Over 10,000 caught committing insurance fraud last year; Down 15%

Last year, Dutch insurers caught over 10,000 individuals and businesses trying to commit insurance fraud. That is 15 percent less than in 2021, the Association of Insurers (VvV) reported on Thursday. According to the association, insurers’ vigilance saved over 80 million euros last year.

Common forms of fraud last year were lying about what stolen items cost or claiming that a one-sided accident was someone else hitting your car. Insurers caught 3,638 such fraudulent claims last year. Another 5,772 fraudsters were caught with an insurance application, trying to get cover for things they don’t own, for example.

Last year, one in three investigations led to the conclusive determination of fraud - the highest percentage yet. In 2021, 25 percent of investigations led to proven fraud. In the other cases, the fraud could not be proven conclusively.

Anyone caught committing fraud with their insurance is added to a warning system that all insurers can view. With 3,759 new registrations, there were almost a quarter fewer last year than in 2021.

VvV director Richard Weurding is pleased that the number of insurance fraudsters seems to be decreasing. “This ensures that people who are in good faith do not pay a lot of money unnecessarily,” he said. But it is too early to speak of a turnaround. “In the long term, it will become clear whether the sector’s many years of efforts in prevention and detection have led to this result.”