A WARNING has been issued about an Olympic lottery scam being used in the county.

Lancashire County Council has received complaints that letters illegally branded with the official Olympic and London 2012 logos tell recipients they have won a £500,000 prize.

They state that winners can claim their prize by returning a payment processing form, by fax, with their personal details.

County Councillor Albert Atkinson, deputy leader of Lancashire County Council, said: “This is unlikely to be the last Olympic-related scam.

“We see hundreds of lottery-related scams but the thing to remember is that you can’t have won if you haven't entered in the first place.

“You should never respond to letters which ask for your personal details. Our advice is to bin them straight away.

“The letter uses an address and telephone numbers to give the impression they have been sent from a London-based address. Even if fax and telephone numbers are recognisably UK numbers they can be redirected abroad directly to criminal gangs.”

Genuine lottery operators will not ask for fees to collect winnings — any request for a fee payment is a good indication that the lottery is a fraud.

Scams can be reported to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 08454 04 05 06.