Warning after scammers are thwarted by eldery lady

In one case, a pensioner was asked to withdraw money from her account and told someone would collect it within two hours.

She was advised she was due a large some of money from her bank as a result of missold PPI. A reference number was provided and she was given a telephone number to call once she had obtained the money.

Fortunately the lady sought guidance from family members and realised it was a scam.

A spokesman for Forth Valley Police said: ‘‘Scammers trick members of the public by suggesting to the person that they are owed money - often for repayment of bank charges, PPI or a court settlement - but first they ask for an upfront payment from the person in order to enable them to receive it.

‘‘These callers have no connection with genuine organisations. Fraudsters have already tricked and harassed some victims into handing over thousands of pounds, only for them to find that the call was a fake. Genuine callers would never contact consumers asking them for personal bank details, or request an upfront payment by money transfer.

‘‘Fraudsters will say anything to get their hands on people’s cash and think nothing of using the names or logos of legitimate organisations to convince persons to hand over money.

‘‘They often ask for personal financial information such as bank account details, and persons are sometimes asked to use electronic money transfer services to provide an upfront payment. They justify this by saying that money is needed for a courier service to deliver a cheque or to insure a sum of money being sent.

‘‘These callers are callous fraudsters who target people who they believe are vulnerable.

‘‘Anyone can be targeted by these scams and should be aware of the above, however we would ask that if you have any elderly family, friends or neighbours, particularly those who may not have access to social media, that you make them aware of these type of calls and advise them never to pass on personal or financial details to such callers.’’