At least six elderly Petersfield residents have lost sums of around £6,000 after being scammed by courier fraudsters.

Hampshire Police have issued advice and a plea to stay vigilant following a “concerning rise” in incidents and fraudulent calls over the last three weeks.

Six were reported between August 28 and last Thursday with elderly people in Bedford Road, Noreuil Road, The Spain, Heath Road and Wetherdown losing £6,000 on average after being visited by criminals pretending to be couriers appointed by police.

Courier fraud is when criminals target residents, often elderly or vulnerable, by cold calling and pretending to be police officers or bank representatives.

A spokesperson for Hampshire Police said: “The caller will usually ask for the victim’s help in a secret investigation that they are running.

“Once ‘trust’ has been established, they ask the victim to provide their PIN and credit card details, or to attend their bank and withdraw thousands of pounds in cash.

“The bank cards or cash are later collected from their home address by a courier, who is part of the criminal group, with a password often being given.”

This practice has been carried in Petersfield recently with police urging residents to follow their guidelines, and be safe, rather than sorry.

The spokesperson said: “If someone calls asking for bank cards/details, cash, jewellery, watches or gold to be handed over, or for you to transfer money from your bank account and into another ‘safe’ bank account, Hampshire Police are 100 per cent confident it’s a fake call which should be terminated immediately.”

Scammers often ask victims to call their bank, using the number on the back of their card, or to call 101 or 999 to verify an officer, but the culprits don’t cut off the line.

More advice at www.hampshire.police.uk