Over £1bn in potential fraud has been avoided since the launch of the National Fraud Initiative (NFI), according to new figures released today.
The NFI said it has helped identify over £1bn lost to fraud, overpayment or error since it was established in 1996. This includes the detection of pension overpayments worth £450m, and incorrectly awarded single person discounts for council tax worth £160m.
Chairman of the Audit Commission, Jeremy Newman, said: ‘The NFI is a powerful weapon in the fight to protect taxpayers’ money from fraud. I applaud the commitment of the scheme’s participants. The vigilance of organisations from local councils to central government departments, supplying essential data and investigating potential frauds flagged up by the initiative, has paid off to the tune of £1bn.’
The Audit Commission’s initiative compares data held by 1,300 public sector and 77 private sector organisations. It flags up inconsistencies in data that potentially indicate a fraud is taking place, and signals the need for a closer investigation.