Fraud detection 'decreasing'

News Article - 15 January 2008
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The decreasing number of fraud cases going through the courts is a growing worry for businesses, a new report has revealed.

According to accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward, in an attempt to control costs; monitoring fraud should be the number one business goal this year.

The study found that there were 267 reported cases of business fraud in 2007, reaching a total of £1.04 billion. This is compared to 295 cases the previous year, with a value of £1.37 billion.

It also revealed that 87 per cent of the non-Vat related cases were among financial service firms.

"With an economic downturn now already affecting the property and financial services sectors, I expect to see many more frauds being discovered in 2008," commented Simon P Bevan, the report's author and national head of the firm's fraud services team.

"However without awareness of the risks of fraud, one cannot manage the problem," he added.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has stated that the cost of tackling fraud is around £0.75 million per business every two years, which can seriously affect business growth.

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