Cost of travel fraud rises to top £7m

More than 5,000 cases of holiday and travel booking fraud were reported last year with total losses of £7 million.

The average amount lost was £1,380 per person, with more than half (53%) of the crimes reported related to the sale of airline tickets.

The largest individual monthly loss, of over £425,000, was made in August 2018, a new report released today by Abta revealed.

The next most common fraud at 25% related to the sale of accommodation, with a peak in reported losses in October.

This indicates that many victims report their loss after the end of the summer holidays, according to the study.

The total lost to fraudsters was up on 2017 levels when 4,382 victims reported losing £6.7 million.

Abta, Action Fraud and Get Safe Online believe that the total figures relating to travel fraud in 2018 may be even higher, with many victims feeling too embarrassed to report.

They are joining forces to warn consumers about the dangers posed by holiday booking fraud and give advice on how to spot and avoid travel related fraud.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “Fraudsters are using increasingly sophisticated methods to target destinations and times of year when demand is high and availability limited, as they know people will be looking for good deals.

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