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Good afternoon, As the days start to lengthen, your thoughts might turn to your next holiday - home or abroad. Action Fraud have the following message for you: Thinking about booking a holiday this year? Follow our top tips to avoid becoming a victim of holiday fraud Do your research: Before committing and booking your dream holiday, make sure that you do a thorough online search to ensure the company is credible.Pay safely: Use a credit card when shopping online, if you have one. Most major credit card providers protect online purchases.Look for the logos: Check if a travel company is an ABTA, the Travel Association or an ABTOT, the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited, a member or an ATOL holder. Look for the ABTA logo on the company's website. If you have any doubts, you can verify their membership of ABTA online on their website. Also, look for the ABTOT logo and financial protection; you can see if a holiday provider is an ABTOT member by visiting their online directory. If you are booking a flight as part of a package holiday and want to find out more information about ATOL protection, visit the ATOL website ATOL protecting holidaymakers since 1973 - ATOL.Stay safe online: Use 3 random words to create a strong password for your email that’s different to all your other passwords. If 2-step verification is available, always enable it.- Beware of suspicious messages: Be cautious of unexpected emails or messages offering unrealistic holiday deals. If you receive a suspicious email, report it by forwarding it to: report@phishing.gov.uk
- Protect personal information: Only fill in the mandatory details on a website when making a purchase. If possible, don't create an account for the online store when making your payment.
Book with confidence: Be sceptical of unrealistic holiday deals. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Exercise caution and research before making a purchase.For a full list of tips to avoid becoming a victim of fraud, please visit https://www.atol.org/about-atol/how-to-check-for-protection/ or https://www.abta.com/tips-and-advice/planning-and-booking-a-holiday/how-avoid-travel-related-fraud. If this isn't relevant to you, please share it with someone who might be interested. If you've been affected by a crime please contact Victim Care Hub for free, confidential support: Home - Hampshire Victim Care Hub (hampshireiowvictimcare.co.uk) or phone 0808 178 1641 If you would like to report a crime anonymously please contact: Independent UK charity taking crime information anonymously | Crimestoppers (crimestoppers-uk.org) or phone 0800 555 111 Hampshire Alerts is not a crime reporting portal – please do not report crime here. If you realise you’ve been scammed and wish to report a fraud that has already happened, please report it to Action Fraud either phone 0300 123 2040 or online at: Action Fraud If a crime is in progress, and/or you are in fear for yourself or someone else, and/or there is evidence in situ that could be damaged/destroyed, please phone 999 immediately. Otherwise, report online, or find out about other ways to report a crime at: Report a crime | Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary Thank you – Fraud Safeguarding Team |
