Brightside, Be Wiser and Bedford back CDL anti-fraud syndicate

CDL has launched a new anti-fraud syndicate to combat the growing challenge of quote manipulation.

The syndicate allows insurance retailers to identify potentially suspicious patterns of consumer behaviour using Hummingbird, CDL’s data intelligence solution capable of ultra-fast search and analysis of millions of records. 

A number of CDL’s customers are already signed up to the new syndicate, including Brightside, Be Wiser and Bedford Insurance.

Outgoing Brightside chief executive Mark Cliff said: “It’s been recognised for some time that consumers are increasingly manipulating their details when obtaining quotes online.

“Whilst this isn’t always fraudulent, it remains a huge problem for the industry.

“Gaining detailed insight into the type and extent of such changes is absolutely vital when it comes to tackling application fraud.

“Aside from having different business models and objectives, syndicate members have a common goal in eradicating fraud. Coming together to achieve that has to be a good thing.

“Brightside already has a large programme of point-of-quote enrichment to combat fraud.

“By extending its scope to include quote manipulation, Hummingbird Syndicate will complement and build on the success of this approach.”

Hummingbird

Syndicate members can specify actions to be taken in the event that Hummingbird detects potentially suspicious behaviour, including redirecting customers to a contact centre, flagging quotes for post-sale validation, adjusting the premium or declining to quote altogether.

As well as being used to tackle fraud, these insights can be used to personalise customer experiences, recognise and reward customer loyalty and cross-reference information provided by customers to better inform pricing decisions.

Be Wiser’s company chairman Mark Bower-Dyke, added: “Tackling fraud is just one of the benefits of Hummingbird. It’s also about gaining deeper insight into what consumers are really looking for by creating a far more accurate view of the risk.

“We like to talk to our customers wherever possible. The point is to make sure they buy the right policy to meet their needs, at the right price.” 

CDL’s partnerships director, Nick Jackson, added: “A significant proportion of consumers believe that manipulating their details is an acceptable way to reduce premiums, and speaking with our customers in recent months, it was clear this was an issue they needed us to help them tackle.

“It’s been great to see syndicate members come together to share insight and overcome what is a growing problem for the industry and also for consumers, who risk invalidating policies by providing false information.”