News
UK SMEs lose £8 billion to fraud each year
Small retailers face many challenges, including fraud and scams.
If you’re a regular reader of the Integrity Trader blog, you’ll have heard about the types of scams that builders’ merchants and other small retailers are likely to face – including identity fraud. New research by Experian has found that fraud costs UK small businesses approximately £8 billion a year.
10% of micro-businesses (companies with less than 10 employees) report being victims of fraud, and over a quarter of SMEs with 10 or more employees say they have encountered fraudulent activity that’s affected the business. Overall, 13% of the 500 respondents reported that they’d been the victim of a card, cheque or identity fraud.
The cost of each individual instance of fraud varied significantly, but the average amount of money lost to fraud was £2,627, with only 1% of instances costing the business more than £10,000.
Managing director of Experian’s SME business, Ade Potts, commented on the findings: ‘the smallest of businesses in the UK are just as likely to become victims of fraud as their larger counterparts. No matter the size of the loss, whether it is £1,000 or £10,000, it can have a big impact on an SME – both financially and operationally.’
It’s important that retailers and merchants keep a close eye on their balance sheets to investigate any suspicious payments. Retail and point-of-sale software helps you keep your finances in order and enables you to identify potential instances of fraud and scams far more easily than paper-based systems. Get in touch to learn more.
About Trader
Trader is an easy to use electronic point of sale system designed for the unique requirements of building, plumbing and timber merchants, hardware and DIY stores in the UK and Ireland.
Contact Trader
Our team are ready to help with any queries or arrange a demo for you.
UK 03453 40 30 40
IRE +353 (01) 906 1444
© Trader 2023.
Privacy PolicyCookie PolicyTerms and ConditionsDisclaimer