People living in Powys are 29% more likely to report being victims of dating fraud in 2024 than they were in 2020.

Predatory dating scammers may have cost the UK public more than £400m in financial loss across just five years, according to Action Fraud reports.

Data gathered by Action Fraud Claims Advice - not to be confused with the national reporting centre - indicates that nearly 40,000 crime reports were submitted between January 2020 and December 2024.

Wales featured prominently in the data, with close to 1,900 reports believed to have come from around the country.

Overall, Action Fraud received 1,893 Welsh reports of dating scams across five years, with 472 cases reported in Dyfed-Powys.

Dyfed-Powys was the source of 72 reports in 2020, a number which swiftly rose to 118 the year after. Incident figures have remained in the 90s since, with 98, 91 and 93 reports sent in the last three years respectively.

Based on national reports, the financial damage caused by romance fraud is estimated to be a massive £409,749,344 - though the true cost could be much higher.

2021 was when report numbers were at their highest. There were 8,678 cases overall, with people reporting a loss of £87,694,153–that works out at £10,105 per person.

While the caseload has not returned to that peak, the 8,548 cases sent to Action Fraud in 2024 is an increase of 465 on the year before and 708 on the 7,840 reports from 2022.

In total, victims of dating fraud are losing nearly 40% more money than they were five years ago. The estimated loss, which is based on self-reporting, was £66,339,032 in 2020, at an average of £9,884 per report.

Last year, the final figure was £92,215,871, or £10,788 per report.