241 Pizza

A BT spokesperson said: "To beat these scams, simply do not get involved."

Ms Wallis said that consumers were also being misled through websites, with vendors posing as a private seller or a seller's agent when they were actually a business or trade. When they click on the website, their phone connection is switched to a premium-rate line.

Until now, no protection or compensation has been available for the consumer.

"As consumers, they fall outside the normal consumer protection legislation and so no redress is available, but the changes will cover this malpractice," Ms Wallis said.

After approval by MEPs, the new rules require the formality of endorsement from EU trade ministers and will come into effect by mid-2007 at the latest.

This month has been declared Scams Awareness Month by the OFT, to try to make the public more switched on to the fraudsters who make an estimated £1 billion a year from unwitting consumers.

The OFT has drawn up a top ten list of the most lucrative frauds on the public - premium-rate telephone scams to claim mythical prizes or lottery riches top the list. The Nigerian e-mail scam, where bank details are requested for a money transfer, is another fraud highlighted, along with property investment, working from home and pyramid schemes.

Christine Wade, OFT director of consumer regulation enforcement, said: "Scammers are resourceful, enterprising and manipulative. By exploiting the same routes to market as legitimate business, they damage not only individual consumers but the interests of fair-trading businesses as well."

Ofcom, the telecoms watchdog, announced last year that companies operating premium-rate phone scams in Britain would risk fines of up to £250,000. It recommended the penalties in an attempt to prevent website users being unwittingly re-routed to phone lines which charge £1.50 a minute. That scam cost Britons more than £5 million last year.

In a separate development, the Government announced today that GP surgeries, dentists and other health services will be banned from using premium and national rate phone numbers.

From April, NHS services would not be allowed to use the numbers, that can cost up to 10p a minute, said John Hutton, the health minister. "The use of premium and national rate telephone numbers is an unfair additional cost for many NHS patients."

About 290 GP practices have national rate numbers and must change to "lo-rate" 0845 or 0844 numbers. The changes will also apply to NHS dentists, opticians and GP out-of-hours service providers. Michael Summers, chairman of the Patients Association, said the decision would be welcomed by the public.

Times Recommends

• Lies and cover-up at MG Rover exposed by report
• High oil prices push manufacturing costs up
• Primark founder steps down as chief executive