TRANs-Atlantic conmen are targeting householders with a new scam.

Trading standards officers in North Yorkshire are investigating after being alerted by a worried homeowner.

She had been telephoned by a company claiming to be Lotto Net of Newfoundland, Canada, and informed that she had won a lottery prize of £240,000.

The prize, however, was dependent on her paying a substantial sum of money for the claim to be processed and tax paid.

The head of the county's trading standards team, Stuart Pudney, said: "This is a new angle on a common scam.

"It is not possible that people have won such large amounts of money on this lottery when they did not enter in the first place.

"In any case, winners would not be dealt with like this.

"What concerns us is the fact that this is such a large amount to lose, and once sent would be impossible to get back.

"Our response remains that when something looks too good to be true, it usually is."