Yorkshire Building Society urges YOU to 'act quickly' as millions of Britons lose £1.6k to scammers

Patrick O'Donnell
Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:11:17 +0000

Yorkshire Building Society is urging the British public to take action and "act quickly" as one in four people have been targeted by financial scams.

Fresh data from the building society has uncovered that more than a quarter of British adults have fallen victim to financial scam attempts within the last three years.

Specifically, the lender's own research determined that 27 per cent of the population has been targeted by fraudsters during this period, with younger generations being particularly at risk.

Among those aged 18 to 29, the proportion targeted climbs to 35 per cent, representing more than one in three young adults.

The findings demonstrate that fraud continues to spread across every demographic, with criminals increasingly casting their nets wide to ensnare victims of all ages.

Those who encountered scam attempts reported impersonation fraud as the most widespread tactic, with 56 per cent facing criminals pretending to represent banks, HMRC, energy providers, delivery companies or even relatives seeking money or personal details.

Fraudulent investment schemes ranked as the second most common threat, affecting 36 per cent of targets through bogus cryptocurrency or bond opportunities.

Shopping fraud through online marketplaces caught out 34 per cent of those approached, with victims either receiving nothing or goods that failed to match their descriptions.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

Rachel Reeves's cash ISA shake-up in chaos as uncertainty grows for millions of saver

Labour's 'reckless reach to gamble your pension savings' rejected AGAIN amid state overreach fears

Millions of young adults could have unclaimed savings worth thousands

The financial toll proves substantial for those who fall prey to these schemes, with victims losing an average of £1,672.60.

Furthermore, the research reveals telephone calls as the primary method criminals use to reach potential victims, accounting for 28 per cent of contact attempts.

Electronic mail follows closely behind at 26 per cent, though this approach proves especially common when targeting older individuals, with 44 per cent of this demographic reporting email-based scam attempts.

Text messages represent 15 per cent of fraudulent approaches, whilst social media direct messages account for 10 per cent.

Criminals also exploit social media posts to lure victims in 7 per cent of cases, with traditional postal letters making up just 3 per cent of scam contact methods.

Hannah Bingle, financial crime specialist at Yorkshire Building Society, said: "These scams are often designed to create a sense of urgency, pushing people to act quickly without verifying the source, but by stopping and taking a moment to ask yourself if a message, call or email is genuine, you could protect yourself."

She advised recipients of unexpected calls to exercise caution, noting that legitimate companies never request passwords or financial details over the phone.

The research coincides with Take Five Week, running from April 27 to May 3, a UK Finance initiative promoting three protective steps: stop before sharing information, challenge whether requests could be fraudulent, and protect yourself by reporting suspected scams immediately.