Police are warning residents of a Cotswolds town to beware of a woman visiting homes claiming to be a GP.
The woman entered an address in Cirencester town centre on the weekend of the 23-24 January claiming to be ‘Dr Gough.’
However, a resident checked and found that there are no GPs of that name at the local surgery.
Gloucestershire Constabulary has put out a community alert warning residents to be on their guard and keep their doors locked.
Officers say nothing was stolen so they do not know why the woman pretended to be a doctor.
It follows a spate of scams where people have used the Covid-19 crisis to try and trick people.
Fraudsters have been texting and sending messages asking for people’s bank and other financial details, wrongly claiming they are needed to book a vaccine.
The community alert says: ‘Police received a report on Sunday 24th January of a suspicious female who entered an address in Cirencester Town Centre claiming to be a doctor.
‘The female gave the name Dr Gough before leaving. Enquiries at the residents’ surgery reveal that there are no doctors with that name at the surgery. Nothing was taken from the address and the motive for the incident remains unknown.
‘Please ensure all doors are kept secure and report any suspicious incidents to police on the non emergency number – 101. In an emergency always dial 999. ‘
it comes as GPs were recently told to safely dispose of Covid vaccine packaging to avoid aiding scams.
According to NHS England, people have reported suspicious telephone calls or text messages with a link to a booking site that mimics an NHS page, but asks for personal details including bank account numbers.
In one extreme case, a man in London has been charged after knocking on a 92-year-old woman’s door and administering a fake vaccine to her, before taking a £160 payment which he told her would be reimbursed by the NHS.
