Be aware of new telephone scam

Derbyshire County Council Trading Standards team has been contacted by concerned residents who have received phone calls where the caller claims to be from the council and wants to talk about an accident the person has had.

Rob Taylour, assistant director for health and communities, said: “The people who have contacted us have quickly realised that this is a scam and we are very grateful to them for getting in touch.”

“What concerns us is that there may be elderly or vulnerable people out there who continue with the conversation and are duped into giving out personal and financial information.

“We would never make unsolicited phone calls of this nature and we want to reassure people about this. Our advice is to put the phone down on these scammers and then report the call.”

Report a suspicious call to Trading Standards through the Citizens Advice consumer service on 08454 04 05 06, or alternatively report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.