Buckinghamshire and Surrey are considering proposals to develop a joint trading standards service.
If approved, the new combined service would share IT and databases, intelligence, legal expertise and resources, with the potential to work with other councils in the future.
The two councils said joint working would enable them to share expertise and intelligence on fraudsters, receive a greater amount of government funding, and save money through pooled resources.
Helyn Clack, Surrey County Council’s cabinet member for community services, said: 'Our trading standards teams work tirelessly to protect residents from unscrupulous people, from tackling cold-calling to protecting mail scam victims, and to support local businesses. This new initiative demonstrates how both councils are keen to find new ways of working to deliver excellent value for money services in difficult times.'
Martin Phillips, Buckinghamshire's cabinet member for community engagement, said: 'Teaming up with colleagues in Surrey would protect residents of both counties even more, giving both local teams extra expertise and capacity for major initiatives. Not only this, it’ll make our tight budgets go further through smarter use of taxpayers’ money. It is a great example of innovation in action.'
The councils are currently working on a business case for the service, and if approved, the new unit will be up and running by 2015.