Warnings of "black fraud-day" as Essex holidaymakers lost £285k last year
179 people across the county reported being scammed whist buying a holiday in 2023
An aviation regulator is warning of "black fraud-day" as new data reveals Essex holidaymakers lost £285,000 to holiday fraud last year.
Research by Action Fraud shows 179 people across the county reported being scammed whist buying a holiday in 2023.
The average amount lost by each victim was £1600.
Last year a total of 6,640 reports of holiday fraud were made to Action Fraud with holiday makers losing a combined total of £12.3 million.
Millions of Brits will either be using this week’s Black Friday sales or the traditional Christmas and New Year holiday deals to book their dream family getaway for next year.
Recent data shows that on average Brits are planning on spending £2,525 of their hard-earned cash on their next summer holiday.
But the UK Civil Aviation Authority, the aviation regulator which runs the ATOL holiday protection scheme, is warning of scammers selling holidays that don’t exist.
They're warning of fake online holiday firms or consumers getting caught out by hidden costs and extras.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio, Andrew McConnell, from the CAA, is calling it "black fraud-day".
"As we get into Black Friday, we're seeing holiday fraud which is fake websites, people being scammed, people seeing dodgy emails coming into their account and clicking on holiday deals."
Mr McConnell warns of the things to look out for when you receive an email:
"Just look at the email address. If it's lots of letters and numbers that's probably not the actual company that's trying to get hold of you.
"Look for the full name, look for the '.co.uk' or '.com'
"If you see a price that feels too cheap, close the email down."
Mr McConnell is urging consumers to use the ‘Check for ATOL’ tool to make sure their holiday provider has an ATOL Licence and avoid getting ripped off.
He continued: "This year we're seeing people spending £250,000 on a holiday next year, we don't want people to lose money.
"We have information on our webpage that lists some websites not to book" Mr McConnell tells Greatest Hits Radio.
You can find the list of these websites and more information to avoid holiday fraud on Atol Protected's website.