CARMARTHENSHIRE County Council’s Trading Standards team has handed over £800 back to elderly people who had been scammed by fraudsters.

Officers have been working with the National Trading Standards Scams Team, who have identified and closed down several fraudulent PO Box addresses across the UK in recent months, intercepting payments which would have been paid to bogus prize draws.

Among those saved from the scammers were 30 Carmarthenshire residents who had sent cash and cheques through the post believing they had won a big money prize.

Through the Scams Hub scheme, their mail was intercepted.

Carmarthenshire Trading Standards staff and officers from Dyfed Powys Police have visited each to hand their money back, giving them advice about recognising scams in future, and offering support.

Councillor Jim Jones, executive board member for Public Protection, said: “We were delighted to be in a position to give these people their money back. Many had no idea they had been scammed, and if it was not for the work of our Trading Standards staff, who have been working with the National Trading Standards Scams Team, they may have targeted again and again by fraudsters.

“One resident we visited in the Ammanford area had sent £30 in the hope of winning a large cash prize and was shocked to learn that she had sent money to a scam – she was really happy to receive her money back.”

Throughout July, which is Scams Awareness Month, Trading Standards staff have been spreading the word about scams to help stop more people from falling prey to clever cons that fleece them of thousands of pounds.

Scams Awareness Month highlights how scams continue to flourish when people stay silent - figures show that less than five per cent of victims report scams to the authorities.

Scams come in every form, from doorstep double-glazing sales to online investment offers. People may be targeted with “vishing” calls where a fraudster impersonates their bank to collect their bank details, or by bogus companies offering computer services. Online scams include dodgy job adverts and offers for goods and services, while mail scams may ask victims to pay a fee in order to claim their winnings from a prize draw they haven’t entered.

The Scams Awareness Month campaign is asking people to keep two things in mind when they receive an unsolicited approach or when they are looking for goods or services: don’t be rushed and don’t be hushed. People should take their time to make a decision and get their facts together before parting with their money or personal information, and speak out when they think they’ve spotted a scam.

Check our Top Tips for Avoiding Scams