LONDON, 26 February 2024 – Sedgwick, a leading global provider of claims management, loss adjusting and technology-enabled business solutions, has reported that efforts tied to the company’s international claims fraud strategy saved its clients £49.4m in 2023.
The first quarter of 2023 saw continued double-digit inflation, which placed added financial pressure on motorists, homeowners and businesses alike, and contributed to an 8% increase in claims identified as suspect across Sedgwick’s UK book of business. Further, the average cost of investigated claims increased in 2023 — an uplift driven not only by inflation, but also by a spike in fraudulently exaggerated, high-value escape of water claims made during the UK’s winter freeze event in 2022.
“Over the past three years, the value of savings delivered to our UK clients has grown by 73%,” said Ian Carman, Director of Sedgwick’s UK fraud and investigation services operation. “This is testament to our unrelenting effort to identify dishonest claims, which in turn protects our clients and their honest customers from the cost of fraud.
“I’m pleased that our ability to deliver these results, which relies on a blend of sophisticated counter-fraud technology solutions and colleague expertise, has been achieved without any detrimental impact to the customer experience. We continue to adapt our strategies to identify and tackle new and emerging fraud risks to deliver better results for our clients and their customers.”
Steve Crystal, Head of Sedgwick’s international fraud and investigation services, noted that regulators are taking greater interest in fraud and abuse oversight, and global markets are, in turn, focussing more on financial stewardship.
“We’re seeing a growing appetite for mitigating the threat of fraud internationally,” Crystal said. “At Sedgwick, our emphasis remains on strengthening our capabilities with cross-border activity across all product lines. Whether insurers have a global presence or operate solely in local markets, the common denominator is that claims fraud is increasingly viewed as bad news.”
Amid shifting economic and regulatory conditions, Sedgwick’s experts have observed a recent increase in organised fraud rings, which continue to adapt how they target financial services. For example, many are taking inappropriate advantage of the rising popularity of transactional, embedded (no additional charge) insurance benefits, such as travel, medical and purchase protection offerings, by operating across multiple geographies.
“Fraud doesn’t sit neatly within borders,” Crystal said. “We encourage markets to explore collaborative opportunities for sharing their findings while maintaining appropriate levels of local protection and compliance.”
Later this year, Sedgwick in the UK will further enhance its offering with the launch of an innovative suite of technology solutions expected to transform claims fraud risk identification.
“We’re pleased to continue strengthening our fraud strategy internationally and providing proportionate and ethical investigation services around the world,” Crystal said. “This lies at the heart of how Sedgwick helps clients protect their valuable assets and the majority of their customers who make genuine claims.”
About Sedgwick
Sedgwick is a leading global provider of technology-enabled risk, benefits and integrated business solutions. The company provides a broad range of resources tailored to clients’ specific needs in casualty, property, marine, benefits, brand protection and other lines. At Sedgwick, caring counts; through the dedication and expertise of 33,000 colleagues across 80 countries, the company takes care of people and organizations by mitigating and reducing risks and losses, promoting health and productivity, protecting brand reputations, and containing costs that can impact performance. Sedgwick’s majority shareholder is The Carlyle Group; Stone Point Capital LLC, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Onex and other management investors are minority shareholders. For more, see sedgwick.com.