Fake Covid marshals are going door-to-door then steal from homes, warn police 

Fake Covid marshals are going door-to-door on hunt for rule breaches then steal from homes when let inside, warn police

  • Police forces and Trading Standards have warned fraudsters have new tactics
  • Fake Covid-19 marshals pretending to check for rule breaches before stealing 
  • Bedfordshire Police issued a warning after two men tried to enter a property 

Fake coronavirus mashals have been pretending to check for rule breaches and stealing from homes once they are let inside.

Police forces and Trading Standards warned fraudsters have been conning people by pretending they were told to enter people’s homes.

The tactic comes after con artists pretended to be healthcare workers offering bogus virus tests to get inside houses.

The mashals, called COVID-19 secure marshals, do not actually have any powers to enter people’s homes, enforce social distancing or issue fines.

Police forces and Trading Standards warned fraudsters have been conning people by pretending they were told to enter people’s homes. Pictured, a covid mashal in central London

Last month Bedfordshire Police issued a warning after two men tried to enter a property in Dunstable.

The fraudsters told the man he would be fined if he refused, but when the resident asked them for ID, which they could not produce, he refused to let them in and kept the security chain on the door.

One of the offenders stopped the door being closed with his foot, but left the scene after the man again refused to let them inside, police said.

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has received reports of similar incidents involving people pretending to be COVID marshals and medical professionals to get inside people’s homes.

Katherine Hart, CTSI’s lead officer for doorstep crime, said that since lockdown began there have been a series of scams involving imposter marshals and that this could increase over winter.

Metrolink workers wore high vis jackets that urged social distancing in Manchester in July

Metrolink workers wore high vis jackets that urged social distancing in Manchester in July

She said: ‘Since March we have seen so many different instances of fraudsters using the pandemic as an opportunity to defraud the public.

‘These scams are shifting in their theme as the rules and regulations change with individuals now pretending to be COVID-19 secure marshals.

‘COVID-19 secure marshals will never come to your door unannounced and do not have the right of entry, or the right to issue fines.

‘This type of scam appears in many forms, and I have also received information about individuals pretending to offer flu vaccinations on the door – a concerning development as we enter flu season.

‘I am particularly concerned that elderly and vulnerable individuals may be at risk to this scam.

‘I ask the public and public authorities to spread the correct safeguarding information so that we can stop these unscrupulous individuals from ruining the lives of those already struggling during this challenging time.’