Bank card cloning has become a major problem as criminals become more desperate as the recession bites.

Figures show that card fraud is growing with one fraudulent transaction taking place every eight seconds.

They reveal that more than £609 million was lost to credit card fraud last year.

Almost one in five people had their cards cloned at hole-in-the-wall cash machines or in-store chip and pin terminals.

High-profile victims include Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson who was targeted at a petrol station in California two years ago.

His card was cloned after he filled up his car with petrol. He was hit with a bill for £35,000 after his credit card details were sold on.

Card holders have been warned to be even more vigilant when using automatic cash machines and to check their bank statements carefully.

Kerry D’Souza, a fraud expert at card protection company CPP, says: “Criminals like card crimes because they can do it without having to make face-to-face transactions.

“People need to be vigilant and check their bank statements.

“Being a victim of fraud, with average sums of £650, can be very stressful and a lot of hassle.

“The banks do look for unusual transactions but we all need to be careful.”

The warning came as two Crawley men were sentenced yesterday after they were caught with cloned credit cards.

One of them said he got caught up in the scam after getting himself heavily into debt.

Americo Ferreira, 25, and Sarwar Abdurahaman, 22, were stopped by police after they were seen acting suspiciously in a car that was not theirs at the Tesco petrol station at Broadbridge Heath, Crawley, at 1am on July 15 last year.

They were about to use the cloned cards to fill 15 plastic drums in the car with petrol.

Undercover police targeted the area after they were told that cloned cards were repeatedly being used at the unmanned all-night service station.

Petrol pumps in use at the time meant that customers only had to swipe their bank cards through the machine and did not need to enter a PIN number.

Detectives said the scam became well-known and people travelled from miles around to steal petrol and sell it on.

Tesco changed its procedure after the scam was uncovered and the thefts have now stopped, Hove Crown Court heard.

The cloned cards had been used by others before but there was no evidence that either defendant had previously used them.

Ferreira, of Mullein Walk, Broadfield, Crawley, and Abdurahaman, of Argus Walk, Bewbush, Crawley, admitted possessing the cards for use in fraud.

Both men were given five month prison sentences suspended for two years. They must also do 180 hours unpaid community work.

A spokeswoman for the Citizens Advice Bureau said: “If people are under pressure in this way or are being harassed by debt collectors free and independent advice is available from a number of agencies.”