Fraudulent motor claims double

TCF Corporate, a specialist provider of outsourced motor fraud management solutions to the insurance industry, claims that the number of fraudulent motor claims has doubled since 2007.

TCF analysed a sample size of 8000 claims investigated on behalf of insurer clients in the first nine months of 2009 to assess levels of fraud detected.

TCF’s statistics show a marked increase in fraudulent motor insurance claims detected to date in 2009 compared to 2007 and 2008.

Fraud detected on motor theft claims handled by TCF on behalf of insurers in the first 9 months of 2009 stands at 22.9%.

By comparison fraud detected on motor theft claims in the full year (12 months) of 2008 stood at 18.60% and in the full year (12 months) of 2007 stood at 11.25%. TCF said: "In the first nine months of 2009, fraud detection rates are already double the rate of detection for 2007. Overall it can be seen that insurance fraud remains on a continued upward trend."

Misrepresentation continues to be the leading trend accounting for 16.68% of fraud detected across the nine months of 2009 in the form of claim or policy misrepresentation. TCF also said that fraudulent motor theft claims on vehicles purchased on finance and at risk of repossession was another growing trend.