Despite being a third of crime in England and Wales fraud is not prioritised by the police, Police Foundation report finds

Police Foundation and Perpetuity’s analysis of crime data and interviews with national and local practitioners found that the system for dealing with fraud is poorly structured, fraud prevention messages are confusing and victim support services do not cater for the specific needs of fraud victims. 

Although the police received 277,561 reports of fraud in 2017/18, only 8,313 (3%) led to criminal charges. This compares to 13% of reported crimes overall that result in a charge, summons or community resolution. Once a crime is reported, there are major delays before victims know whether their cases will be taken up by the police. This means that vital opportunities for investigation can be lost. Victims, and their cases, are often passed around a fragmented network of local and national agencies. Some police forces offer little or no support to their local fraud victims.

The research found:

•          35% of victims whose cases were being investigated by the police said the impact of the fraud upon them was severe or significant.

•          78% of fraud cases involved a suspect and a victim living in different police force areas.

•          69% of fraud cases investigated by police were cyber enabled and 43% involved first contact being made online. 

•          In 69% of forces all or most fraud investigations were carried out by non-specialist officers, even though the research found that specialist investigators handle cases more effectively.

•          Just 0.8% of the police workforce work in specialist economic crime teams, meaning there is a lack of dedicated resource for dealing with fraud.

•          78% of the police workforce said they needed more training to deal with fraud.

•          74% of police personnel said they do not have the time to effectively deal with fraud cases. 

•          86% of police officers and staff thought fraud should be dealt with by specialists. 

•          28% of police forces offer no service at all to their local fraud victims.

•          65% of police forces do not know how many victims of fraud contact them. In general victims are simply passed onto the national Action Fraud call centre, even though in some cases an immediate local response may be appropriate. 

•          Despite being a third of all crime, the government has no national strategy for tackling fraud. The last strategy was published in 2011 by an organisation, the National Fraud Authority, that has since been abolished.

The Police Foundation and Perpetuity Research today set out recommendations for improving the police response to victims of fraud:

• ·         The government should produce a national strategy for tackling fraud alongside a national fraud policing strategy.
• ·         Local police forces should no longer be responsible for fraud investigations. Investigations should instead be handled by dedicated fraud specialists, who need not be police officers, in regional fraud investigation units.
• ·         There should be clear national guidance on what police forces should do when they are contacted by a victim of fraud.
• ·         There should be a national framework for identifying vulnerable victims of fraud and all vulnerable victims should be referred to an expanded Economic Crime Victim Care Unit.
• ·         Local police forces should focus on contacting vulnerable victims, who need support, and on providing fraud prevention advice to residents.

The Police Foundation’s Director Dr Rick Muir said:

‘Fraud is a third of all crime but there is no national strategy for dealing with it.  We have a local system of 43 police forces that is not set up to deal with a cross-border crime like fraud.  This means that too often victims receive a much worse service from the police than they would get with other types of crime and investigations are carried out by local police forces that are over stretched and lack the specialist skills to investigate fraud.  We are calling on the government to get a grip on this problem.’ 

Professor Martin Gill, Director of Perpetuity Research said:

‘With the growth of the internet, fraud has changed from a corporate white collar crime to a volume crime affecting millions of victims. Fraud is often complex to investigate and the offender and victim may live in different police forces or even different countries. But we found it is far from a victimless crime, and even if the prospect of a conviction is unlikely the police could provide a much better service to the victim.’

Notes to editors

Our methods

•        National survey with responses from 32 of 43 police forces  

•        In depth research in Kent, Essex and Avon and Somerset police forces

•        107 semi structured interviews with policymakers, leaders and practitioners 

•        Police work force survey in two police forces with 405 responses 

•        Analysis of national crime data (64,857 case allocations for investigation by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau  to forces)

•        25 local police investigation case files 

Current infrastructure for dealing with fraud

-       Victims report to their local police force or the central reporting hub, Action Fraud.  Most forces refer victims straight to Action Fraud.

-       Cases reported to Action Fraud are then assessed by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau.  Only a minority of cases reported will be allocated an investigation. The case will then be passed to the local police force where the suspect may be located.

-       Services offered to victims will depend on the priorities of their local police force. 

About the Police Foundation

The Police Foundation is the only independent think tank focused exclusively on improving policing and developing knowledge and understanding of policing and crime reduction. Its mission is to generate evidence and develop ideas which deliver better policing and a safer society. It does this by producing trusted, impartial research and by working with the police and their partners to create change. 

Perpetuity Research

Perpetuity Research is a company that undertakes research in areas of policing and crime, including organised crime. Previous work includes research on money laundering, fraud and corruption, retail theft, identity theft and the illicit market. Perpetuity Research aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice and has produced a range of high profile studies as well as toolkits.