Card Fraud Down 25% With Chip And PIN

Six months on from the launch of Chip and PIN and research shows that the security system is proving almost 100 per cent successful, according to the UK payments association.

Figures from Apacs reveals that there are more than 150 chip and PIN transactions every second and 99.8 per cent have actually been verified by PIN.

As a result, counterfeit fraud on lost and stolen cards was reduced by nearly £60 million in 2005, a drop of almost 25 per cent compared with 2004.

"Britain is now a truly mature chip and PIN nation. Millions of people have adapted to the change with no problems at all. This means that we are all a lot safer when we go shopping, and that fraudsters have been denied millions of pounds of stolen money," said Sandra Quinn of chip and PIN.

"Now we need to remain vigilant, as fraudsters will always try to find other ways to get hold of our money. That is why we are constantly reminding cardholders how to protect themselves from fraud."

Some credit card customers are still able to pay using a signature including those from countries that have yet to upgrade to chip and PIN, those who have a chip and signature card and those who have 'old-style' cards that have yet to be upgraded.