Lonely hearts are falling out of love with online dating and returning to traditional matchmakers.

The Association of British Introduction Agencies says its members, which vet potential partners and conduct face-to-face interviews, saw an increase of at least 27 per cent in inquiries over the past year.

The resurgence comes after numerous horror stories of fraudsters preying upon victims through online dating to gull them into handing over large sums of money.

Lonely hearts are falling out of love with online dating and returning to traditional matchmakers

The latest figures from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau reveal 3,889 romance-seekers were duped into handing over £39 million to criminals last year.

Linda Cloke, who runs the Click agency in Maidstone, Kent said: ‘People have opened their hearts to me about being conned online.

‘I know one gentleman who was exploited by a woman who got him to buy all sorts of things for her including a £14,000 car.

He really believed they had found love but once she got what she wanted she dumped him.

It comes after numerous horror stories of fraudsters preying upon victims through online dating to gull them into handing over large sums of money

‘Another married a Russian woman he met online and she came to live here with her six-year-old.

'They were together for two years and he ended up losing half his house.’

The internet dating scammers, usually conversing online with hundreds of potential victims using phony photos and false IDs, are often traced to criminal gangs in West Africa or Eastern Europe, and police struggle to bring them to justice.

The Online Dating Association did not respond to a request for comment.