Fraud is on the increase and we have to fight back. On average fraud costs every adult living in the UK £621 a year. We need to claw that money back.

Now the government department called The National Fraud Authority (NFA) has set up an Action Fraud helpline that you can call if you’ve been the victim of any sort of fraud.

So if you’ve been the victim of fraud in the last 12 months (either personally or in your business) just call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or Textphone 0300 123 2050 to report it. Or visit the Action Fraud website to get advice and guidance on protecting yourself from fraud.  You’ll be able to report fraud online from March onwards.

Do make sure you use this service. Don’t let the fraudsters get away with it! Apparently over half the victims of fraud don’t report it so the authorities don’t know it’s happening. The more we report it the quicker they can get on to the criminals and protect others.

Fraud is increasingly serious in Britain. It’s second only to the illegal drugs trade in terms of its impact on the UK. Not only does it cost us each, on average, £621 a year but also the proceeds of fraud are often used to fund serious crimes such as drug smuggling and people trafficking. It’s bigger than just nicking our credit cards or picking up our passwords.

Action Fraud provides easy ways for reporting all types of fraud, including identity theft, investment, credit card and consumer fraud. At the same time it gives law enforcement and counter-fraud agencies better information to better target fraudsters, better protect the public and bring criminals to justice. This collaboration between police forces, the NFIB and Action Fraud will help tighten the net on fraudsters.

Let’s help them in any way we can so that we don’t keep losing money to criminals!