Council warns elderly of scam callers

The council has warned people about scam callers looking to instal new community alarms.

The council has warned residents with community alarm or home link systems to be wary of scam calls. 

This comes after one resident alerted the SIC to an incident in recent weeks.

A scammer contacted a resident offering to replace their current alarm and wanted to arrange for someone to come and instal it.

To give customers peace of mind, SIC lead occupational therapist Charlotte Weaver said any contact about an alarm system would come from the council’s Community Health and Social Care Service.

“If you are unsure about any communication regarding community alarms, you can contact the Community Occupational Therapy team on 01595 744319 to check whether or not it was from us,” Ms Weaver added.

Trading Standards team leader David Marsh has said there had been many nuisance or scam calls made to islanders. It had been an “ever-present danger” to defraud victims.

“The best defence against them is a call blocker unit, which plugs into an existing phone line and can work alongside broadband and any other installed devices such as care alarms,” Mr Marsh said. 

“Thanks to national funding, we can put this valuable protection in place for you or someone close to you.”

Mr Marsh highlighted that anyone can access a free call blocker from Trading Standards by calling on 01595 744887 or email trading.standards@shetland.gov.uk.