Key facts
- UK fraud losses increased 19% to £576.4 million in 2025.
- AI is enabling more sophisticated and scalable scams.
- Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud losses rose to £576.4 million.
- Banks reimbursed £354.3 million to APP fraud victims.
- Investment fraud losses increased 40% to £221.5 million.
- New rules require banks to reimburse APP fraud victims up to £85,000 unless grossly negligent.
Fraud losses in the UK surged by 19% to £576.4 million in 2025, as criminals increasingly utilize artificial intelligence to enhance their scams. According to UK Finance, AI lowers the entry barrier for fraudsters, enabling them to create more sophisticated communications and send messages at scale. This trend coincides with a review of rules introduced in October 2024 that require banks and payments firms to reimburse victims of authorised push payment (APP) fraud up to £85,000, with the UK being the only country to mandate such reimbursement.
Banks returned £354.3 million to victims under these rules. Investment fraud saw the highest proportion of losses, increasing by 40% to £221.5 million, driven by social media posts advertising lucrative returns. Purchase and romance scams also hit their highest levels. In total, criminals stole £1.2 billion through payment fraud in 2025. UK Finance emphasized that the financial sector's investments in customer protection are insufficient alone, calling for stronger, enforceable responsibilities on online tech and telecoms platforms, where most APP fraud originates.