Scams & Fraud
UK Finance's Annual Fraud Report 2026 recorded £576.4 million in APP fraud losses for 2025, up 19% year on year. A separate Frontier Economics review of the mandatory reimbursement rules, which measures scam activity by when it happened rather than when it was reported, estimated APP losses have fallen by roughly £73 million annually. The two figures use different methodologies and are not directly comparable.
Last reviewed 2 July 2026
Total UK payment fraud losses reached £1.28 billion in 2025. Card fraud is falling as banks block more of it before money leaves an account; APP fraud, where the victim authorises the payment themselves, is rising. Banks reimbursed 61% of APP losses in 2025 under mandatory rules introduced in October 2024.
Key Facts
- Total UK payment fraud losses 2025: £1.28 billion, up 4% (UK Finance)
- APP fraud losses 2025: £576.4 million, up 19%; 248,070 cases, up 7%
- Unauthorised (card) fraud losses fell 5% to £703.4 million despite more cases
- Investment fraud was the largest APP category by value: £221.5 million, up 40%
- Banks reimbursed £354.3 million to APP victims in 2025, around 61% of losses
- Separate Frontier Economics review estimated a £73 million annual fall in APP losses using a different, activity-date methodology
Two figures, two different questions
Two sets of numbers about authorised push payment (APP) fraud have circulated recently, and they answer different questions rather than contradicting each other. UK Finance's Annual Fraud Report 2026 recorded APP fraud losses of £576.4 million in 2025, up 19 per cent year on year, based on the date each claim was closed by a payment service provider. A separate review, carried out by Frontier Economics into the impact of the mandatory reimbursement rules introduced in October 2024, estimated that APP fraud losses have fallen by around £73 million annually when scam activity is analysed by the date it actually happened, rather than the date it was reported or resolved. UK Finance notes that romance and investment scams in particular can involve long delays between the fraud occurring and the victim realising and reporting it.
What UK Finance's headline numbers show
Total payment fraud losses across UK banking reached £1.28 billion in 2025, up 4 per cent, from more than four million recorded cases. Unauthorised fraud, chiefly card fraud, fell 5 per cent to £703.4 million even as case numbers rose, which UK Finance attributes to banks becoming more effective at detecting and blocking that category before money leaves an account. APP fraud moved in the opposite direction: losses up 19 per cent to £576.4 million and cases up 7 per cent to 248,070, reflecting scams that persuade a victim to authorise the payment themselves rather than requiring a criminal to breach account security.
Investment fraud was the largest single category by value, up 40 per cent to £221.5 million. Purchase scams were the most common by case count, making up 71 per cent of all APP fraud cases. Romance fraud losses rose 23 per cent to £39.2 million. Two-thirds of APP fraud is estimated to originate online, with a further 17 per cent originating through telecommunications channels.
What the reimbursement rules are doing
Since October 2024, mandatory reimbursement rules from the Payment Systems Regulator require banks to reimburse APP fraud victims, up to a limit of £85,000, unless the customer has been grossly negligent. UK Finance reports banks reimbursed £354.3 million to APP victims in 2025, around 61 per cent of recorded losses, while the PSR separately reports that 89 per cent of in-scope APP fraud was reimbursed within the first 15 months the rules were in force.
UK Finance's position is that reimbursement, while an important protection for victims, does not by itself reduce the amount of money criminals succeed in stealing; the funds still reach organised crime before any refund is paid. The trade body is calling for stronger, enforceable obligations on technology platforms and telecoms providers, including mandatory seller verification on online marketplaces, given that most APP fraud is estimated to originate through those channels rather than through the banking system itself.
What it means for consumers
The reimbursement rules provide a safety net for most APP fraud victims, but eligibility depends on the payment being made from and to a UK account and on the customer not having acted with gross negligence, a standard that is assessed case by case. UK Finance continues to direct consumers to its Take Five to Stop Fraud guidance: stop before making an unexpected payment, challenge the request if anything feels off, and protect yourself by contacting your bank directly using a number you already trust, not one provided in the suspicious message itself.
This article is for general information only and is not personalised financial, tax or legal advice. Rules and figures change; always check the primary source and, where relevant, speak to a qualified adviser before making a decision based on this content.
