Successive UK governments keep failing on fraud – and the problem is only getting worse

In the UK alone, fraud is thought to cost the economy £219 billion per year. tete_escape/Shutterstock

Fraud is now the most common offence in the UK accounting for more than 40% of reported crime. In the year to July 2025, around 4.2 million people reported being defrauded in England and Wales.

Yet that’s probably only a fraction of the true scale of the problem. The National Crime Agency estimates that around 86% of fraud goes unreported, meaning millions more are falling victim without ever coming forward.