New fraud inquiry examines experiences of victims and quality of support
In this opening session of its new inquiry into Fraud, the Home Affairs Committee will examine how criminals are targeting victims of fraud and the impact it is having on victims.
Meeting details
Fraud is the largest crime type with an estimated 3.3 million fraud offences committed in the year ending June 2023. This figure is feared to be much lower than the true volume of cases, with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimating that fewer than one in seven cases are reported to law enforcement or Action Fraud. UK Finance has calculated the likely cost of fraud to UK households will be over £1 billion in 2023.
Likely areas of questioning
On the first panel, the Committee will hear from Cecilie Fjellhøy, one of the victims of the ‘TinderSwindler’ who conned a number of women out of thousands of pounds and was the focus of a Netflix documentary in 2022. Cecilie and Anna Rowe have since Co-founded LoveSaid, which aims to support victims of fraud following their own experiences of romance fraud. The Committee will ask them about their experience as victims of fraud and the impact it has had on their lives. It will also examine the response from law enforcement and online platforms where fraud may take place.
The second panel features representatives of Age UK, Victim Support and the National Trading Standards Scam Team. This session will explore other commons forms of fraud in the UK and ask if enough is being done to protect vulnerable groups from exploitation. It will also examine the Government’s fraud strategy and assess whether it will have the impact needed to tackle this form of crime.