UK firms laid back about fraud, claims survey

Just over a third of private UK companies employ specialists to detect
fraud, compared with 45% worldwide and 59% in the US, according to Grant Thornton's annual international business report.

Despite the low figures, only 7% of businesses said they had increased staff involvement in fraud prevention in the past 12 months – one of the lowest rates in the world.

‘History shows fraud is more prevalent when times are hard. The coming 12 months will be a good indication of whether the UK has been complacent, or has matched the threat with the appropriate level of resource,’ said Phil Crooks, head of assurance services at Grant Thornton

The number of people involved in anti-fraud activity has increased by 12% globally. The Philippines is the most fraud conscious, with 72% of private firms having an audit specialist. Conversely Japan and Denmark apparently have the least resource dedicated to the prevention and detection of fraudulent behaviour, with just 17% of businesses having dedicated staff resources to actively preventing fraud.

The survey covered 7,400 owners and senior managers in 33 countries, including 600 in the UK.