The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has reported that £1.16 billion in fraudulent general insurance claims were detected in 2024, marking a 2% increase from the £1.14 billion uncovered the previous year.
Insurers identified over 98,400 fraud-related claims, a 12% rise from 81,100 in 2023.
Motor insurance remained the most targeted area, with 51,700 motor scams worth £576 million detected. This represents a 5% increase from 2023 and accounts for 53% of all claims identified during the year. Fraudulent claims for domestic motor policies rose by £36 million, or 9%, while commercial motor fraud remained stable, increasing by £1.7 million, or 1.3%.
Property insurance also saw a rise in fraudulent activity, with 18,700 deceptive claims worth £189 million identified, up 11% from the previous year. The most common type of fraud involved exaggerated loss, where claimants attempt to inflate the value of their claims. This category increased by 10% and amounted to £466 million in 2024.
Insurers also prevented an estimated 684,800 fraudulent insurance applications, a 7.4% increase from 2023. Application fraud typically involves the deliberate misrepresentation or concealment of information for financial gain when a policy is being set up.
These figures come at a time when both the industry and the public are increasingly concerned about the future scale and sophistication of insurance fraud in the UK. Recent research from CRIF shows that 84% of British consumers expect fraud to rise by 2030, a higher proportion than in other major European markets.
The same study found that most UK respondents anticipate significant cybersecurity incidents and data breaches in the coming years, reflecting a heightened sense of risk in the digital age. In response, insurers are stepping up their fraud prevention efforts.
The Insurance Fraud Bureau has also launched a five-year anti-fraud roadmap, “Connected to Protect,” to strengthen industry collaboration and public awareness.
Mark Allen (pictured above, left), head of fraud and financial crime at the ABI, said, “It’s reassuring to see the industry making continued progress in tackling fraud, but with insurers continuing to detect over £1 billion worth bogus claims, the fight must continue and there will be no let-up in insurers’ pursuit of fraudsters.”
He added that addressing fraud requires collaboration across sectors, including technology and social media companies, to support prevention and detection efforts.
Ursula Jallow (pictured above, right), director at the Insurance Fraud Bureau, also commented on the sector’s response, noting, “With the ABI reporting a rise in detected fraud, it’s more important than ever for the insurance industry to stand together in the fight against fraud.”
