APACS Publishes Guide for UK Cardholders Traveling Abroad

Available from www.apacs.org.uk the guide includes tips on how to use your card safely and advice on charges you may incur when you are either taking cash out of a cash machine or making purchases on your debit or credit card.

APACS statistics show that last year we spent £23.0 billion abroad on UK-issued cards – £16.4 billion on credit and debit card purchases and £6.6 billion on cash taken out of overseas cash machines.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at APACS, says: “The tendency that we’ve seen in recent years of UK consumers increasingly using their cards abroad has continued during 2006 and our forecasts show that there is no sign of this trend slowing down. As we use our cards more frequently abroad it is important that consumers are aware of steps they can take to ensure that they use their cards safely.

“Although the introduction of chip and PIN in this country has significantly decreased fraud on the UK high street, fraud abroad has gone up. So as well as taking your passport and your toothbrush when you go on holiday there are a number of simple fraud prevention tips you need to remember to help you avoid becoming a victim. This guide details these tips, such as only taking with you the cards that you intend to use and shielding your PIN whenever you are entering it into a keypad.”

Last year, fraud committed abroad on UK cards amounted to £118.2 million, up on the 2005 figure (£82.8 million) but still smaller than losses were in 2001 and 2002 (£138.4 million and £130.2 million respectively). A proportion of this type of fraud occurs when your card or card details are stolen in the UK and then used fraudulently overseas, so even if you are not travelling outside the UK it always pays to check your statement thoroughly for unfamiliar payments.

In 2006 the countries where most fraud occurred on UK-issued cards were the US (£16.7 million), France (£7.5 million), Spain (£6.7 million), Italy (£6.4 million) and Thailand (£4.1 million). Losses in the US, which as yet has no plans to rollout chip and PIN, were up 49 per cent year-on-year. However, losses in France and Spain, countries that are rolling out the secure technology, have decreased by 35 per cent and 30 per cent respectively.