£260,000 worth of fake claims detected every day in last year
03/14/2025
With the increased use of deepfakes and AI technology, insurance fraud is a fast-moving challenge which constantly tests the industry.
New data released today from Zurich UK reveals that in the last year, the fraud prevention team uncovered almost £260,000 worth of fraudulent claims every day. This is the value of 4,049 suspicious claims, a figure which has risen by 10% in the last year alone. In total, the insurer detected £94.79 million worth of fraudulent claims.
- Casualty: 1,996 fraudulent casualty claims were rumbled which would have cost the insurer over £61 million - this accounts for 65% of all bogus claims detected
- Property: Bogus property claims were second highest, with the detection squad finding 1,063 fraudulent cases totalling £19.35 million
- Motor: 990 drivers submitted fake claims worth £14.3 million – this is up by 26% in the last 12 months
- In total, the insurer has detected £94.79 million fraudulent claims which protects honest customers. As fraudsters become more sophisticated, the volume of these claims has risen by 10% in the last year totalling 4,049
- Zurich continues to invest in sophisticated data analytics to identify fraud patterns and networks with tech brands such as Quantexa and Carpe Data
Bogus casualty, property and motor claims detected
Almost two thirds (65%) of these fraudulent claims were for casualty incidents, totalling 1,996 claims worth £61.14 million. This could be for minor slips and trips, or more serious injuries incurred. However, claimants may not always be honest about how and where they incurred them.
Property insurance claims are also a hot spot for fraudsters rising by 17% in the last year with the average claim per fraudster reaching £21,381. As the insurer strives to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated fraudulent activity, detecting property claims reached £19.35 million in the last year.
Finally, bogus motor claims went up 26% last year worth £14.3 million. Much of this can be attributed to crash for cash scams which see fraudsters orchestrating accidents to create an insurance claim. Some of these fraudsters may even make claims for accidents that never happened. The Insurance Fraud Bureau is currently investigating over 6,000 suspected fraudulent motor insurance claims, many of which could be linked to these scams.
Investing to combat the latest trends
Zurich continues to invest and adapt to combat the latest trends in fraud. This Autumn the insurer will be rolling out Quantexa’s Decision Intelligence Platform, which provides connected, contextual data across multiple sources, such as claims and policy, to use knowledge insights for intelligence. This is used to identify high risk cases and establishes relationships between entities. The business also partners with Carpe Data, which screens personal injury claims against the internet for any sign of suspicious activity. Alongside this, various investigative tools are utilised to assist with the investigation and validation of claims.
Scott Clayton, Head of Claims Fraud at Zurich, said: “It’s crucial we remain one step ahead of fraudsters, every false claim that slips through the net impacts our honest customers. It cuts across every type of insurance, but casualty seems to be one of most common.
“Techniques are becoming more sophisticated but so is the technology we use for detection. Much of this fraud is carried out by highly organised criminal gangs so it’s not all down to opportunistic customers and claimants. It’s really important for every insurer to keep pace by using the latest detection technology, alongside human intervention to keep pace with this fast-growing challenge for the industry.”
Nobody is immune from fraud. According to the latest ONS Crime Survey Statistics, fraud is most common crime in England and Wales and 1 in 16 adults experienced fraud in the twelve months to the end of H2 in 2024.
