Fraud 'hit record high in 2009'

12/01/2010 Fraud 'hit record high in 2009'

Reported fraud in the UK exceeded £2 billion in the UK for the first time last year, according to one risk jobs provider.

BDO figures revealed that there was a 76 per cent increase in the amount of money lost by businesses and the private sector in 2009 following the recession.

And it has forecast that this figure will increase further, with the company predicting the amount could rise to £5 billion "in a couple of years".

"Based on my experience of the two previous recessions, I expect that reported fraud will treble over the next two years," remarked head of fraud at BDO Simon Bevan.

He added that the majority of this will be caused by a "tidal wave of fraudulent borrowing" that has been taking place and noted that the real extent of such actions will only be discovered when investigations are started by recovery departments.

BDO's views echo those of KPMG, which recently said that the amount of malpractice occurring firms will continue to increase over the next year.

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