Rumours of cheque fraud's demise greatly exaggerated
Fleet, Hampshire, November 29th, 2004: While Chip & PIN is set to slash high street card fraud by more than 80%, cases of cheque fraud are still growing at 50% annually. Retail Logic, Europe's leading card payment software supplier, said the UK's continuing reliance on cheques - which still account for £2.3 billion in transactions each year* - has left a 'back door' to which payment fraudsters are turning their attention.
"This is more than just a housekeeping exercise - last year there were over 40,000 cases of cheque fraud resulting in losses of £45 million," says Retail Logic Marketing Director Mark McMurtrie. "Cardholder not present fraud is receiving increased attention as the industry realises Chip & PIN cannot address Web and call centre fraud, but retailers will also be leaving themselves exposed if they do not take the growing threat of cheque fraud seriously."
Figures from the British Bankers' Association show that rumours of cheque fraud's demise have been greatly exaggerated. In 2003 - the last complete year for which figures are available - 41,000 forged, counterfeit or altered cheques were passed, involving a potential loss of £566 million. While many of these attempts were foiled, actual losses still exceeded £45 million. The number of cases was 50% up on the previous year; actual losses up 25%. The BBA predicts that the trend is set to continue - cheque fraud is alive and well.
To date, cheque authorisation methods have not received widespread retailer popularity due to their reliance on time-consuming manual processes, disrupting efficient till operation and irritating some customers. But with no aggressive plans to drive cheques out of the UK system - annual cheque transactions are forecast to account for some £1.3 billion in 2013* - something must be done to protect retailers and consumers.
"We have teamed up with two leading cheque guarantee services - Transax and ChequeSpread," adds McMurtrie. "This has led to the development of a cheque authorisation plug-in for our Solve/SE payment switch which is used by more than 60 per cent of UK high street stores. The new module both facilitates and streamlines the cheque authorisation process and should prove an additional defence in the continuing battle against fraud on all fronts."
*(Source: APACS)
Notes to Editors
About Retail Logic:
The Retail Logic team has been providing payment processing software for more than 15 years. Covering any form of payment card and transaction environment, Retail Logic's software now handles more than £100 billion a year. Investment in people and research and development, together with a clear focus on the needs of retailers, have led to award-winning products and European market leadership. Part of The Logic Group, which also comprises specialists in communications and customer relationship programmes in the shape of Commslogic and Loyalty Logic respectively, Retail Logic trades under the Logic Group banner outside the UK.
