Police are urging people to be vigilant after a number of reports of courier fraud in the area.

Residents have been contacted over the phone by people claiming to be police officers who require assistance in an ongoing police investigation.

The scammers encourage people to go to their local bank and withdraw thousands of pounds.

A password is given to the victim and a courier will later arrive to collect the money, stating the same password.

Police say this is not an investigation and is a scam and officers will never ask you to hand over money.

The Met said the scam is frequently happening in the area and affects the more elderly members of the community.

Detective Constable Laura Travers, of the South West Basic Command Unit, said: "The recent courier frauds taking place in the south west of London are a real concern, particularly as the group generally affected are the elderly members of the community.

"This is not only having a significant financial impact, but an emotional impact on each and every victim. These crimes take advantage of peoples' good nature and can have a lasting effect.

"I would urge everyone in the community to discuss this matter with elderly friends and family members to make sure that they are aware of these types of scams.

"If you receive a call from an unknown person, hang up, take five minutes and then verify the callers' identification through a trusted method.

"Genuine police officers will not ask you to take out cash or to send cash via a courier. If you suspect you have been a victim of fraud, please call 101 or 999 in an emergency."

Police are advising members of the public to do the following:

• If you receive a call from an unknown person, hang up, take five minutes and then verify the callers identification through a trusted method

• If the caller claims to be a police officer, request their details and reference number that the incident relates to, hang up and then call 101 in order to check this

• Do not give out personal details such as banking information over the phone

• If you suspect that you have been a victim of fraud, please call 101 or 999 in an emergency

Always remember:

• Genuine police officers will never ask people to withdraw cash

• Police will not ask members of the public to send cash to them via a courier

• All genuine police officers will be happy to verify their credentials

Anyone with information that may assist in identifying the suspects in these offences can contact police on 101 quoting reference CAD: 2124/03DEC20.