Bradford pensioners hit by bogus callers are to be surveyed by researchers hoping to discover how to stamp out the crime.

People who have experience of distraction burglaries - where thieves pose as someone to gain entry and then steal while the householder is distracted - are being asked to pass on their experiences for research carried out by Age Concern.

The scheme, Fighting Distraction Burglary, has been given £10,500 of Neighbourhood Renewal Funding and will look at the scale of the problem, methods used by culprits and how best to combat bogus callers.

Researcher Kate Cross said distraction burglary was a relatively low proportion of domestic burglaries but the effects on its vulnerable victims were disproportionately high.

"It's quite a mean crime. They are picking on people who are physically weaker than the person who's perpetrating it. They are also picking on people who don't really have that much."

She said thieves planned their crimes, with some travelling miles to 'blitz' an area. "They plan in advance and a lot of them seem to be able to get into the mindset of older people," she said.

Some distraction burglars would even target people through obituaries, preying on people who have recently been bereaved.

Elderly people could also be identified by their homes - they might not be as able to keep up with things like their gardens.

"The really good news about this is there are lots of ways in which it can be stopped," she said.

The most effective measures, she said, were to prevent bogus callers having access by installing security features like peepholes, putting the door on the chain and checking identification.

The next stage of the project will be interviews with organisations such as the police, council social services department and Victim Support.

Anyone interested in speaking to Mrs Cross about the project can contact her through Age Concern, 19 Sunbridge Road, Bradford, BD1 2AY.