How to protect against gift voucher fraud in the run up to Christmas

The UK gift card and voucher industry is estimated to be worth over £5 billion, with most people receiving between 1-5 gift cards or vouchers per year. Christmas is the peak time for gift voucher sales, but it’s also the peak time for gift voucher fraud, so here’s how to protect your business this Christmas.

Keep gift card racks out of reach

Recently there’s been a number of reports of criminals targeting gift card racks and noting down card numbers before they’ve been charged, then returning to spend the credit once the card has been loaded. Another scam involves scanning the magnetic strips and then reprogramming stolen cards once they’ve been loaded by genuine customers.

Protect yourself from this kind of opportunistic crime by keeping cards out of reach and view of potential thieves.

Protect against counterfeit gift voucher fraud

Scammers are commonly found trying to sell fake cards and vouchers on auction sites. Make sure your vouchers contain overt and covert security features – such as holograms, unique numbering and watermarks – to protect against duplication. In addition, introduce thorough checks at the point of sale to ensure that fake vouchers aren’t redeemed at the checkout.

Safeguard against employee fraud

A high percentage of gift voucher fraud is actually committed in house, by opportunistic employees spotting a loophole in the system. Employees have been caught out helping themselves to unaccounted gift vouchers from the till or selling unloaded cards to customers while keeping the topped-up card for themselves. Help reduce the risk of employee fraud by introducing safeguards and checks to eliminate the temptation of committing a crime.

As one of the UK’s leading gift voucher printers, Hague Print has more than 30 years experience supplying highly secure gift cards and gift voucher printing using holograms, high security inks and controlled watermarked papers.