Norwich Union is to launch a comprehensive fraud detection trial with up to 30 different systems running consecutively across its entire book of business.
The insurer has already identified the systems it will implement to try to improve the savings on fraud detection already achieved - £53m in 2002 rising to £103m last year.
The trial will not include lie detector technology.
Head of fraud Chris Hill said: "Part of the project is to gain an empirical measurement of how much we lose through fraud as well as increasing our fraud detection. However, we will also be measuring, and projecting the impact on our customers. Any systems that do not meet the required standard will not be progressed, no matter what the cost benefit. I believe that some insurers are ignoring impact on their customers."
The systems break down into two main areas, 'intelligence' and 'anomaly' systems. The intelligence systems undertake checks against existing data held within NU and central databases such as the banking system CIFAS.
These will identify inconsistencies that might indicate fraud or reveal those who are already suspected of fraud.
The anomaly process will use automated methods to check for fraud indicators to flag up the potential for fraud.
Hill said: "We are still getting significant improvement out of our core manual claims handling techniques. The pilot will not start until these improvements have levelled out.
"We anticipated this would be towards the end of this year but it may now be later."
Though Hill declined to identify the individual systems chosen he said they ranged from those developed in 'garages' to techniques that have been at the core of fraud detection for many years.
