Sheffield's Funky Divas salon left nearly £1,000 out of pocket after 'inevitable' fraudster hits store

The Funky Divas salon in Crystal Peaks has hit by a fraudster who bought £950 worth of salon products on a card eventually revealed to be a clone. Brooke Richards, who owns the Funky Divas Salons group, with another store in Hillsborough, said: “This happens to us every year and every year they get cleverer.”

The salon has now implemented an ID requirement for any transactions of £150 or more on a card, in order to combat the ‘inevitable’ fraudsters. The woman whose bank account was used for the cloned card rang the salon shortly after the transaction to say she hadn’t done it and her card was with her. She was refunded, but Brooke said the card machine issuer has also charged the business for the same amount after the refund. She said: “We have done nothing wrong and yet we’re being charged for it. It’s a lot of money for a salon.”

Brooke also issued a stark warning to other business owners in the city, as she believes the fraudsters who hit her salon are working across the area. She said: “People need to be aware as this group are in the area. Just a couple of hours later we had another business in Rotherham call asking for his description and it was a match.”

Funky Divas Salons says it has contacted the police, who are working to identify those responsible.