Report Fraud: How to Report

What Report Fraud is — and what it isn’t

Report Fraud is the public-facing reporting channel of the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB), operated by City of London Police. Reports are aggregated and triaged at the national level — matching cases by pattern, location, scam type, and named operators. Cases that match thresholds (high-value, repeat offender, organised pattern) get assigned to local police forces for investigation.

The realistic role of Report Fraud:

• National intelligence: aggregating UK fraud data for pattern detection, regulatory action, and policy formation.
• Reference-number provider: each report gets a Crime Reference Number (CRN), typically format NFRC + 14 digits.
• Triage for investigation: a fraction of reports get assigned to local police forces for investigation.
• Information source for other agencies: banks, regulators (FCA, Ofcom, PSA), insurance providers, FOS all reference Report Fraud CRNs in their own processes.

What Report Fraud doesn’t do: directly recover your money. That happens via your bank’s PSR claim / chargeback / civil recovery — not via the report. Report Fraud also doesn’t provide individual case updates by default.

What to prepare before reporting

The scam itself

• How contact was made (SMS / email / phone / DM / in-person / website / advert)
• The claimed sender / caller / contact identity (name, organisation, phone, email, URL)
• What they said and what you understood was happening
• Date and time of first contact + subsequent escalation
• How you came to authorise / send / share information

Financial details

• Amount of loss (specific to the penny if known)
• Payment method (bank transfer / credit card / debit card / cash / crypto / gift cards / wire)
• Date(s) of payment
• Recipient account if known (sort code, account number, account holder name)
• Your bank’s name and your account number (for cross-referencing if police need to follow up)

Evidence

• Screenshots of all communications
• Transaction confirmations
• The original advertisement / DM / call recording / email if available
• Any URLs the scammer used
• Phone numbers (yours, scammer’s claimed number, call duration)

Your details

• Full name, address, DOB, contact phone, email
• National Insurance number (only if data was shared as part of the scam)
• Any disability / vulnerability information (Report Fraud routes vulnerable victims to enhanced support)

How to file online (step by step)

1. Go to reportfraud.police.uk. Click “Report fraud” (or “Report online fraud”).
2. You’ll be asked: have you lost money? (yes/no) and a fraud category selector (online shopping, investment fraud, romance, courier, identity fraud, etc.). Pick the closest match; the form adapts.
3. Multi-page form covers: what happened, when, how much lost, payment method, your details, the scammer’s claimed details, evidence URLs / files.
4. Review submission. You’ll receive an immediate confirmation page with your Crime Reference Number (format NFRC + digits). Save / screenshot this immediately.
5. You’ll receive a follow-up email confirming submission. This email serves as additional documentation.

Average online report submission time: 20-40 minutes for a fully-prepared report. Sessions are limited to about 30 minutes of inactivity, so prepare materials before starting.

How to report by phone (0300 123 2040)

1. Call 0300 123 2040. Free from all UK landlines and mobiles. Available 24/7.
2. Initial automated menu directs you to fraud reporting. Press 1 for personal fraud / 2 for business / 3 for other.
3. You’ll be put through to a fraud advisor (waiting times typically 5-25 minutes; longer during major-incident periods).
4. The advisor takes you through the same form as the online version. They can also direct you to other agencies as appropriate (NCSC, IWF, FOS, ICO).
5. At the end, you receive your Crime Reference Number verbally + a confirmation email.

When phone is better than online:

• You’re emotionally distressed and need to talk it through
• You have a disability / vulnerability requiring enhanced support
• You don’t have all the evidence collected and need help thinking through what happened
• You’re uncertain which category to file under (e.g. is this romance fraud or investment fraud)
• You want to ask follow-up questions about the process

The Crime Reference Number (CRN) — what it’s for

The CRN is your documentary proof of having reported. It’s used:

• By your bank when processing PSR Mandatory Reimbursement / chargeback / Section 75 claims
• By insurers when claiming on home / cyber / fraud insurance
• By the Financial Ombudsman Service when escalating bank-refusal complaints
• By solicitors for civil recovery proceedings
• By CIFAS when processing protective-registration applications
• By future fraud agencies if related cases emerge

Keep the CRN safe alongside your bank statements + transaction records. Save it in multiple places (paper note + secure digital backup).

What happens after you report

Within 24-72 hours

NFIB triage: the report is matched against existing patterns. High-value, repeat-offender, or organised-pattern cases get flagged for further investigation. Most reports remain at intelligence-only level.

Within 7-30 days

If your case is being investigated by a local police force, you’ll receive contact — either letter or phone — from the relevant force. This happens to a relatively small fraction of reports.

Updates and follow-up

Report Fraud doesn’t provide automatic case updates. If you want to know the status of your report, you can check via the “What happens after I’ve made a report?” section of reportfraud.police.uk — but realistic expectation is no individual update on most cases.

What if my case isn’t investigated?

This is the most common outcome, especially for sub-£5,000 losses. The intelligence value is still real — your report contributes to national fraud data, regulator action, and pattern-based takedowns. Your CRN still works for all the bank / insurance / recovery purposes listed above.

For substantial losses without individual investigation: civil recovery via SRA-regulated solicitor is the alternative path. They can pursue Norwich Pharmacal Orders against receiving banks (forcing disclosure of account-holder details), then civil claims against named individuals.

What Report Fraud is NOT the right channel for

• Immediate financial recovery: contact your bank’s fraud line first. Report Fraud later.
• Scam text messages alone (no financial loss): forward to 7726. Faster, focused on disabling the SMS infrastructure.
• Phishing emails alone: forward to report@phishing.gov.uk (NCSC SERS).
• Sextortion / image-based abuse of under-18s: IWF Report Remove is the dedicated takedown route.
• Data breaches affecting your personal data: ICO at ico.org.uk or 0303 123 1113.
• Dispute with a regulated financial service (after final response): Financial Ombudsman Service.
• Suspected pyramid scheme / MLM mis-selling: Trading Standards via Citizens Advice consumer service.
• Scotland-based crime: Police Scotland 101 instead of Report Fraud. The fraud reporting system in Scotland is separate.
• Crime in progress / immediate danger: 999.

Special routing for specific scam categories

• Investment fraud: report to Report Fraud + FCA ScamSmart (fca.org.uk/scamsmart). The FCA handles regulatory enforcement; Report Fraud handles criminal pathway.
• Telecoms / premium-rate / scam calls: report to Report Fraud + 7726 (network) + PSA for premium-rate (psauthority.org.uk).
• Romance scams: Report Fraud + Victim Support UK (victimsupport.org.uk) for emotional support. Many romance victims need both channels.
• Tech support scams: Report Fraud + Microsoft / Apple via their phishing-report addresses if the scam impersonated them.
• HMRC impersonation: Report Fraud + HMRC at phishing@hmrc.gov.uk.
• Recruitment agency scams: Report Fraud + Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS).
• Cyber attack / ransomware (business): Report Fraud + NCSC at ncsc.gov.uk.