Residents in Atherstone and district are being warned not to fall for a scam which claims coronavirus has prompted civic leaders to freeze council tax payments for two months.

An email is already circulating in the area naming North Warwickshire Borough Council as making the offer for April and May.

A spokeswoman for the Atherstone-based authority said it was "incorrect" as no such decision had been taken and urged recipients not to reply "with any bank or personal details".

But news of the scam comes just a week after the local authority's opposition leader Adam Farrell called for a two-month free period at the start of the new financial year for council tenants and tax payers to "help ease the burden on communities" in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

The Labour group's two pivotal requests included giving all council tenants a rent-free period of eight weeks if they can prove they are financially struggling and where individuals pay their council tax over 10 months, the two-month free period be brought forward from February 2021 to next month.

Amid the fear and confusion of the current coronavirus pandemic, scammers are taking full advantage of scared and vulnerable people.

More £800,000 has been lost to coronavirus scams nationwide since February 2020, according to reports made to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau.

Most of these scams are online and are coming in the form of phishing emails, malicious social media adverts, and fake online sellers.

Emergency services in Warwickshire are also warning that hoax callers not only endanger the lives of crews but are a waste of valuable time and resources, too.

Firefighters called to attend an incident where they think lives are at risk will prioritise them above less urgent calls.

Last week the county's Fire & Rescue Service received hoax calls – one of which reported that people were trapped inside a house that was on fire.

On arrival, it was clear that there was no fire, and no-one trapped.

A Warwickshire FRS spokesman added: "By making hoax calls, especially in this current climate, means that you are not only endangering the lives of the crew called to attend that incident by increasing their contact with other members of the community, but you are also taking away our resources from where they are needed the most."

Hoax callers face fines of up to £5,000 in successful prosecutions.