Police are warning shoppers to be vigilant following a rise in distraction thefts in supermarket car parks.

The victims have been approached by someone asking for a charity donation and while they are passing the money to them, the offender distracts them with a clipboard and takes as much money as they can get.

These offences have occurred in Chippenham and Melksham in the car parks of Sainsbury's and Waitrose and police believe they are targeted attacks on vulnerable people.

PC Mark Giles said: “We are asking for people to be on their guard in supermarket car parks and report any suspicious behaviour to us.

"The offenders seem to be targeting vulnerable customers, using disabled bays and then taking advantage of their good nature supporting charities to distract them."

“To report anything suspicious please call us on 101, or 999 in an emergency.

“If you have a hearing or speech impairment you can use our textphone service on 999 or 18000 if you've pre-registered with the emergency SMS service.

“You can also call 999 BSL to use a British Sign Language interpreter: 999 BSL.”