288% increase in the value of alleged fraud

This is an increase of 288% when compared to the £137.4m figure recorded in the first half of 2021. This is also above the total value of alleged fraud seen in crown courts during the whole of 2021 - which reached almost £445m - demonstrating the eruption of fraud in the UK is showing no sign of slowing. 

Based on figures from KPMG’s Fraud Barometer, the total volume of fraud cases taken to the high court was however slightly lower in the first half of 2022 than it was during the same period in 2021, decreasing from 149 cases to 129 cases - a fall of 13%. 

Despite this - according to the researchers - this only demonstrates the court remains under severe pressure to resolve fraud cases, which became backed up during the peak of the pandemic. And this will only accumulate as the country deals with new crises that fraudsters will inevitably exploit. 

There was also a spike in high-value fraud cases reaching the courts in the first half of 2022 when compared to the first half of 2021, with there being seven cases valued at between £10m and £50m, and one case over the £50m mark to the value of £266m. By contrast, there were no cases valued at more than £50m seen during the same period last year. 

Additionally, professional criminals were once again the main perpetrators - responsible for 57 cases of fraud worth a total of £378m. This was down in terms of volume compared to the 67 cases seen during the same period last year, but the value went up dramatically - increasing by 319%, going from £90.2m to £378m. 

Overall, KPMG has said that the situation for the general public in terms of fraud is "dire" and the outlook is even worse. Trade association UK Finance said in June this year that the UK is experiencing an “epidemic of fraud” and KPMG’s latest Fraud Barometer figures support this assessment. 

In the first half of 2022, the general public was the group scammed most by volume with 47 cases reaching UK crown courts, with the value of the fraud allegedly carried out on the general public going up by 74% - from £43.1m in the first half of 2021 to £75m during the first half of 2022. 

Responding to this, KPMG partner and head of UK investigations Roy Waligora, said: “That criminals are still taking advantage of susceptible members of the public is distressing to see, particularly when considering the Fraud Barometer only captures cases where charges are over £100,000. 

“With the cost of living and energy crises beginning to bite, these both create fresh opportunities for fraudsters to commit even more crimes against the public, and people need to be made aware of new emerging scams. 

“But it isn’t solely individuals’ responsibility to educate themselves. Banks, government and technology companies all need to play a part to make any progress in tackling the issue.”

By value, financial institutions had the most fraud cases reaching UK crown courts by value - at a total worth of £305.2m for nine cases - a vast jump of 4,333% up from £6.9m for 13 cases during the first half of 2021. 

According to KPMG, this suggests that - in a changing landscape where branch networks are shrinking and the number of digital payments are increasing - the data illustrates that fraudsters are creatively finding new ways to steal more from financial institutions and their customers. 

Waligora explained: “Customers see the role of financial institutions as keeping their money safe and do more to prevent fraud, but the latest fraud barometer data suggests that this is a real challenge. 

“In tandem, customers expect a certain level and speed of service, which could be hindered by additional fraud prevention measures, such as Strong Customer Authentication, introduced in March this year.” 

Overall, money laundering cases were by far the most significant type of fraud in terms of value at £297.6m for seven cases in the first half of 2022 - rising by 16,781% from £1.8m for five cases during the same period in 2021. 

This was largely due to a single high value case of £266m - where money was laundered through a company bank account and the proceeds used to purchase gold over a period of two years.