Additional reporting by Kristin Hawthorne

An independent vets has been left “gutted” after being scammed out of thousands of pounds by a customer who reversed charges and gave themselves a £5,900 “refund”.

Clover Street Veterinary Clinic in Chatham were targeted on Wednesday morning (December 4) by a man in a tracksuit and crocs pretending to buy flea treatment.

Wallace Scott, who is a veterinary nurse at the town centre site, said alarm bells started to ring when the mystery man swiftly took the receipt and refused to show her it.

After calling their card machine company, the team were told £5,900 had been taken and they don’t know if it can be returned.

The 31-year-old said: “We’re a small, independent practice – it will impact us. Staff rely on Christmas bonuses and that may be impacted because of this.

“We’re still waiting to hear if we’re lucky enough to get it back. In the meantime we want to make other small businesses aware, because they’re the ones being hit. Not the bigger shops on the High Street.”

The clinic is a small, three-person team made up of two nurses and one vet. It’s not known exactly how the man managed to give himself a refund.

Wallace, of Hermitage Lane in Maidstone, added: “I was shocked something like that could happen so quickly.

“It took 10 seconds and he grabbed the receipt and left. It happened in the blink of an eye and just makes you feel awful.”

The suspect was described as mixed-race man who is around 5ft 8in with black hair. Wallace described him as “confident and very smooth”.

She added how a vets in Bearsted had told the team one of their branches in Manchester had been targeted earlier this week in a similar scam which resulted in £1,000 being taken.

“Words don’t explain how awful I felt because it’s something that can be such a smooth transaction and that should have been very straightforward, “added Wallace.

“It makes you second guess people that we know. We may have to change the way we deal with people who are not registered with us.

“It may mean there are certain transactions we are not able to do anymore.

“It makes you lose quite a lot of trust as a person.”

The vet worker says she is keen to put the message out there to ensure other shopkeepers do not fall victim.

She added: “I would just urge people if something doesn’t look right or feel right then definitely contact the card companies as soon as possible.

“Hopefully the quicker the action the better the outcome.”

Police have been contacted and confirmed to KentOnline they are investigating the incident.

Anyone with information that may assist is urged to call Kent Police on 01634 792209, quoting reference 04-0505.