International Currency Exchange (ICE) is warning British holidaymakers of the risks of credit card fraud abroad, as APACS* reports that losses on UK-issued cards amounted to £230.1m in 2008 – the highest figure recorded to date and 11% up on 2007.

“These latest figures are shocking,” says Andrew Hamilton, Head of Marketing at ICE. “In 2005 fraud abroad accounted for £82.8m in losses, so we have seen a 177% increase in just 3 years. We really hope this will be a wake up call to families travelling abroad this summer who now, more than ever, need to be watching their hard-earned money. We strongly urge holidaymakers to reduce the risk of cards being cloned or stolen abroad and opt for pre-paid cashcards instead.”

Cards like the ICE Travellers cashcard provide a safer alternative to credit cards, unlike credit cards, where a fraudster could run up thousands of pounds against the victim’s credit limit. The worst damage that a fraudster could do with a cashcard is steal the total amount pre-loaded, even if he got past the Chip and PIN high level security on the card, , which makes these kind of cards a lesser target for criminal card-cloning gangs. It’s easy to top up the ICE Travellers cashcard instantly on line, so there’s no need to keep a very high balance on it although you can put up to 2,500 pounds, euros or US dollars on it and reload it up to 5 times a month.

Andrew Hamilton continues: “The ICE Travellers cashcard Prepaid MasterCard offers holidaymakers greater protection from fraud and theft. Accepted at over 25 million ATMs, shops and restaurants in over 120 countries worldwide, our card carries the MasterCard brand and will be accepted wherever travellers see the logo displayed. The ICE Travellers cashcard also offers you the chance to fix the rate in euros, pounds or US dollars before you travel.”

“Travellers need to get clever with their money. With our cashcard, which is free to obtain, people can travel with something that’s safer than credit cards and smarter than cash, leaving them to enjoy their trip.”