WEST Yorkshire Police has warned people against scammers taking advantage of the upcoming end of tax year.

The tax year ends on April 5 and fraudsters have in the past used this as an opportunity to scam people out of money.

Police explained this could be through emails or texts appearing to be from HMRC.

Often these messages claim the recipient is due a tax refund, owe tax or they urge you to provide your personal and financial information.

Criminals may also offer their services to help with your application, then charging a fee to complete the process.

Police have urged people to take five minutes before responding to, or clicking any links in, these sorts of messages.

A spokesperson for the force said: "It’s okay to say no to unsolicited offers of help or requests for your details."

HMRC's website lists a number of checks you can make to determine whether an email, text message, or phone call is a scam.

This includes: if it is unexpected, offers a refund, tax rebate or grant, asks for personal information like bank details, is threatening, or tells you to transfer money.

If you receive a scam email claiming to be from HMRC forward it to: phishing@hmrc.gov.uk

For text messages, forward them to: 60599.