RESIDENTS are being warned to be on their guard after reports of two scams circulating in the county.

Letters are being sent out by fraudsters claiming that people have won £725,000.

The scam claims to have been sent from ‘FIFA House’ in Zurich, Switzerland, and is a ‘Final Award Notification’ addressed from ‘Euromillions FIFA World Cup Super-Lottery’.

The letter asks the victim to complete a payment processing form, which involves passing on their bank details.

They are then asked to send a ‘processing fee’ to claim the full cash amount.

The fraudsters then continue to ask for further fees and some victims have lost thousands or even tens of thousands of pounds.

East Lothian Council Trading Standards has strongly warned consumers not to respond.

Service manager Tony McAuley said: “Unfortunately we know that this particular scam has been played out in East Lothian, with at least one local contacting us and reporting a loss on money from his account.

“Colleagues elsewhere in Scotland have also been alerted to this scam.” A contact name is also shown on the letter as being Donald Simpson, Foreign Service Manager of Prime Financial Corporation, with an address at Prime House in Aberdeen.

Meanwhile, businesses offering accommodation, such as bed and breakfasts, are also being targeted by fraudsters.

The emails promise an over-payment for the accommodation costs with their business associate, who is paying for their travel expenses together with their accommodation fee via cheque, and ask that the balance is refunded.

Mr McAuley said: “We would ask that all businesses are diligent towards this type of scam and if you receive an email like this, please delete it from your inbox.

“We would also remind business owners never to give out their bank details via email, and to treat any suspicious enquiries with caution. If you have any other concerns about this please contact 01620 827365.” Members of the public wanting to report a scam can also contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service by phone on 03454 04 05 06.

The helplines are open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.