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TAKING THE PISTE

The FAKE chalet websites scamming thousands of Brit skiers

Its carefully crafted sites feature 'beautiful chalets in amazing locations' close to some of the world's top ski runs

A FAKE chalet scam has been exposed after skiers thought they were hiring luxury mountainside properties at bargain prices.

Outraged holidaymakers contacted the to expose the online con with one victim telling how they had lost nearly £30,000.

 This chalet was listed at a bargain price of just 1,500 euros a week
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This chalet was listed at a bargain price of just 1,500 euros a week

Many claimed they were caught out as the chalet rental sites look so professional and use pictures of REAL chalets.

To make things worse, the scammers even used the descriptions and terms and conditions lifted straight off genuine websites.

The websites also carry an https encryption stamp in their urls which many users see as a sign that a site is bonafide.

Alps-stay.com was reportedly one such fake site (it also went by the name AVO Chalets). The account has now been suspended.

 Skiers told how they had lost tens of thousands of pounds
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 Skiers told how they had lost tens of thousands of poundsCredit: Alamy
Horrifying moment skiers violently swing from side to side on chairlift as they are battered by strong winds in a Austrian resort

Its carefully crafted website featured beautiful chalets in amazing locations close to some of the world's top ski runs.

It's now claimed the photos had been taken from real ski chalet before being offered under a fake name with knockdown prices.

One it sold was called 'Chalet Bertin', listed as being "over five hundred square metres of luxury living space" in the "Cospillot area of Courchevel" and up for rent from 1,500 euros per night.

But Chalet Bertin didn't exist and the pictures were taken off a genuine website where the property - which has a different name - actually rents from 46,000 euros a week.

Horrifying moment skiers violently swing from side to side on chairlift as they are battered by strong winds in a Austrian resort
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