Experian survey reveals consumer groups at risk of ID fraud

The most popular modus operandi for fraudsters over the past four years has been the fraudulent use of the victim's present or previous address.  The first is where the victim's details are used by someone living at the same address or the fraudster places a postal redirect on the address; the second involves the fraudster using the victim's name and their previous address to take advantage of any credit history that has not been transferred to a new address.

In most cases of identity fraud, although there is a cost to victims in terms of distress and time spent reclaiming their identity, most people do not suffer a direct financial loss as a result of a fraud being perpetrated in their name - the financial loss is borne by the companies involved. Despite this, people often discover they have become a victim while making an important credit application, such as to buy a house or a car, and this can result in significant inconvenience, especially if the deal is delayed or falls through.

Hardest hit financial organisations in terms of volume are mail order companies - more than 60 per cent of all fraudulent accounts identified during the 2005/6 financial year by the Experian Victims of Fraud team were mail order accounts.  However, in terms of actual value, the biggest losers were credit and store card issuers, who suffered approximately 35 per cent of the Experian-identified fraud losses during that 12-month period.

In terms of the average cost per fraud case, hire purchase (HP) and personal loan accounts are worst affected, with an average loss of £10,200 per HP account and of £7,019 per loan account between April 2005 and March 2006. Telecommunications and mail order companies fare much better, with average losses per victim of £195 and £253 respectively over the same period.

Gary Wood, Managing Director of Experian's Fraud Solutions business commented: 'In today's ultra hi-tech and fast moving business environment it is essential that organisations are ahead of the game to minimise fraud.

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