A FRUSTRATED son is calling for more to be done to tackle cold callers who target vulnerable people after his elderly mother was plagued by nuisance phone calls.

For months, 87-year-old Jean Bryan, has been inundated by nuisance callers, trying to sell her everything from funeral packages to health supplements.

Despite being registered with the Telephone Preference Service, the grandmother-of-three, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, receives regular phone calls from scammers.

Most recently, she was called by a company who tried to sell her £150 worth of rose hip tablets, which the caller claimed would help her arthritis.

To cope with the high volume of calls, her son, Paul, has been forced to install a call blocker and divert his mother’s phone calls to his nearby home in Thirsk, North Yorkshire.

“When I checked her diary to put her appointments in, I found several pages of scribbles about rose hip and thought this is quite serious,” he said.

“These people are very convincing and prey on people like my mother who are too polite to tell these people where to go.

“She is vulnerable because she is so polite; it isn’t in her make-up to actually tell someone to clear off and doesn’t understand that these people are trying to con her.

“I feel very angry about it but I am worried for people who are in a similar situation to my mother that do not have people to look out for them.”

The father-of-two urged people to keep a lookout for vulnerable relatives – especially those living with dementia - and if possible, install a call blocker.

Last year, the Information Commissioner’s Office received 175,330 reports of nuisance calls.

It also welcomed a change in the law, which came into force earlier this month, that will make it easier to impose tougher penalties on those who break the law.

Figures given by the Alzheimer’s Society show 15 per cent of people living with dementia – an estimated 112,500 people – have been victims of financial abuse, including cold calling, scam mail or mis-selling.

Sixty-two per cent of carers also reported that the person they care for had been approached by cold callers or doorstep sales people, while 70 per cent said telephone callers routinely targeted the person they care for.

Rob Stewart, from the charity, said: “Having dementia puts people at greater risk of financial abuse for many reasons.

“People with dementia are less likely to judge risk, while living alone might make them more vulnerable. If they have lots of assets, people may look to exploit them.

“As cognitive abilities decline, managing finances can become more difficult. Also the fact that somebody has dementia can make it more difficult to detect when the abuse is taking place.”

For advice and support call the Alzheimer’s Society helpline on 0300-222-1122.