Scammers are using certain car park meters to target victims and steal money.

Shoppers at Marks & Spencer Simply Food, in Winchmore Hill, Southgate, are at risk of being targeted by a group of scammers who are using parking meters to steal card details and transact money.

Scammers installed fraudulent technology on the card readers of the Euro Car Park meters outside the Southgate Marks and Spencer branch, which allowed the scammers to withdraw money and transfer it to their accounts.

Deana Rodgers, 66, from Southgate admitted she felt “violated” after becoming a scamming victim in the early morning of October 9. She parked her car just before 9am and noticed a ‘card only’ sign placed on the parking meter. She was then approached by a man who posed to be staff from Euro Car Park and told her she had to use her card on the machine.

Ms Rodgers then saw another man, who claimed he was a staff for a nearby Sainsbury’s, guiding people to put their card in another machine. When she was paying for her parking, she put in her card PIN with the encouragement of the man there.

Once the screen had said ‘transaction complete,’ her card was swallowed by the machine and the man walked into a car and drove away.

She said: “I was so upset, I felt stupid for going on with it.”

The transaction took £30 from her account, with her card provider blocking further attempted transactions.

Since addressing the incident to her bank, Ms Rodgers was issued a refund however she wishes to warn members of the public to be wary at any public car park or outdoor card reader.

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson confirmed the incident, they said: “On Wednesday October 9, police received a report of fraudulent payment at a car park on Winchmore Hill, Enfield. Enquiries remain ongoing; no arrests have been made.”

Ms Rodgers claims she was told about similar incidents at the car park, but Metropolitan Police have not confirmed other cases.

An M&S spokesperson said: “This is a matter for the police and was immediately reported to them. As well as supporting the police our colleagues are monitoring the car park which is operated by Euro Car Parks and are encouraging customers to report any incidents.”