Three attempted credit card scams were thwarted by alert residents on Tuesday.

The bogus calls, made to homes in the North Wootton and King’s Lynn area, were reported to police by suspicious residents.

The caller claimed to be a police officer from the Metropolitan or West Midlands Police.

He stated that he has a person in custody that he believes has tried to clone the bank card of the person he is calling and then requests their bank details.

Chief Inspector David Buckley said: “These kind of scams can cause distress to those effected. Fortunately with the most recent attempts the intended victims became suspicious and did not passed details over.

“I would remind residents that neither the police nor a bank official would ask for their details over the phone – please never give out any security information in this way. We are also advising people to remain vigilant to these kinds of crime and to raise awareness, particularly amongst vulnerable and elderly people.

“Residents should remember their bank, credit card company or the police will never ask them your PIN, bank card or bank account details over the phone – never give these details out.

“The police will never call them and ask them to withdraw money from their account to give to a courier or taxi driver, regardless of how convincing they may seem.

“If they receive such a call they should leave the landline for at least five minutes to make an outside call.

“Fraudsters will keep the line open and have been known to play ring tones, hold music and a recorded message down the phone so the victim believes they are making a call to a legitimate number. Use a friend’s or neighbour’s telephone instead.”

Anyone who believes they have been a victim of fraud should contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.