The Vale of Glamorgan Council is warning residents about a suspected scam operating in the County.

Shared Regulatory Services (SRS), the body responsible for maintaining trading standards across the Vale, Cardiff and Bridgend local authority areas, has been made aware of an incident involving a suspicious call.

A resident in Llantwit Major was contacted by someone offering a 'state of the art' telecare package and put under pressure to reveal their bank details.

Fortunately, the resident ended the call after becoming suspicious and reported the matter meaning no lasting damage was done.

But not everyone is as vigilant, with the vulnerable and elderly particularly at risk from such tactics.

It is estimated that annually around £378 million is lost to scams across the UK.

Cllr Eddie Williams, Vale of Glamorgan Council Cabinet Member for Legal, Regulatory and Planning, Services, said: "Receiving a call of this nature can be unsettling and lead to devastating consequences if scammers are given payment or access to bank details. We urge residents never to part with money or personal details during an unsolicited phone call. Put the phone down, take a moment to think and then call the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.

"Our Safeguarding Team works hard to engage with residents and key partners to tackle the issue of phone fraud. They will be notified of any complaint made by residents and will want to help those who have been made to feel uncomfortable by these highly persuasive and sometimes aggressive calls. If you're in any doubt, put the phone down immediately."

The advice to residents from the SRS Safeguarding Team is:

• Do not give out any personal details over the telephone
• Do not part with bank account information, passwords or other security details over the phone
• If in any doubt, always put the telephone down on the caller
• Speak to a friend or relative about the matter or contact Citizens Advice.
• Contact your telephone provider to see if they can provide some assistance in reducing scam and nuisance calls to your telephone

Shared Regulatory Services has a small number of call blocking devices available for residents who are receiving persistent, unwanted and fraudulent phone calls.

These devices can protect vulnerable and elderly residents, especially those living alone, by placing blocks on calls from unsolicited numbers. An assessment of needs for this free service is made on a case by case basis.

A number of telephone service providers also offer call blocking services for free.

All initial phone scam complaints should be made to Citizens Advice Consumer Service by calling 0808 223 1133 (Cymraeg: 0808 223 1144), which will then lead to an assessment by Trading Standards.