Neighbourhood Watch Newsletters are now not routinely issued but only when something major happens. Surrey Police now issue advices via "Active Citizens" and when received, these will be published here on this page.

This booklet has been produced by the Metropolitan Police and gives advice on a number of scams. It is a pdf document and you will need Adobe Acrobate Reader to view or download the file.

Warning from Surrey Police re Distraction Card Thefts (24th May 2013)

Officers are urging elderly and vulnerable people to be on their guard following the thefts which are believed to have been carried out by a couple who watch the victim put their pin number in the store, then steal the card using a distraction technique.

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The offenders have targeted supermarkets in West Byfleet, Leatherhead and Cobham but it is believed they have been responsible for more and that they may not just be confined to Surrey.

The thefts reported so far all took place on 8 April, with the first one taking place in the Waitrose car park in Station Approach, West Byfleet, around 2-35pm. A woman approached an elderly man who was putting his shopping in the boot of his car and said he had dropped £10. She then asked him if he had change and asked for two £5 notes. The man got his wallet out and the woman looked through it with him to see if he had any change. After she had walked off, the victim realised she had taken his credit card. The victim also noticed the woman appeared to be with a male accomplice. The card was later used to try and withdraw £300 from his bank account. However, the suspects entered the wrong PIN number and did not manage to withdraw any money.

A similar incident took place at Sainsbury's in High Street, Leatherhead, between 12-30pm and 2pm on 8 April, although the offenders did not manage to escape with any money on this occasion. The offender approached the elderly female victim , pushed her in the back and apologised before walking off with her purse. The offender's female accomplice then returned the purse asking for change for a £10 note. Meanwhile, the victim noticed her credit card was missing, and the suspect pretended to drop it on the floor before handing it back to the victim.

Officers are also investigating a third offence at the Sainsbury's supermarket in Downside Bridge Road, Cobham, just after 2pm. The couple watched the elderly woman enter her pin number after she used her card to pay for some items at the tobacco kiosk before following her out to the car park and telling her that she had dropped a £10 note. The female suspect then took the victim's purse, putting the £10m note inside and removing the debit card at the same time. The male suspect then asked for directions to the train station before leaving with his female accomplice. They later used the card to withdraw £180 cash.

The female suspect is described as white, around 30 years, of Mediterranean appearance, with dark hair. She was wearing a bright pink scarf and a long dark coat. The male suspect is described as white, in his 30s, with short dark hair and was wearing a green jumper, a khaki blazer, blue jeans and white trainers.

Warning from Surrey Police re Bank Cards

We have seen 6 crimes over the last month in Runnymede whereby victims, all elderly and vulnerable, have been called by someone claiming to be a police officer. In most of these cases, the victims have handed over their bank cards to a 'courier' and some have handed over cash for 'verification purposes'.

If you have been a victim of this crime or know some one who has please call 101 and report it immediately.

Please be aware of a scam currently being used within the area, whereby victims are receiving calls from some one claiming to be a Police Officer or similar, which is convincing victims to hand over large amounts of cash and bank details.

The victims have been informed that people have been caught using their cards, and they would need to call up their bank straight away to cancel their accounts. Victims are then being asked for their card and bank account details, including their PIN, and some have been told that their cards will need to be collected and a courier is sent round for their cards. In other cases, victims have been asked to withdraw large amounts of cash for verification purposes and this has been collected also.

A genuine Police Officer will not ask for your bank card or account details, neither will they ask you to withdraw money.

There are some steps that you can take to protect yourself:

• Never give out any personal information about your bank account to anybody over the phone.

• If some one calls claiming to be a Police Officer, ask for their identification number, police force and their telephone extension. Hang up the call, and advise that you will call them back. Use the 101 number to do this.

• Check your phone has a dial tone before ringing out to another number after such calls, or use a different phone line where possible.

• If you have given out information which could compromise your bank account security in any way, call your bank up to cancel your cards as soon as possible and ask for any suspicious transactions to be monitored.

• Never hand over money to some one at the door to be sent off elsewhere.

• If some one comes to your door claiming to be a Police Officer or staff member, always ask for identification and make note of their identification number. Call up the force to confirm if necessary.

• Call 999 if anyone comes to your door and demands money or any other items from you.

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All reports of frauds or scams can be reported to us via the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 08454 04 05 06 or online via their website