More than £200k lost in the region to courier fraud - find out about the tricks being used

The force has revealed that they received 121 reports of fraudsters 'purporting to be police officers or bank officials’ between April 2023 and March 2024.

£233,659 was lost in the region to courier fraud with £28.7 million nationwide.

Of total reports made nationwide, 63 per cent of victims were female with an average loss of £20k per person.

Police have identified that people in their 80s are most likely to be targeted by criminals, with data from Action Fraud revealing that this age range accounts for 43 per cent of all victims.

Courier fraud occurs when people are contacted by criminals who are pretending to be police officers or bank officials and are duped into handing over money, valuables, or bank cards which are collected from their home address, often by couriers.

Fraudsters can use a variety of different tactics, such as claiming that there is a problem with your account and that they need your help to catch the criminals.

Detective Sergeant of West Mercia Police, Jon Cooper, said, “In the last financial year we received 121 reports of fraudsters purporting to be police officers or bank officials trying, and sometimes succeeding, in tricking people to withdraw money or purchase expensive items such as jewellery to hand over to couriers.

“The total amount that victims across the force area have lost equals nearly £240k.

“The actual number of fraudulent phone calls received by West Mercia residents will undoubtedly be much higher and sadly it is likely that there will be victims that are unaware that they are victims, or those who feel too ashamed to report the matter to police, along with those who simply put the phone down on these unscrupulous callers.

“Your bank or police will never call you to ask to verify your personal details or PIN. If you get a call asking you to do this, hang up, ensure the line is clear, wait five-minutes and call your bank on a number you know to be genuine, such as the one on the back of your card.

“Your bank or police will never send a courier to your home to collect cash, bank cards, PINS or other valuables. Any such requests will always be part of a scam.

“The police will not contact you out of the blue and ask you to participate in an investigation that requires you to withdraw money or purchase high value goods.

“If you have revealed your bank details over the phone or handed your cards to a courier, call your bank straight away to cancel your card.

“If you suspect that you have been a victim of courier fraud report to Action Fraud at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040.”