Travellers are urged to adopt pre-paid cards when travelling abroad after APACS, the UK’s payments association, revealed £22.5 million rise in overseas card fraud committed by criminals using stolen UK card details in countries yet to upgrade to chip and PIN. The latest figures from trade body APACS show that there has been an 11% rise in…
Travellers are urged to adopt pre-paid cards when travelling abroad after APACS, the UK’s payments association, revealed £22.5 million rise in overseas card fraud committed by criminals using stolen UK card details in countries yet to upgrade to chip and PIN.
The latest figures from trade body APACS show that there has been an 11% rise in credit and debit card fraud abroad in the last year and the figure has nearly doubled in two years. Holidaymakers heading for popular resorts this summer could be particularly at risk as criminals target them for ID fraud.
“The best way to protect against credit card and ID fraud which takes hours, days or weeks to rectify is to use a pre-paid travellers cash card such as Caxton FX’s Global Traveller card. It is great value because you have no fees to pay for ATM use. In addition, the card is safe, simple and convenient to use and you have the peace of mind of knowing that your losses will be contained,” says Rupert Lee Browne, chief executive of Caxton FX.
Other safeguards that travellers should adopt include limiting the number of cards they take with them and never letting them out of their sight, especially in bars or restaurants.
Prepaid foreign exchange cards have taken off since their introduction a few years ago. These are Mastercard or Visa prepaid cards that do not charge commission fees for spending abroad. They work like a prepaid mobile phone: you load foreign currency onto the card online or by phone and then use it to spend. One of the major advantages of the card is security. Losses are limited to the amount on the card.
“Caxton FX’s card is one of the best value on the market,” says Lee Browne. “Apart from the safety from fraud, we do not charge for the issue of the card, we offer market beating exchange rates, no charges for use at ATMs and no other commission fees. Our watchword is value and service for our customers.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
