Claims defensibility fraud services:
An efficient response to fraudulent aviation claims

The recovery of the aviation industry following the challenges of the pandemic has been a relief, but it has also led to the return of some familiar issues. This unfortunately includes insurance fraud. WTW’s new claims defensibility fraud services can help aviation operations in the United Kingdom spot spurious claims and enhance the way that they record and manage incident reports so that it’s more difficult for fraudsters to operate successfully. It’s an approach that can potentially reduce insurance costs as well as the direct costs of running an aviation business.

Airports and aircraft can be busy places where accidents happen. There are people in a rush to catch flights, equipment is being moved around, food and drink is widely available and as a result at risk of being spilt, there are escalators and baggage carousels… it’s a long list of risk. Which makes the aviation industry an enticing target for dubious insurance claims.

The scale of the issue

Fraudulent claims can come in many forms, from spurious slips and trips during the aircraft embarkation or disembarkation process, to bogus baggage handling claims and made-up lost luggage. Most fraudulent claims are investigated by insurers when a claim is made rather than when the incident happens, but this can be up to three years after an incident has occurred. By this time, it is often too late to secure vital evidence and mount a successful defence. Claims are sometimes paid simply because the lack of evidence means that they would be too difficult to defend.

Understanding how to investigate incidents effectively as soon as they happen and preserving evidence efficiently can help identify fraudulent claims which in turn can bring down business costs. Claims drive the cost of insurance up and investigating incidents after the event can be more costly and time consuming. In short, it is in the best interests of any aviation organisation to reduce the risk of spurious claims.

How we can help

WTW has extensive claims data from the incidents that its clients are involved with. It gives us the ability to spot both trends and outliers, which in turn means that we can help airports and airlines spot the difference between a genuine and a fraudulent claim.

The WTW claims defensibility fraud services, developed by the Claims Defensibility and Regulatory Team, help UK businesses identify potentially fraudulent claims, and secure and manage appropriate evidence that will make it easier to repudiate the claim or help to successfully defend it at trial.

The services have two main elements: Training and Audit.

Training

The WTW team offers a training programme that helps aviation businesses identify fraudulent activity and claims. It provides:

• An overview of the claims fraud landscape and the claims/legal process within the aviation sector
• A list of red flag indicators for each type of possible fraud claim
• Guidance on how accident reports, witness statements and other forms of evidence should be completed and preserved

Audit

At the same time, the WTW fraud audit can help businesses spot potentially fraudulent claims by examining the organisation’s open and historical incidents and comparing them with the overall aviation sector in the UK. The audit helps:

• Identify specific types of claims fraud risk in a business
• Confirm compliance with internal fraud protocols
• Determine if a business is being specifically targeted

The information and data that is gathered will help the fraud audit team evaluate the potential monetary impact of fraud on the business and deliver a tailored fraud investigation process.

“It is unfortunate, but businesses need to make sure that they understand and manage their exposure to fraudulent claims, particularly as the aviation industry gets back to normal levels of activity,” says Kiran Ryatt of the WTW Claims Defensibility and Regulatory Practice. “We can provide useful insights to potentially help organisations control their costs and expose fraud.”