"If something appears too good to be true, it probably is," says police amid a spate of farm machinery fraud incidents leading angry victims to Isle of Wight farmers.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police are investigating fake adverts for farm machinery being published on social media sites such as Facebook and legitimate publications and magazines.

Victims contact the ‘seller’ and pay large sums to purchase the machinery and are given addresses on the Island to attend to collect the machinery.

They travel across the country to find no such equipment exists.

Often the addresses given to victims are those of real Island farmers who have no knowledge of the scam and are left in a vulnerable situation where they are confronted by confused, upset and disgruntled victims of crime. 

In other scenarios, victims have been promised to have the equipment delivered to them, but the goods never turn up, and the ‘seller’ then disengages from all contact with the victim.

A police spokesperson said: “Our advice to members of the farming community is to be wary of this type of fraud and trust your instincts - if something appears too good to be true, it probably is.”

For detailed advice and information on how to protect yourself from fraud and cybercrime, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has developed a PDF security guide which you can access on the NCSC website.

Police said: “If you are a farmer and find yourself in a situation where you are confronted by a disgruntled victim of a scam, our advice is to remove yourself from the situation and if you feel threatened or in danger, ring 999 immediately."

Anyone who has been a victim of fraud is urged to contact Action Fraud, either by calling 0300 123 2040 or visiting online HERE.