A BRITISH police force has warned motorists to wary of so-called 'crash for cash' scams after two men with Irish accents reportedly targeted three drivers in one day.
Gloucestershire Constabulary received three reports on Monday, August 29 about incidents in which drivers handed over hundreds of pounds after being conned into believing they had damaged another car.
The two men behind the suspected scam were described as being white and both spoke with an Irish accent.
One was aged in his mid-to-late 40s, of a stocky build, with short, shaven hair that was greying.
The younger male was described as being of a medium build with brown hair.
Handed over cash
The incidents on Monday occurred in the areas of Reservoir Road in Gloucester and Brooklyn Road in Cheltenham.
In the scam, motorists have been driving along the road when they have heard a loud noise from the passenger side of their vehicle.
They have then pulled over after being concerned they had been in a collision, or that something had hit their car.
On all three occasions, the motorists were approached by two men from another vehicle, who claimed that their wing mirror had been hit and damage had been caused.
The wing mirror on the vehicle, which was described as a five-door silver saloon, was bent backwards.
One of the men then stated a fee for the damage to be fixed.
On all three occasions reported to police, the victims either handed over cash or travelled to cashpoints to withdraw money.
Other scams
Police are warning motorists to be vigilant to this type of 'crash for cash' scam and to not hand over any money to fraudsters.
Similar 'crash for cash' frauds include scammers slamming on their brakes at busy junctions and roundabouts so that the driver behind cannot stop in time.
Anyone with information about the incidents is asked to report it to Gloucestershire Constabulary, quoting incident 325 of August 29.
