Fake vaccine victims scammed out of £3,500 in West Midlands
More than £3,500 has been stolen from people across the West Midlands in Covid vaccine scams.
West Midlands Police has had 26 reports of people being tricked into handing over cash after receiving a fake vaccine invitation since the turn of the year.
The victims have been contacted by phone, email or text message.
Officers are reminding people to ignore the approaches of coronavirus scammers as the vaccine is only available through the NHS.
Inputting your bank details into an illegitimate website risks exposing your account to fraudsters and clicking on email links could contain malware that will infect their device.
Chloe Guy, from the force's economic crime unit, said: "Although the vaccination programme is being rolled out at a rapid pace there are still some con-artists looking to exploit people’s desire to be vaccinated.
"If you receive an email, text message or phone call purporting to be from the NHS and you are asked to provide financial details or pay for the vaccine, this is a scam.
"You can be contacted by the NHS, a GP surgery or pharmacy local to you, to receive your vaccine. Remember, the vaccine is free of charge. At no point will you be asked to pay."
Earlier this year a 92-year-old woman in London was injected with a fake vaccine by a fraudster claiming to work with the NHS who charged her £160.
