POLICE have warned about a new ‘Royal Mail’ scam.

Fraudsters have sent emails out of the blue pretending to be from the postal delivery service.

One resident asked to pay a £1.99 redelivery fee for a letter they supposedly couldn’t post through the mailbox.

Because the fee was so small and didn’t seem unreasonable the resident went to pay online.

But, police said, they had second thoughts and realised it might not be legitimate.

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They called their bank and spoke with the fraud team who cancelled the cards before the damage had been done.

In an online alert the force said: “This is a classic example of how easily the scammers can take us off-guard and persuade us to provide personal information that can have dramatic consequences.”

If you receive an unexpected email check the sender’s email address – they can look genuine so look for minor details like an extra letter, number or full stop.