Brits Lose £106m to Romance Fraud in a Year

Lonely hearts in the UK were defrauded to the tune of £106m ($144m) in 2024, according to new figures from the City of London Police.

The National Lead Force for fraud in the country released the data yesterday as part of a new awareness raising campaign in the Square Mile.

Its National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) revealed a 9% annual increase in reports of romance fraud in the 2024/25 financial year, to 9449.

Victims lost an average of £11,222 ($15,211) each, with men slightly more likely than women to fall victim.

However, female victims were more likely to lose larger sums of money, as they’re more likely to be manipulated over longer periods of time, the police force claimed.

Read more on romance fraud: Interpol Calls for an End to “Pig Butchering” Terminology

Nearly twice as many female victims engaged with scammers for a year or more versus their male peers, it said.

Often the end goal for these long-term scams is romance baiting (pig butchering), where the victim is eventually persuaded to invest in a fraudulent crypto scheme or similar. Global losses to this particular type of scam soared 40% annually in 2024, according to Chainalysis.

They are commonly perpetrated by individuals who have been trafficked to work in scam compounds in southeast Asia.

In March, the US authorities seized over $8m stolen by fraudsters promoting fake investment opportunities to emotionally vulnerable victims.

Romance Fraud Leaves Lasting Scars

According to City of London Police, the 50-59 age group experienced the highest financial losses last year, totalling £22.1m. It claimed that older people are more likely to have amassed more personal wealth, while also working, and potentially have experienced life-changing events such as divorce or the loss of a partner.

Detective superintendent Oliver Little, from the Lead Force Operations Room, argued that romance fraud can leave lasting emotional scars.

“Stigma still surrounds romance fraud victims, often driven by misconceptions that they are foolish or lack judgment. In reality, criminals use sophisticated tactics to manipulate emotions and gain trust, making anyone vulnerable,” he added.

“We want to remind everyone that romance fraud can happen to anyone, regardless of gender or background. If something doesn’t feel right in an online relationship, take a step back, verify identities, and seek advice. Speaking up can not only protect yourself, but also help prevent others from falling victim and bring those responsible to justice.”

In the US, the FBI received nearly 18,000 reports of romance/confidence fraud last year, with associated losses of over $672m.

The police urged the public to:

• Stay on dating app messaging rather than switching to SMS or personal messaging services
• Be suspicious of any requests for money from someone they have never met
• Be careful about sharing too much personal information online
• Speak to family or friends for advice and perspective
• Perform a reverse image search on any new romantic contacts, to see if their photos have been taken from somewhere, or someone, else