IFB to expand investigations into property and liability

Insurers will be able to access details about fraudsters in real time, under plans by the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) to expand its remit

The plans announced today means that from next year the IFB will extend its organised fraud detection beyond motor into property and liability.

It will also commission an intelligence sharing system that will enable insurers to share intelligence about opportunistic fraudsters as well.

The plans were finalised after it received the sign-off from the General Insurance Council (GIC) and the ABI, following a consultation with the industry and other stakeholders on the direction the Bureau should take.

The move has been driven by the changing tactics of organised fraudsters who are not just operating in one type of fraud.

IFB director Ben Fletcher said: “Implementation of the IFB strategy marks a major step-change in the insurance industry’s fight against fraud.

“We know fraudsters aren’t ‘product loyal’, and having tightened our controls in fighting organised motor fraud, it is essential that we increase attention on other product lines simultaneously, to avoid simply shifting the problem of fraud elsewhere.”

The IFB is planning to start issuing intelligence reports and managing cross-industry investigations into property and liability fraud rings by the third quarter of next year.

Last month, the IFB announced a significant drop in ‘crash for cash’ fraud, with the value of organised scams reducing by almost £60 million in the last three years.

That reduction has been attributed to a major crackdown by the IFB in partnership with insurers, regulators and law enforcements agencies, including the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED).

IFB announced yesterday that it had signed up to a fraud sharing initiative with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Fletcher said the IFB would continue to maintain its focus on motor amid the expansion, adding that the majority of its efforts would still continue to be focused on motor.

The final cost and implementation plan is still being worked on.