Members of the public should be on their guard for bogus charity collections, people in trading standards jobs have warned.
Officers in St Albans and Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire have reported a number of incidents in which people have received pink bags asking for clothes and donations to the Children's Support Society.
However, the charity does not exist and is using a charity number from an organisation that is now defunct.
This follows an incident last month in which Hertfordshire Trading Standards seized a number of fake leaflets purporting to be from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
County councillor Keith Emsall told the Watford Observer this kind of crime costs legitimate charities between £2.5 and £3 million each year.
"Anyone receiving bags or leaflets about collections should always make sure that they are giving to legitimate charities," he advised.
Meanwhile, people in trading standards jobs in Cheshire have also warned residents to be on their guard after receiving information about bogus doorstep charity collectors.
Posted by Oliver Mycock
