Consumers warned about 'free holiday' telephone scam

The Director of Consumer Affairs has issued a warning about rogue holiday operators attempting to defraud Irish people over the telephone.

Carmel Foley said an American company was currently phoning people to offer them "free" or "special offer" holidays and then charging them up to $1,000 for administrative costs.

Ms Foley said the recipients of these calls were being told they must accept the holiday immediately and give over their credit card details.

She said consumers could avoid being snared in such scams by never giving such details over the phone.