Scamming spike: Three in four self-employed wealthy people have fallen victim to financial fraud

Almost 75 per cent of self-employed wealthy individuals have fallen victim to financial fraud, a new study has shown.

There has been 10 per cent spike in the scourge over the last six months with victims on average losing £9,000. 

Self-employed High-Net-Worth-Individuals (HNWI) and those with assets over £3m are most at risk, self-employed workers 1.5 times more likely to say they’ve been scammed, as 74 per cent had fallen victim. Of those scammed, 41 per cent lost money.

Figures published in the Saltus Wealth Index, surveying 1,000 people with assets over £250,000, showed at least 53 per cent say they have been a victim, while a quarter of HNWI say Cybercrime is the biggest risk to their wealth. 

Six months ago, it was viewed as the fourth biggest threat, behind inflation, Covid and exchange rates. 

The study said 36 per cent of those polled had lost money, and a fifth admitted to losing over £10,000 to fraud. 

It also outlined that women and younger people are more likely to reveal they had been scammed than men.

“With our research showing that 36 per cent o fHNWIs had lost money to a scam, this is no longer an issue for a small minority but a very real danger to all”,  Mike Stimpson, a partner at Saltus said.