CALLS have been made for an online crime agency to protect online shoppers due to the scale of fraud last year.

A Freedom of Information request revealed £1,448,596 was lost to online shopping fraud in a year across Somerset.

MP Rachel Gilmour (Liberal Democrat, Tiverton and Minehead) is urging the Government to set up a new online crime agency to tackle online fraud.

Victims lost on average £827, which is up a whopping 18 per cent from the previous year. Shockingly, the data also reveals that over £154,000 is lost to online fraud every single day.

In Avon and Somerset, 1,843 cases of online shopping fraud were reported in the 2023/24 financial year, adding up to a £1,448,596 in losses.