SHOPPERS in Blackburn will soon be providing their thumbprint on credit card receipts in a bid to cut down on fraud.

The scheme is being piloted in second hand shops and, if successful, will be offered to shopping centre stores.

However, it is uncertain how many of the major retailers will join in because it is seen by some to put shoppers off.

Similar schemes, launched three years ago in Hyndburn and Burnley, have not taken off as organisers would have liked.

But police are revitalising the idea because they are sure it has potential - when it was first piloted in Kent, Hull and London, there was a 100 per cent reduction in credit card fraud.

After signing their name, shoppers in King Street will be required to rub their thumb in a wax pad and stamp the print on the back of the credit card slip. Police are giving the £2.99 pads to the shops after securing funding from the borough's crime and disorder partnership.

Shoppers are reassured that their thumbprint will not be stored in any database - police will only analyse the receipts when there is suspicion of fraud.

PC Paul Meads, community beat manager for Bank Top, said: "It is being piloted all along King Street's second hand shops.

"We have chosen them to pilot the scheme because second hand shops can have problems with credit card deception. If it was successful in this area, it will be extended across Blackburn.

"Credit card deception is a problem for any shop. For the police, one credit card can be used many times in different areas and can lead to time-consuming inquiries. If someone has to give their thumbprint, they may not risk it if they are using a stolen card."