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Preventing Fraud

It’s late in the day when the travel agent picks up the ringing phone. The caller ID on her display shows the call is local, but it’s not from a number she recognizes. The man on the phone identifies himself as a doctor who needs four tickets for an international flight that night due to […]

Ryanair slams ambulance chasing flight compensation firms

Ryanair has renewed its call for the Competition and Markets Authority to enforce better regulation against ‘claims chasing’ companies, which charge customers up to 50% of the compensation they receive for delayed or cancelled flights. The airline insisted there was no need for passengers to use companies like FlightDelays.co.uk to process claims made under EU […]

Half of holidaymakers would make fake sickness claims

Almost half of UK consumers are prepared to make fraudulent illness claims against tour operators when approached by rogue claims management companies in resort, new research reveals. The findings follow the travel industry being hit by a dramatic rise in gastric illness compensation claims which have now reached “epidemic” levels. Unscrupulous claims management companies urging […]

Fraudulent sickness claims

An insurance and risk law firm is calling for industry-wide action to deal with an ‘epidemic’ of holidaymakers making fraudulent illness claims. BLM commissioned YouGov to survey 2,000 British consumers on their attitudes to sickness claims on all-inclusive holidays after noticing a significant rise in the number of travel claims in the last year. It […]

Abta plans ‘Travel with confidence’ advertising blitz

Familes and older travellers will be targeted by Abta in a new year peak booking period ‘Travel with confidence’ advertising blitz. The growing issue of fraudulent websites, online scams and non-compliant travel companies that have no financial protection in place will be highlighted. The campaign will emphasise that the Abta logo is a symbol of […]

UK retailers facing one million fraud attempts per day

The UK’s retailers have been warned to brace themselves for a barrage of fraud attempts this busy festive shopping season, with estimates claiming they’ll be hit by one million attacks each day. Fraud prevention firm ThreatMetrix made the call based on data collected by its Digital Identity Network – which checks over 20 billion annual […]

Bogus Blackburn travel agent

An alleged fraudster who ran an online flight booking business left a bride-to-be on the way to her wedding stranded at an airport, a court heard. Khalid Chudhry said he would provide victim Esther Adekanmbi with flights to Lagos in Nigeria, a jury was told. But after paying an initial deposit, Preston Crown Court heard […]

New airline scam promises free Emirates flight tickets

Year-end celebrations are close and many people are looking to book their plane tickets to visit relatives and friends. As expected, cybercriminals are looking to exploit users over the festive period – social engineering techniques are frequent over the holidays, as demonstrated by a scam that is promising people free flight tickets. What is the […]

Warning about fraudulent holiday sickness claims

The Foreign Office is warning holidaymakers of the increasing number of claims companies targeting Britons in resorts in Spain and encouraging them to make false insurance claims regarding holiday sickness. In an amendment to its travel advice for Spain, the Foreign Office warned that fraudulent insurance claims are illegal and could land holidaymakers in prison. […]

Travelport to launch new fraud screening product

Travelport VP Global Travel Solutions Alexandra Fitzpatrick, at the CAPA Asia Corporate Travel Summit, stated (15-Nov-2016) Travelport has several payment product launches planned for 2017. “We are planning to release a number of products in 2017 – starting out with the corporate right through to the airline,” she said. Ms Fitzpatrick said some of the […]

Abta demands action after rise in sickness claims

An “alarming” rise in gastric illness compensation claims made through UK claims management companies has prompted Abta to call for action from government. The issue has been raised with officials from the Ministry of Justice to highlight the growing problem. Evidence compiled by Abta points towards an increase in the travel-related activities of claims management […]