Typical home insurance fraud claims made for accidental damage; serial fraudsters rare

Household insurance fraud is typically committed by those between 31 and 50 years old, and they’re most likely to make claims for accidental damage, notes a new report by VFM Services.

The typical fraudster is also a first-time claimant and their claim is often for under $900 for accidental damage to a computer, TV or mobile phone, according to the report, which was produced by the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom for VFM, which helps insurers manage fraudulent claims.

The report, aimed at profiling the “everyday” fraudster,looked at nearly 40,000 household insurance claims assessed by VFM’s conversation management program over the past five years.

Overall, both males and females were equally likely to make fraudulent claims, according to the report.

Most claims (82%) were for accidental damage, which VFM says is likely because the claimant doesn’t need to obtain a police report, unlike a claim for theft.

“Just over 50% of claimants had submitted a claim within one year of buying the policy with just over 30% within six months.Therefore claims made within a year of the policy being taken out could be at higher risk for fraud,” VFM also noted.

The firm added that there aren’t many ‘serial claimants,’ with nine out of 10 fraudsters having only made one previous claim or less, and just under three quarters of dishonest claimants never having made a claim before.

“The findings in the report corroborate our experience from many years of investigating insurance claims in the U.K. and it is our belief that the profile of an opportunistic fraudster will be no different in Canada,” Sally Griffiths, director at VFM Services said in a press release.

“Rather than organized crime, we know that the majority of fraudsters are opportunists either looking to bolster a genuine claim by exaggerating what was stolen or lost, or those who think they can simply get away with claiming for the odd TV or carpet.”