A WARNING has been issued to householders in Hartlepool urging them to be on their guard against a free alarm offer.

The message from Hartlepool Borough Council's trading standards team comes after it received a number of calls from members of the public.

A company has been sending a certificate to households, congratulating them that they have been selected to receive a free alarm system via the company's no-catch security draw.

Brian Dinning, senior technical officer with the trading standards department, said: "We are concerned because the certificate makes no mention of the monitoring contract that must be entered into to claim the prize. There is also no mention of the terms of the contract.

"We are looking into this and would like to hear from anyone who has received one of these certificates."

Hartlepool trading standards team can be contacted on (01429) 523352.