The high cost of living, astronomical house prices and demands for money at every turn mean Londoners are well used to being ripped off.

But now they have one more thing to worry about after it was revealed that London is the ‘identity fraud capital’ of Britain.

Those in the capital are more likely to be targeted by fraudsters than people living in any other part of the country, research out today reveals.

Of the 54 areas deemed ‘very high-risk’ by information services firm Experian, nearly two thirds are within the M25 and 20 are in London itself.

And it is the residents of upper-class suburb Kensington who are most at risk.

They are almost five times more likely to be stung by ID fraud compared with the national average, researchers found.

They also discovered half of all victims fall within the 30 to 50 age group, with the crime hitting men and women about equally.

Only one in five victims contacts the police and just seven per cent of reported cases result in a prosecution.

But victims tend not to suffer a direct financial loss as a result of a fraud, with companies being made to foot the bill in most cases.

However, according to Experian’s Jill Stevens: ‘It makes sense to take every precaution, as you can face up to 300 hours putting the record straight.

‘It also takes an average of 450 days to discover you have been the target of ID fraud.’

On average, fraudsters steal £10,200 from hire purchase accounts and loan companies lose about £7,019.

Ms Stevens said the report painted a ‘startling’ picture of ID fraud.