Fraud busting bank staff save customers more than £9m

An army of bank cashiers who joined the war against so-called “doorstep fraudsters”, who con pensioners out of their cash through multifarious scams, has prevented over £9m worth of fraud in its first year of operation.
The “banking protocol”, developed as a partnership between the finance industry, police and trading standards, enables bank staff to contact police if they suspect a customer is in the process of being scammed, with a rapid response to the branch. It was rolled out last year following successful trials in London.
In the 12 months since the pilot was launched until the end of October 2017, the scheme has led to 101 arrests being made across the country, with police responding to a total of 1,262 banking protocol calls.
In total, the scheme has prevented £9.1m of ‘over the counter’ fraud, with individual customers protected from losing sums from £99 to £212,000.
Now in place in 43 police forces across the country, the remaining forces in the UK are committed to introducing the programming this year.
Katy Worobec, managing director of Economic Crime at UK Finance, said: “Fraud can have a devastating effect on some of the most susceptible people in society and it’s by working together with law enforcement, and others, that we can make a real difference when it matters most.
“The banking protocol is a great example of this collaboration in action protecting people from becoming victims. The finance industry is determined to crack down on fraud and is taking action on all fronts – the scheme is an important weapon in our armoury.”