SCAMMING that took place in Cirencester and Cheltenham has prompted Gloucestershire Police to issue a safety warning.

Police are warning people not to give out their bank details, PINs or account numbers to anyone over the phone.

A Cheltenham woman was persistently called by a man on October 16 saying that he was from the TSB fraud department and that she needed to transfer her money from her TSB account into a Barclays' one.

The woman became suspicious and so alerted police, and no money was lost. If you have any information on this incident or feel you may have been a victim yourself call 101 quoting incident 355 of October 16.

In another incident a caller claiming to be a police officer phoned an elderly Cirencester woman on October 3 claiming to have arrested two men in London in possession of her bank and credit cards - which she knew to be suspicious as she does not have a bank or credit card.

The caller claimed to have her address and postcode and so police were alerted. No money was lost. If you any more information call 101 quoting incident 115 of October 3.

Another Cirencester incident saw a man claiming to be a police officer phone a resident claiming her account had been compromised and an arrest made.

She refused to call a number he claimed to be for her bank, and the caller rang off. Again no money was taken. If you any more information call 101 quoting incident 466 of October 2.

Senior Harm Reduction Advisor Dave McFarlane, at Gloucestershire Police, said: “Sadly these types of incidents are becoming all too common as these unscrupulous characters take advantage of innocent victims by winning their trust. "We are reiterating the following message to everyone, particularly those vulnerable members of our community; banks will NEVER ask you to give your details over the phone or via email.

"If you get a call like this hang up, even disconnect the phone, then ring 101 and report the incident.”

For more crime prevention advice, please log onto gloucestershire.police.uk