POLICE have warned of rogue traders in Swanage after an elderly woman attempted to withdraw almost £2,000 from her bank account.

Officers were called to Nationwide on Tuesday after staff reported that the victim had asked to take out £1,700 for workmen at her home.

The workmen had arrived at her property unannounced and told the woman, who is in her late 80s, that she had a "couple of loose tiles on her roof" that needed to be fixed.

The victim was then driven to the bank and told to withdraw the money. She was also told not to tell staff at the bank what the money was for.

However, staff stopped the woman from taking the money out of her account and called Dorset Police.

A spokesperson from the force urged residents to "keep an eye" on elderly neighbours.

"If you see any workmen at an address you know is occupied by someone who is elderly, please speak to the elderly person if possible and contact the police if you have any concerns," the spokesperson said.

"If you see something you're not happy with, say something."