Purchase fraud increases by 11%

TSB has reported an 11% increase in purchase fraud cases from January to September 2025, with these scams making up 63% of bank transfer fraud, up from 52% in 2024. Victims lost an average of £452 per scam. Experts advise consumers to verify sellers and use secure payment methods to avoid falling victim to these scams.

Purchase fraud resulted in victims losing an average of £452 per scam.

Purchase fraud is a key driver of fraud cases across the banking sector, as UK Finance fraud data2 recently revealed that purchase scams account for 72 percent of all fraud cases, and at a cost of £53 million in the first half of this year.

TSB is renewing its call for social media companies to take urgent action – specifically, with the introduction of secure payment platforms to allow consumers to pay safely. Unlike traditional bank transfers, which rely heavily on trust and can leave victims vulnerable to scammers who vanish after receiving payment.

Social media platforms continue to be the origin of the vast majority purchase fraud with scammers advertising fake listings of popular or hard-to-find items.

Facebook accounts for three-fifths (60%)3 of all TSB purchase fraud cases, followed by Instagram (12%), WhatsApp (11%), Snapchat and Tik Tok (5%), X (4%), Gumtree (2%) and Telegram (1%).

TSB remains adamant that social media firms should be made financially liable for the fraud they enable – paying towards a payment mechanism that TSB believes would incentivise them to remove scam content from their platforms.

Richard Daniels, Director of Fraud Prevention at TSB, said “As we enter the busy shopping period, scammers will also be ramping up their activity with fake listings for goods and services that simply don’t exist.

“With so much fraud coming from social media platforms, we would advise consumers to only pay for an item if you can view and verify in person – stay safe online during the sales and into Christmas.”

2025’s most scammed items:

• Concert tickets
• Football tickets
• Clothing – especially trainers
• Children’s toys
• Games consoles
• Electrical goods – phones and laptops
• Home repairs
• Pet deposits (particularly for cats and dogs)
• Vehicle deposits
• Car parts