Real Hustle team back cons battle

A television programme dedicated to beating cons is backing an anti-scams initiative in Staffordshire.

The county council's Trading Standards team has set up Scamnesty bins or boxes in all the county's libraries.

People can use the scheme to dispose of scam mail. With only four days to go for residents to dump such letters, BBC3's The Real Hustle team are on the case.

The team have urged viewers in the county to join the fight against scammers which is part of the Office of Fair Trading's Scams Awareness month.

The TV team demonstrate ways in which the public can be conned in order to raise awareness.

The Scamnesty campaign, which is being run in partnership with local authority trading standards officers, is taking place in nearly 60 local authority areas to provide intelligence, help inform future investigations, and prevent others from being scammed.

Staffordshire libraries also feature posters asking consumers to "drop in and drop them in it".

Research carried out by the Office of Fair Trading shows that while threemillion people a year fall victim to scams including bogus lotteries, deceptive prize draws, sweepstakes and fake psychics, fewer than five per cent report it to the authorities.

Consumer Direct, the Government's advice service, has also this month launched a new scams reporting function on its website, allowing the public to record details of the type of scam they have encountered.

The county council's cabinet member for safer and stronger communities Councillor Carol Dean said: "This Scamnesty is providing us with more information which is our weaponry against the scammers.

"The more we encourage people to come forward and talk about what's happening, then the more can be done to beat them."

By John Corser