One in five over-60s believe scammers have targeted them more than 10 times

Nearly one in five over60s believe they have been approached more than ten times by scammers in the past year, a survey has found.

The research was released by Santander, which plans to roll out a “scam avoidance school” across its branches from next week for this age group.

Free classes will be designed to help Santander’s customers and non-customers identify common frauds and scams.

Santander found that 19 per cent of older people believe they have been approached more than ten times by scammers in the past 12 months.

The average lost by those who had fallen victim to a scam was £401.

Two-thirds (64 per cent) of over-60s said they were worried about the threat of fraud and scams.

Feeling vulnerable because of an illness was found to be a common reason why people are worried they might be susceptible to a scam, along with people not feeling they are financially aware and living alone.

One in 12 (8 per cent) of those who had fallen victim to a scam said being ill at the time meant they let their guard down, while 18 per cent said confusion when using technology made them particularly vulnerable at the point they were scammed.