A fixed recoverable costs regime which has been extended to gastric illness claims made abroad will not be applied to all personal injury claims relating to package holidays, a government report has concluded. The Ministry of Justice today published the findings of a call for evidence into how to handle personal injury claims related to […]
Category: Consumer News
TUI warns customers about Facebook scam
TUI is warning customers about a Facebook scam using its name. The Facebook page posing as the travel giant is doing the rounds offering the chance to win free holidays. The page asks users to sign up with their personal details so they can be contacted if they ‘win’. One fake page, with a competition […]
Police probe fraudulent sickness firms
Police and lawyers are turning the tide against firms driving fake holiday sickness claims with a flurry of investigations and private prosecutions. Merseyside Police has opened investigations into two claims management companies (CMCs). It is monitoring three cases lodged against tour operators by each of the firms suspected of encouraging bogus claims from holidaymakers, with […]
Law firm starts prosecuting dishonest claimants
A law firm that has defended 2,000 spurious holiday sickness claims is now pursuing the individuals and companies behind them. Ben Ireland reports, a year after the launch of Travel Weekly’s Fight Fake Claims campaign A zero-tolerance approach to dubious claims has helped one law firm overturn more than 2,000 made in relation to holiday […]
Booking.com customers targeted by hackers
BOOKING.COM has been targeted by hackers trying to steal hundreds of thousands of pounds in the most recent cyber crime attack in the travel industry. It was claimed payment was needed – and the messages seemed alarmingly genuine. Numerous hotels and guesthouses on holiday accommodation site Booking.com were targeted by bogus texts alerting victims to […]
Cybercrime now affecting more people than any other crime
The absurd and unrealistic forecasts seen in many Hollywood films have become reality. According to the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, organised cybercrime is now affecting more people than any other form of crime – including drugs, firearms, organised immigration crime, and money laundering. Not because it is replacing these other forms of cybercrime, but […]
Travel firm at centre of fraud probe by police
Police are investigating a Huddersfield travel agent over claims that customers have been defrauded. Customer Asif Tanvir says he lost almost £1,000 after two flights to Dubai and Pakistan were cancelled the night before he and his wife were due to fly. Mr Tanvir, who runs a takeaway business in Huddersfield, booked the flights through […]
Tourist agency boss charged with fraud
A former president of the New Orleans Multicultural Tourism Network has been charged with defrauding the publicly funded agency. Tonnette Rice, aged 55, faces felony theft charges and filing false public records. She is accused of writing out agency cheques to herself to the tune of $70,000. She resigned from the position in January 2017, […]
Hajj fraud crackdown
Police and trading standards officers plan to carry out visits and spot checks on travel agents over the next few months in a new clamp-down on Hajj-related crimes, which rocketed 143% last year. Individuals planning pilgrimages to Mecca in Saudi Arabia were conned out of as much as £33,000 each, according to the national fraud […]
Butlin’s warns customers of scam Facebook promotions
Butlin’s has warned the public about fake promotions on social media promising free breaks and other big prizes. The UK operator has issued a statement on its Facebook page saying: “We have been made aware of unofficial Facebook pages being set up using the Butlin’s name and logo. “These pages are offering competition prizes and […]
Man ordered to repay half a million for hotel fraud
A former carpet fitter has been orderd to repay more than half a million pounds to those who invested in his failed venture to develop hotel sites in Crete. Ralph Christie, aged 56 from West Yorkshire, was found guilty on five charges of fraud in 2015 and sentenced to seven years in jail. At the […]
Government finally closes sickness claims loophole
The government on Friday (April 13) announced it would fix the level of legal costs that can be claimed from package holiday sickness scams. In doing so, it shuts a loophole the industry has long said has fuelled a rise in bogus claims and risked pushing holiday prices up. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said […]
P&O Cruises issues warning over Facebook scam
Social media users have been warned against a fake Facebook page claiming to be from P&O Cruises offering a free cruise competition. The line issued an alert yesterday informing consumers that the posting was a fake. “Please be aware that the ‘golden envelope win a cruise’ is a scam and is not a P&O Cruises […]
Delta suffers cyber breach via online chat
Delta Air Lines has reported a cyber breach via an online chat service, highlighting the security risks of third-party technology providers. The breach affecting Delta occurred at IT services provider [24]7.ai between September 26 and October 12 last year. Delta said it was informed of the breach on March 28. The airline reported it on […]
Holiday booking fraud costs holidaymakers £6.7m
As many as 4,700 unsuspecting holidaymakers and other travellers had £6.7 million stolen by fraudsters last year. The sale of airline tickets (47%) and accommodation bookings (38%) were the most common types of fraud, a new report reveals today. The average amount lost per person was more than £1,500 – up by a quarter on […]
Couple sentenced after false £50,000 sickness claim
A couple who claimed to be ill on holiday have been given a suspended jail sentence following a £50,000 sickness claim against Tui after they posted pictures of themselves enjoying the trip on Facebook. Leon Roberts and Jade Muzoka, from Derby, spent a week at Cornelia Diamond Golf Resort and Spa in Turkey in July […]
Six jailed for running £37m copycat website fraud
Thousands of people tricked into buying documents such as UK passports from fake sites. Six people have been given jail sentences after defrauding the public out of more than £37m in one of the largest UK online crime cases brought to court. The group set up and operated a number of “copycat websites”, which impersonated […]
UK cyber attacks are a matter of when not if
Cyber Attacks – The potential risks of ever-growing digital integration are not unknown to us. Computers, smartphones and other devices provide countless benefits but, as day-to-day services become progressively reliant on these technologies, the consequences of their failings become more disastrous, with our cyber-security at an increased risk. Last year saw a massive cyber attack […]
We can’t slow down on bogus claims
Tour operators are taking a ‘more forensic approach’ to sickness claims. Ian Taylor reports Thomas Cook has a team of lawyers “forensically” reviewing holiday sickness claims as it seeks to drive down the number of fraudulent claims. Rebecca White, Thomas Cook senior legal counsel for litigation, said: “Thomas Cook’s experience reflects that of the entire […]
UK fraud hits 15-year high
The value of UK fraud hit a 15-year high of £2.11bn in 2017 as more companies made it a priority to tackle wrongdoing, according to a new study. Accountancy firm BDO examined reported fraud cases worth more than £50,000 and found that the total number rose to 577 in 2017, compared with 212 in 2003. […]