NEWS


Lyne Barlow (inset) set up as an independent agent and swindled £1.2m from 1,400 customers


Trade urged to step up fraud fight as fake agent jailed for nine years


Juliet Dennis


The jailing of fraudulent travel agent Lyne Barlow has led to calls for the sector to significantly step up its fight against crime. Travel businesses have been urged


to work more closely through the industry’s existing fraud database and develop strategies to prevent online scams. Barlow was this week


stranded after failing to book their trips. She had previously worked as an


sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty last October at Durham Crown Court to charges of fraud and money laundering totalling about £1.2 million. According to police, Barlow set


up her own business, Lyne Barlow Independent Travel, in November 2019. She gained a reputation for cut-price deals, selling holidays through Facebook and Instagram. Barlow, who pretended to have


terminal cancer and stole £500,000 from her own mother, left more than 1,400 holidaymakers out of pocket or


travelweekly.co.uk STORY TOP


InteleTravel agent from September to November 2019 under the same business name. Barlow’s membership of InteleTravel was terminated within two months after its head office was contacted by one of her customers. Barry Gooch, chairman of anti-fraud group Profit, said: “Lyne Barlow is an example of how the industry can work together and, with


Profit, stop fraudsters.” But he admitted the industry


could not rely solely on police to catch criminals and called for more firms to sign up to the Travel Industry Intelligence Hub, which keeps a log of confirmed fraudsters. He said: “Due to police funding


cuts, the cavalry will not be riding over the hill to help defrauded agents any time soon. It is everyone’s duty to work together to reduce the risk of fraud for customers, themselves and the industry. We need as many people


to come on board as possible to reduce the risks for the industry and get action taken against organised and serial criminals.” InteleTravel, which now plans


to rejoin the intelligence hub, was among those to call for the industry to take more action. UK director Tricia Handley-Hughes


said: “It’s the right time because of the economic climate. There has to be a collective effort to work closer. “Until you become a victim, as we


did, you don’t realise how important sharing intelligence is.” She added: “The first thing we


heard was a customer chasing a con- firmation. That’s when we found the customer had paid £4,000 for a holiday but not received any paperwork.” She stressed InteleTravel, which


alerted Action Fraud and liaised with Durham Police, vetted members, but said Barlow had no criminal record and was not on anybody’s database. The Advantage Travel Partnership warned there was “no silver bullet


to wipe out crime tomorrow” but said firms and consumers needed to be vigilant about buying and selling via social media. Chief executive Julia Lo Bue-Said


said: “No one should be rethinking their social media strategy but there are mitigating strategies to be put together. We all need to work smarter as businesses and consumers.” The Travel Network Group was


hopeful Barlow’s case would help prevent future fraud in travel. Stephanie Slark, director of


membership services, said: “We need to show there are accountabilities, and this goes a long way as a deterrent.” Agents had mixed views on the


impact of Barlow’s fraud. Melanie Robson, owner of


Mel’s Travel, part of Hays Travel Independence Group, said: “We’ve seen customers saying they would not use an independent agent again.” But Kate Harris, managing director


of Inspired Travel, said: “This is one agent out of all those in the UK.”


9 FEBRUARY 2023 5


PICTURES: Durham Constabulary; Shutterstock/wk1003mike


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