wares with keywords like "Hero," "Veterans," "Memorial Day" and "Remembrance".

The listing continues: "The brooches make a perfect gift for family or friends, gifts on Memorial Day, Remembrance Day, Veterans Day or Any Occasions."

The seller - who does not appear to be in any way affiliated with the RBL's official account - neglects to mention anywhere on the page if the proceeds from the £10.99 poppy pins go to charity.

Amazon does have an where poppies can be purchased here.

It is not clear if sellers from unofficial channels make a personal donation.

An RBL spokesman told The Sun: "It is a sad fact that there are people who actively defraud the public in order to take funds intended to benefit our Armed Forces community.

"We would urge everyone wishing to purchase a Remembrance poppy brooch, to do so through official channels."

It comes as the forces charity launched stunning gold and silver poppy pins in memory of heroic war vet who raised millions for the NHS.

But lowlife scammers have even launched their own version - a blue enamel NHS pin inlaid with a red poppy - but none of the money is thought to go to either the NHS or the Poppy Appeal. 

declined to comment, but commended The Sun for "shining a light on an important topic".

You can purchase poppies from the RBL's , as well as and through their and eBay accounts.

There are appeal boxes across the country and 40,000 collectors will be working to raise cash for a good cause.

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A spokesperson for eBay said: "Buyers who wish to support the Royal British Legion on eBay, should do so from its , to ensure that 100% of the proceeds go to the charity.

"EBay works with the Royal British Legion as part of our Verified Rights Owner Programme (VeRO) to give intellectual property owners like the Royal British Legion an easy way to report and remove listings that infringe on their rights."

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