Rita Hunter says she doesn’t know what she spent it on and has now been declared bankrupt. A crooked travel agent who pocketed more than £200,000 from clients won’t have to pay any of it back. Rita Hunter sold dream holidays including flights and accommodation to unsuspecting victims via her travel company. But instead of […]
Month: February 2019
Finance boss disqualified after £700,000 scam
The finance boss of failed operator Diamond Shortbreaks has been disqualified for 11 years after misappropriating £700,000 of company funds on failed foreign exchange trades. The penalty was revealed by the government’s Insolvency Service. Jamie Tann worked as financial director for the coach holidays and rail breaks specialist, which failed two years ago. It was […]
Holidaymakers fall victim to new fraud tactics
Abta and Action Fraud, the national fraud and cyber crime reporting centre, are warning consumers about a new flight ticket scam. The reporting centre said it has received 110 reports about the fresh fraud tactics, with total losses of £98,043. It said crooks are attempting to entice victims who are looking for cheap flights abroad, […]
Travel scams ‘likely to increase’ around Brexit date
Prevention of Fraud in Travel (PROFiT) is warning more travel scams are likely around the time the UK is set to leave the European Union next month and is urging people to report any suspicious activity. PROFiT said: “Organised crime will always exploit confusion and uncertainty. Regardless of outcome the Brexit situation is currently uncertain […]
Fake claims in Spain
Holiday sickness fraud is the subject of a criminal investigation in Mallorca, Madrid-based lawyer Marie Rogers explains. Local police in Mallorca opened a criminal investigation code-named Operation Hook in late 2017. It targeted the activity of a British national resident in Spain, Laura Cameron, and what is believed to be a family business of approaching […]
Madrid lawyer hails fake claims fight
A Spanish lawyer representing hotels on the receiving end of multiple sickness claims by UK holidaymakers has hailed the campaign to cut bogus claims but says hoteliers in Spain remain wary. Marie Rogers of Madrid-based law firm Rogers & Co said: “There has been a significant reduction in claims compared with this time last year. […]
Travel firms urge Facebook to tackle fake pages
Travel companies are calling on Facebook to remove fake pages after their brands were used to dupe customers in bogus promotions. Butlin’s, Thomas Cook and Carnival Cruise Line are among brands whose identities have recently been hijacked by fraudsters to obtain consumers’ personal details in fake promotions, according to Hoax-Slayer, a website that highlights internet […]