City residents target for card fraudsters

Over £36,000 has been lost to so-called plastic card fraud in Lincolnshire this month.

Plastic card fraud involves the theft of personal information from credit, debit or store cards or the theft of a card itself to commit fraud. 

This month a total of £36,559 has been stolen through 31 reported crimes of plastic card fraud. Police analysis shows that this is currently the most practised fraud in the county with a third of all incidents reported in Lincoln and the rest reported from across the county. 

The most common tactics police are seeing are cards being stolen from a handbag, a public place, and especially from vehicles. Stolen cards then tend to be used nearby in small and independent local shops. 

Protect yourself by: 

• Keep all your cards and financial details safe.
• Memorise your PIN and never, ever give your PIN out. Police or bank staff will never ask for this. Shield your PIN when paying or using an ATM. 
• Report any unfamiliar transactions to your card company immediately. 
• Ideally use a shedder to dispose of financial documents and cut through the magnetic strip and chip when getting rid of a card. 
• Don’t leave your card on show in your car or any place that an opportunist thief might spot it.