AN 86-year-old woman has been left too scared to answer her door or phone after "terrifying calls" from scammers who “knew her name, address and banking habits”.

The victim, who lives in Rayleigh, was contacted four times within hours by alleged scammers who attempted to use her personal information to coerce information out of her about her Nationwide account.

After being convinced by the scammers, she handed over her Visa card number and details before her close friend flagged major concerns and helped her get her account locked.

Now the victim, who asked not to be named, and her friend Ruth Archer, 67, are speaking out to warn elderly residents of the potential dangers of scammers.

The incident and details around the call have been reported to Action Fraud.

The 86-year-old said: “I get frightened every time the phone goes, they do not care about what it does to you, it is just dreadful.

“I was called four times and I gave them too many details that they wanted, they sounded so convincing and I was told the last time I went into the bank to take out money and the time I did it.

“I got the last call at 8.20pm and I had to go to bed with it on my mind, where did they get these details, how did they know I went into the bank at 11am on Wednesday?”

Ruth is a close friend of the victim and called the experience “really upsetting” to see her deal with.

She said: “It was really upsetting, she was just crying after the first call and she can’t sleep and is frightened of knocks on the door.

“It is so scary that we have told her to be extra vigilant at the door, to keep the chain on but she said that if something happens to her, no one will be able to get into the house.”

After giving scammers the information, the victim immediately called the helpline number on the back of her Nationwide bank card, where she was informed she had fallen victim to a scam and her account was frozen.

For more information on phone scammers visit: https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/