Devon, Derbyshire, Kent, Hampshire and Greater Manchester make up the top five regions outside of London, by amounts stolen, with more than £5 million taken by fraudsters in Q1 2025
Santander warns customers to be particularly vigilant in Derbyshire, which saw a 467% increase in value of scams in Q1 2025, compared to Q4 2024 – the largest increase of any region.
The highest number of scams was reported in Greater London with 903 Santander customers reporting a claim between January and March 2025*
The ‘Santander Quarterly Scamtracker’1 charts trends in Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams reported each quarter, the types of customers impacted, and warns of emerging scams
Santander UK has today revealed which regions up and down the UK have been hit the hardest by the deluge of fraud between January and March 2025.
Outside of London, Devon was the hardest hit financially by scammers in the first quarter of the year, with more than £1.3 million stolen, a massive 315% increase on the previous quarter. Second in the list was Derbyshire, which also saw £1.3 million stolen from customers, a massive 467% increase on the previous quarter’s value. This was the biggest increase of any region in Q1 2025.
Top five counties outside of London ranked by scam value – January to March in Q1:
Rank | County | No. of scams | Total Value | % change in value on Q4 2024 |
1 | Devon | 97 | £1,319,673 | +315% |
2 | Derbyshire | 104 | £1,318,363 | +467% |
3 | Kent | 208 | £985,148 | +70% |
4 | Hampshire | 143 | £ 956,280 | +46% |
5 | Greater Manchester | 210 | £620,300 | +31% |
Chris Ainsley, Head of Fraud Risk Management at Santander UK said: “£5 million is a staggering amount to have been taken from our customers in just five UK regions and placed into the criminal underworld. When we scale that up to all residents and all regions around the UK, it's quickly evident what a scourge on society fraud and scams still are. Scams are evolving at breakneck speed, so it remains incredibly important to stay vigilant for those tell-tale signs.”
When combined with Greater London, which saw 903 claims and a total of more than £3.8 million2 stolen by scammers, a huge £10 million was stolen from Santander customers across the top six regions. This accounts for more than half of the total £18 million which scammers stole from Santander customers in Q1 across the UK.
Purchase scams made up more than half the amount, as criminals homed in on Oasis, Sabrina Carpenter and Coldplay concert tickets and preyed on demand amongst fans. In the last week of March alone, Santander reported an emerging scam advert for Sports Direct, selling discounted designer goods via Facebook, had caught out more than 400 customers3.
Scams amongst those aged 18-34 and 80+ were particularly on the increase, with a 6% and 7% increase in claims respectively. Purchase scams were the most commonly reported scam amount 18-34 year olds, while those aged 80+ were more likely to raise a claim following a scammer impersonating their bank.
Tips to protect yourself from purchase scams:
Is the item really hard to find, or priced under the recommended selling value? If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Is the seller making extra effort in communicating to push the sale through? This should be a red flag.
A seller you don’t know asks you to use ‘PayPal Friends & Family’ service or to pay for goods by bank transfer. It’s a big no-no.
Be wary of goods advertised online, research the company and read reviews before you click to buy.
Facebook Marketplace is a great way to buy and sell locally. Be cautious when buying an item that you haven’t seen in person - the seller may be using a fake profile. Buying this way is high risk.
ENDS
The information contained in our press releases is intended solely for journalists and should not be used by consumers to make financial decisions
Notes to Editors:
* Statistically likely to appear higher due to larger population size in Greater London compared to other counties
1. Santander’s Quarterly Scam Tracker data comprises customer APP scam claims raised between 1 January –28 March 2025.
2. £3,095,054
3. 
Santander UK is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. At 31 December 2024, the bank had around 18,000 employees and serves around 14 million active customers, via a nationwide branch network, telephone, mobile and online banking. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the FCA and the PRA in the UK. Santander UK plc customers’ eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS in the UK.
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC.LN) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain and one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. The group’s activities are consolidated into five global businesses: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Wealth Management & Insurance and Payments (PagoNxt and Cards). This operating model allows the bank to better leverage its unique combination of global scale and local leadership. Banco Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way.