A spate of hoax calls are being investigated by Cumbria Police.

The cold callers claim to be from Trading Standards and tell people are owed up to £4,950 and these funds will be released in exchange for £100 in iTunes vouchers.

The caller encourages people not to inform anyone what is happening and to tell staff when buying the vouchers that "they are a Christmas present".

The caller will call back numerous times to encourage the person to buy the vouchers as soon as possible.

The callers use landlines only and police are particularly concerned for potential elderly victims.

Any calls of this nature should be reported to police on 101 quoting log 92 of December 6, 2018.

It is advised that the cold caller should be told that police are aware and are investigating as this has deterred them from calling back before.