Thomas Cook refund website 'hijacked by fraudsters' as aviation regulator takes 'urgent action'

More than 60,000 claims were made on Monday by people whose holidays were cancelled
PA
Matt Drake8 October 2019

Customers trying to get a refund from Thomas Cook have been hit by fraudsters after they "took control" of the website, the Civil Aviation Authority said.

The aviation regulator said it is taking "urgent action" over suspicious online activity and will inform the police after fraudsters are suspected of targeting a website created to refund Thomas Cook customers.

It has added further verification checks to its refund process and pledged to seek prosecutions where there has been suspected deception.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) chair Dame Deirdre Hutton said: "This morning we have taken urgent action in response to what we believe is attempted fraudulent activity in relation to refunds for Thomas Cook customers.

"If you have made a claim directly with us, then your claim is being processed and you do not need to take any action.

Screengrab taken from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) website for customers of Thomas Cook to claim refunds
PA

"Our role is to protect the consumer and this is our foremost priority. We will not hesitate to take the necessary action to do so. Therefore, please only make claims directly through the official dedicated website: thomascook.caa.co.uk/refunds.

"Please help us to combat the risk of fraud by not submitting your details to any other website."

At least 100,000 claims have been made since the website went live on Monday.

It was set up to enable people with Atol-protected bookings for Thomas Cook holidays to get refunds after the firm collapsed on September 23.

This equates to more than 360,000 bookings for trips made by 800,000 people.

The CAA is aiming to pay refunds within 60 days of receiving a valid form and wants to crack down on fraud to avoid delay.

Dame Hutton added: "Our focus is on getting money back to the right people as soon as possible and combating fraud in every way possible.

"We are informing the police of this activity and are implementing further verification checks to protect consumers. Where we see evidence of fraud, we will seek to prosecute any individuals or organisations involved.

There were also reports of a suspicious Thomas Cook refund website asking customers to hand over personal details
PA

"We will publish further updates as soon as more information is available, and we remain committed to processing refunds to Thomas Cook customers quickly and securely."

The news comes after warnings on Monday that suspicious Thomas Cook refund websites were asking customers to hand over personal information for a refund.

One such site, thomascookrefunds.com, was not related to the firm and the CAA warned people to only use the official https://thomascook.caa.co.uk/refunds/ site.

Which? Travel editor Rory Boland said: "Fraudsters circle like sharks around financial disasters, so people should be aware that there are likely to be fake refund websites set up to fleece Thomas Cook customers - and some of them may look very convincing.

“Refunds for Thomas Cook customers will either be handled by the Civil Aviation Authority from Monday (7 October) or by banks and card providers, so we would urge anyone waiting to claim their money back to ignore alternative websites and unsolicited calls or texts promising a refund."

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