Warning after con men target Belton homes

Humberside Police are warning the public against supporting bogus charity collectors after two reported incident in Belton last week.
Police have given advice over bogus callers.Police have given advice over bogus callers.
Police have given advice over bogus callers.

In both incidents a man claiming to be from the British Legion was collecting door to door, however checks with the charity suggest this was a bogus collector.

Police are now urging people members of the not to donate money to door to door collectors unless they have suitable identification to prove they are from the charity and checks are made with the charities head office.

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To protect yourself from this type of incident take the following steps:

• Genuine charities are registered with the Charity Commission and print their registration details on all documentation, collection bags, envelopes etc. Check these details exist and also contact the Charity Commission to confirm they are authentic. You can call them on their helpline 0845 300 0218 or by visiting charity-commission.gov.uk, where they have an online charity register.

• As well as identity documents, people collecting money for a genuine charity must carry documents from the charity confirming they are collecting legitimately. Ask to see these documents and check the details.

• If the collection is for a charity you know is genuine, check the collection is authorised by asking the charity directly, using contact details from the phone book or a website that you know is genuine.

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• Contact your local authority to check whether the collector has been given a license to collect.

• Send your donation to the charity directly. This may mean going to a little more trouble, but at least you can be sure your donation will get to where it’s intended.