Warning after Cornwall family scammed by 'nasty' Facebook caravan holiday advert
ITV News' Marina Jenkins spoke to Dave and Kathy at their home in Saltash
A family from Cornwall say they are 'gutted' after being scammed out of a holiday on Facebook.
Dave Pengelly and his partner Kathy, were excited after seeing a cheap deal on the social media platform for a caravan at Looe Bay Holiday Park.
The account, which was under the name "Laura", was charging a total of £325 for a long weekend.
Speaking at their family home in Saltash, Dave said: "It was going to be a nice time for the kids to have a break, something they hadn’t had for so long.
"We’d been saving and scraping and given up doing things the house, like the carpets, purely to pay for it. It’s not so much letting my partner down, she understands.
"But trying to explain to a nine-year-old boy you cannot take them on holiday because you just don’t have the money for it now. It’s gutting, really gutting you know."
A series of messages were exchanged between Dave and "Laura" - who had agreed to let him pay in instalments. But as soon as Dave made the last payment, the account went dark.
Kathy Sollick feels heartbroken that she cannot taken her son, Charlie, on holiday. She said: "To have that suddenly pulled from underneath you just because there was no such caravan, there was no such person.
"This person we thought we were having the caravan from was happy to take our money.
"Then to pay the money and then have nothing, I just don’t understand how people can just be so vile and so nasty."
Looe Bay Holiday Park has confirmed that a number of other families have been affected by the Facebook scam. One family had even driven for eight hours only to find their booking did not exist.
A spokesperson for the holiday park said: "We’re concerned by these scam adverts and sympathise with anybody who has been affected.
"These adverts relate to private bookings, rather than our booking platforms.
"We would always urge anybody looking to stay at the park to securely book directly through our website or via one of our trusted partners.”
Facebook has also issued advice regarding online fraud saying: "We are continually investing in protections against fraud for people who use our platforms and work closely with law enforcement to support investigations.
"We encourage our community to report activity like this to us and the police, so we can take action."
Dave and Kathy did contact Devon and Cornwall Police and were referred to the National Crime Agency.
They have been refunded the £125 deposit, but are yet to find out if their banks will refund them the other £200.
Oliver Little, a detective superintendent with Action Fraud, wants to encourage anyone who believes they have been scammed to report it.
He explained: "We see peaks of travel fraud in the summer months, which leave people empty handed. Fraudsters often ask for a bank transfer, not a credit or debit card, so that is a red flag.
"People can feel embarrassed to report to the police, but we do have a dedicated team of professionals who work to locate these harmful accounts and adverts.
"We want to shut them down and get them taken off. Reporting could help others from falling victim."
For help and advice from Action Fraud, the UK's reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime, click here