Britain is card fraud capital of Europe |
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Published
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Wed, 22 Nov 2006 10:45
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LONDON - At least one in five adults are affected by card fraud in Britain, according to a research conducted by the European Security Transport Association (ESTA).
The study also reveals that Britain is the hardest hit by card fraud with over 20 percent of adult population in Britain, around 7 million, being the victims of credit and debit card fraudsters. This figure is almost the double of average proportion in Europe, standing at 11 percent.
"It's incredible how many people across Britain have fallen victim to card fraudsters and unsurprising that so many victims favour a return to cash. Indeed, a separate study by the European Commission has found that almost a third of card fraud victims are never reimbursed for their loss by their card provider, despite claims to the contrary by banks", said Mike Bowen, spokesman for the ESTA.
ESTA, which strongly lobbies for the usage of cash over electronic transactions, said that Spain and Italy are the least affected by card frauds with 8 percent of the adult population falling victim to card fraudsters.
The survey was carried in eight European countries with the total number of victims being 22.8 million. This number equals the combined populations of both Belgium and Sweden. The survey also says that an average of 33 percent Europeans are losing confidence in electronic transactions and opting for cash payment.
However in France only 22 percent of card users said that they will stop using it for cash payments. Spain topped the list with over 46 percent of card users opting for cash payments instead of electronic transactions.
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Frauds ate up 16 bn pounds last year, says study 