ALMOST £140,000 of fraud has been prevented in Dorset thanks to a rapid response scheme that was rolled out to the county in June.

The Banking Protocol scheme means bank staff can alert police and Trading Standards if they suspect a customer is in the process of being scammed. The Post Office is also part of the protocol.

And figures from UK Finance show that nationally, the scheme has stopped more than nine million pounds being passed to criminals in its first year of operation and 101 arrests have been made.

The fraud prevention scheme identifies and protects potential fraud victims when they visit a bank or building society branch.

The Banking Protocol was first launched in October 2016 with a pilot in London before a national rollout began in May.

In the 12 months since the pilot was launched, the Banking Protocol has prevented £9.1 million of fraud, with individual customers protected from losing sums from £99 to £212,000.

Detective Inspector Neil Wright from the Volume Crime Team in Dorset said: “This scheme is part of a larger force campaign designed to identify and support vulnerable residents of Dorset and prevent them from becoming victims of fraud.

"We aim to raise awareness of fraud within our communities through our Neighbourhood Policing Teams and the media, encouraging people to take preventative steps.

"The banking protocol will ensure banks and police are more active in protecting customers by spotting scams before any money has been handed over. This will go a long way to reducing financial crime."