Our story about how scammers are hitting the most vulnerable in society appeared in the Sunday Mirror newspaper.
We conducted an in-depth survey with 100 fraud victims that painted a shocking picture of how those who most need protection are being failed.
Our senior partner, Martin Richardson, has called on the Government, tech companies and banks to do more to prevent scammers from targetting the vulnerable.
We are continuing to campaign at a national level for changes as well as creating anti-fraud technology.
Read the Sunday Mirror article here: Scammers Target The Most Vulnerable.
Or, read our story below:
National Fraud Helpline’s Shocking Survey Reveals How Scams Hit The Vulnerable
The most vulnerable in society are being hit hardest by scammers, a study by a leading fraud recovery law firm has revealed.
An indepth analysis of 100 fraud victim cases paints a shocking picture of how those from the most disadvantaged backgrounds are most likely to fall victim to fraud.
National Fraud Helpline, a trading name of scam recovery firm Richardson Hartley Law, said 74% of the scam victims described themselves as having a mental health condition, 22% suffered from a severe long-term illness and 20% had a physical disability.
Many of those interviewed said that being duped had left them with severe depression and some had said that they contemplated suicide as a result of falling victim to fraud.
The three most common emotions described by the victims were ‘shame’, ‘anger’, and ‘upset’.
The study clearly showed that most fraud victims were being duped at a time when they most needed help. Out of the 100 surveyed, 30 said they had been scammed after suffering a sudden drop in income, 23 after a relationship breakdown and 16 after being recently bereaved. A disturbing 47 respondents described themselves as emotionally vulnerable, 41 said they had low savings and 36 said they were in debt.
On average, they had lost £15,095 each through a variety of frauds from romance and crypto scams to rental and investment cons. One person had lost £140,000.
The picture of vulnerability continues throughout the survey with 31 people saying they had no access to support, 23 saying that English was their second language and 15 saying that they had caring responsibilities.
Martin Richardson, senior partner at National Fraud Helpline said: ‘The Government, banks, social media companies and tech firms all need to do more to protect the public and businesses from fraud.
These shocking results show that the most vulnerable in society are being failed.
‘More needs to be said and understood about the emotional turmoil caused by fraud. This can be more damaging than the financial impact.
‘Scammers tend to be most successful at conning people when their would-be victims are already suffering, be it emotionally or financially. When people need support the fraudsters step in and take advantage.
‘These con men and women are expert manipulators and understand how to exploit their fellow human beings.
‘As technology grows so will scams. There needs to be more joined up thinking about how to defeat scammers and protect people.’
National Fraud helpline not only helps to recover money lost to scams but also aims to educate the public with warnings of the latest frauds which are highlighted on its website www.nationalfraudhelpline.co.uk. The law firm has also joined forces with leading UK AI firm, Time Machine Capital Limited, to create anti-fraud technology.
Have you lost money to a scam? Contact National Fraud Helpline. Call 0333 0033218 or fill out our Claim Form.