675 million PLN – this is the value of attempted frauds and insurance crimes disclosed in Poland in 2024. The report of the Polish Insurance Association shows that although the number of disclosed cases has decreased (from 37.8 thousand to 32.2 thousand), the scale of the phenomenon is growing, mainly due to increasingly effective detection methods. In the vast majority (95%), there is an attempt to defraud, which did not result in a benefit payment. Investment in technology, the development of fraud prevention teams and cooperation with law enforcement agencies are responsible for the increase in effectiveness.
Fake deaths and fictitious illnesses – how life insurance is cheated
In life insurance, the value of detected crimes amounted to 77.25 million PLN, an increase of 23% compared to 2023. The most common methods used by perpetrators were:
- falsification of medical documents and death certificates,
- filing identical claims with multiple insurers,
- taking out policies after the death of a person or in the terminal stage of an illness.
The most common abuses involved claims for hospitalisation, serious illness and death. Interestingly, nearly 40% of all cases related to hospital treatment – although these were relatively low value offences. The value of benefits related to death cases already accounted for almost half of the total amount of fraud in this category. Classic methods include falsifying medical records, filing claims with several insurers at the same time and even taking out policies after the death of the person who was supposed to be insured.
Stories like a film: from Africa to the Americas
The PIA report reveals a number of dramatic and sometimes absurd fraud attempts that could serve as a script for a thriller. One case involved an attempt to extort a benefit after the alleged death of a partner in an accident in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In another, a death certificate issued in the USA was used to file a claim, which, after fabrication, was registered in Poland. Even more spectacular was the discovery of a fictitious medical clinic in the US – the fraudsters even prepared a website to give credence to the alleged costs of treatment. There are also classics running in the background: forged signatures, ‘creative’ couples reporting 13 claims at once, or fake certificates from exotic medical facilities.
Property insurance fraud boom
The biggest jump in value was recorded in non-life insurance – from 389 million PLN to almost 598 million PLN (a 54% increase). In this group:
- OC and Autocasco are responsible for more than 65% of all crime,
- Home insurance – an increase of 60%,
- Farmers’ Liability Insurance – record value in excess of 16 million PLN,
- Non-motor liability insurance – up 90%, to 49 million PLN.
Scams involving expensive bicycles, white and brown goods and construction machinery are becoming increasingly popular. Seemingly random damage is reported, but the documentation revealed turns out to be false or artificially inflated.
Technology versus the fraudster – data doesn’t lie
Behind the success in detecting fraud is the dynamic development of IT tools. Modern technology is becoming a major weapon in the fight against fraud. Examples of application:
- PHOTO UFG – allows you to identify repetitive damage in the photos sent to the various insurance companies,
- CDR/EDR – allows the exact course of accidents to be established and eliminates cases of fake collisions,
- UFG Integrated Platform – assesses the crime risk for each policy based on graph analysis and public records.
Thanks to integration with PESEL, CEP and REGON registers, suspicious links can be analysed in real time. This makes the verification of reports faster and more precise.
Communication under censorship – French and Italian procedures
Third-party liability and Autocasco are still the main fields of activity for fraudsters – the value of detected crimes in these products amounted to almost 400 million PLN.
Criminals take advantage of the popularity of these insurances, the high cost of repairs and the long claim settlement paths. Particular attention in the report was paid to organised international operations. In the so-called French procedure, criminals take advantage of leasing luxury vehicles purchased in Poland, which then disappear in France and entrepreneurs report them stolen. The Italian procedure, on the other hand, is based on registering cars in Poland to avoid high third-party liability insurance premiums in Italy. Fictitious data, unpaid premiums and fake damages are just some of the elements of this fraud network.
Criminals increasingly ‘at home’ – housing and white goods boom
A new trend is the increase in fraud related to personal property. There is a clear increase in fraud related to home and business insurance. In 2024 it was noted:
- a sharp increase in claims for theft of white goods/appliances,
- use of false invoices and fabricated photographs,
- filing of claims with different insurance companies for the same items.
Criminals take advantage of the fact that this type of equipment is difficult to clearly identify. The most creative reported, for example, 11 thefts of bicycles worth £19,000 each, with only one claim paid.
There is deliberate arson in companies, overstating losses after fires or falsifying accounting records. The value of damage from industrial fires alone reached almost 59 million PLN in 2024. There has also been fraud involving construction and agricultural machinery, which criminals ‘transfer’ between companies, hiding their past damage record.
In conclusion, insurance fraud is not just a statistic – it is a crime whose costs are borne by all honest customers. This is why PIA runs educational campaigns, supports the development of analytical tools and organises training with the police. In 2024 alone, the value of detected fraud in non-life insurance represented 1.76% of benefits paid out and in life insurance – 0.47%. While these values may seem small, behind each of them is a real loss that could have been avoided. The common goal of the market should be not only to detect but, above all, to reduce the scale of this phenomenon.