I'm sorry to hear your father is being targeted by scams. Sadly, it's a problem that's all too common in the UK. Criminals try to lure people into responding to semi-legal prize draws (Reader's Digest is big on them) and when people respond their details are added to a 'sucker list'.

Scam mail is illegal and there's no easy way of stopping it. The criminals behind the mailings won't check to see if your father is registered with the Mailing Preference Service, for instance. Similarly, returning the mailings to the senders also won't do any good; if anything it will encourage them to send more.

The best thing you can do is getting in touch with Citizens Advice, Think Jessica and Action Fraud:

• Citizens Advice can give general advice about how best to help your father, and they can pass details about postal scams to Trading Standards. You can contact the consumer helpline on 0345 404 05 05.
• Think Jessica should also be able to give general advice. You might want to discuss with them if it's feasible fo persuade your father that he's being conned, or whether it's possible to redirect his mail and confiscate his cheque book (though you would need your father's permission for this).
• Action Fraud allows you to report postal scam. In theory, scam reports submitted to Action Fraud are used to try to stop scams but such action is rarely taken. Still, it's worth doing ndash; if only because the reports can be used to keep track of what scams are being invented.

Finally, the Office of Fair Trading has produced some literature on scam mail. There are three leaflets you can download in PDF format:

• How to recognise a scam?

  As you'd expect, this leaflet tells you what to watch out for.

• Scambuster: your guide to beating the scammers

  A leaflet describing some of the most common scams.

• Can you stop the person you care for from being scammed?

  A guide for carers and care professionals who suspect someone they care for is being scammed.