18th Baltic Sea Conference on Social Security, Tuusula,
Finland. 10th September 2009
Combating Incorrect payments and Fraud
against the Norwegian Welfare System.
Senior adviser Sverre Lindahl
NAV Control and Recovery, Norway
Presentation

Objectives and Strategies

Some figures

Monitoring and topics of inspection

Incorrect payments and Fraud, some examples
–
–

Domestic
Abroad
Some common challenges
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 2
NAV Control and Recovery unit
Director
Staff
7 co-workers
Control units for
Unit for
welfare benefits
Registry Control
5 places (70 co-workers)
NAV, 19.10.2009
2 places (25 co-workers)
The Labour and Welfare Service
Agency for Recovery of
Maintenance Payment
140 co-workers
Side 3
Objectives in the anti-fraud task

Prevent:
– wrong decisions and wrongful payment
– fraud

Detect wrongful payment and committed fraud

Examine wrongful payment and fraud

Assess committed fraud and decide sanctions (exclusion
from unemployment benefits, or Report to the Police)

Recover the losses
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 4
Some general strategies

Develop a professional organization for preventing,
detecting and examening fraud

Improve electronic system-controls and practical
utilities

Focus on cross-checking electronic registries

Cooperate with internal and external services

Sanctions and a Media strategy (create a strong
deterrent effect)
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 5
Strategies and measures (1)

Risk Analysis, Management and Measurements within
areas of large national insurance benefits, e.g.:
– Sickness benefit
– Disability pension
– Unemployment benefit
– Single parent
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 6
Strategies and measures (2)
 Developing a Manual of Guidance
 Internal control efforts
– Current case working (Danger signals /”Red flags”)
– Income controls
– Declarations
 Cooperating with other government offices, especially the
Norwegian tax authorities, and also:
– The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority, The Norwegian Board of Health
Supervision, The Police
 Systematization of knowledge from other government entities
and open sources ( e.g. Internet )
 Reports (tip) from the general public
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 7
International cooperation
 NORDIC:
–
–
–
–
–
Share knowledge and good experiences
Common risk analysis / risk measurement
Statistics
Awareness campaigns
Surveys
 EUROPE:
ADMINISTRATIVE COMMISSION AD HOC GROUP ON COMBATING
FRAUD AND ERROR: -Combat fraud and error within Regulation
1408/71 (new 883/04)
- Working Group European Benefit Fraud
- EHFCN (www.ehfcn.org)
–
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 8
Persons reported to the police
Type of benefit
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Disability pension
48
65
60
48
76
79
92
67
Rehabilitation allowance
14
23
39
41
29
29
62
64
Sickness benefit
36
53
82
101
124
106
132
141
Single parent
61
65
97
76
74
111
93
55
Other types
77
62
47
42
63
91
117
10
Daily subsistence
allowance
924
732
150
808
875
1274
1011
962
Total number of
people
1160
1000
475
1116
1241
1690
1449
1299
-
-
-
-
-
188
mill
182
mill
155
mill
Reported figures
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 9
Reasons for rise in cases
 Tightened control
–
Risk analysis and plans of action
 Increased resources
–
National insurance fraud section and teams (NAV Control)
 Greater focus
–
–
Deliberate media strategy
Political focus
 Improved means
–
–
Changes in the law
Development methods
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 10
Monitoring and inspections (NAV
Registry Control)
 Income controls:
– Disability pension, Survivor’s pension,Spouse
supplement, Child supplement
 Other registry controls:
• Daily subsistence allowance (employment status card)
• New Social Welfare Scheme 01.03.2010 ”Arbeidsavklaringspenger”
 Life certificates:
– Pensioners living abroad
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 11
Some fraud examples - domestic
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 12
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 13
The taxi case in Oslo
• About 4.000 persons are controlled up against benefits/driving
• About 530 wrongful payments (about 100 mill NOK):
• Sickness benefit, rehabilitation allowance and disability pension
• Daily subsistence allowance while unemployed
• Recover the losses from 410 persons - up to date
• 208 persons up to date have been reported to the police
• 109 persons handled by the courts up to date. 104 sentenced to
Imprisonment or Suspended Imprisonment. 4 acquitted, 1 fine
+ Wrongful payments from the social service offices
+ Wrongful payments from the Norwegian State Housing Bank
+ Huge tax-fraud
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 14
Cooperation between doctors and patients
(corruption)
• Fictitious sickness/treatment – false statements – 7 doctors
• Ongoing for about 10 years
• 850 cases risk analyzed
• 230 written reports
• 103 disability pensions have been stopped
• Sanctions and reports/charges against the doctors
• One of the GP’s sentenced for 4 year Imprisonment and 100
mill NOK recovery of losses
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 15
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 16
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 17
Additional……..
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 18
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 19
Identity fraud – false ID
Benefits paid to false, fictious or double identities:
–
Child benefit, single parent, disability pensions …
 25 false ID’s deleted from the Norwegian Population
Register
 13 reports to the Police – 10 charged
 6 cases handled by the court up to date. All sentenced to
Imprisonment.
 Many more cases to be examined
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 20
Some fraud examples - abroad
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 21
Activities abroad

Founded a special-unit for control activites abroad
 Developed an acting plan for control activities abroad
 Made Risk assessments regarding 5-6 countries
 Tight and good cooperation with the Directorate of
Immigration (UDI)
 Meetings and close cooperation with a.o. Norwegian
Embassies in Spain, Marroco and Thailand
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 22
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 23
NAV Service Office in Spain since 2005
Alfaz del Pi (2005-2008), Alicante 2008Two main objectives:
 Service for Norwegian inhabitants, living in Spain
 Better and tighter following-up the Norwegian recipients of cash
benefit, living/staying in Spain (prevent and detect)
Results (on Fraud):
 Annual benefits for 2,3 mill NOK stopped
 Benefits for 1,7 mill NOK reported to the police
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 24
”The Construction workers -case” I
 Autumn 2008: Anonymus tip concering Polish
construction-workers in Norway, travelling back to and
staying in Poland, receiving unemployment benefit
 Checked out 161 Polish-workers:
–
–
–
Internal registers
IP-adresses
”Valutaregisteret”
 Further check of 43:
–
Bank accounts
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 25
”The case” III
Results:

26 persons with probability for Fraud against the rules
for obtaining unemployment benefit.

Increasing the control
– 300-400 more persons on unemployed benefit to be controlled
– 130 persons on sickness benefit controlled:
– 9 cases of Incorrect payments. Decicions made to recover
the losses
– Other 13 cases under evaluation
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 26
Fraud of sickness benefits, disability pensions and
more result in
- diminished trust with our welfare system
- economical losses to society
- increased expenses on the national insurance budget
- loss in tax and duty
- private insurance fraud
- higher taxes and insurance premiums
Some questions and common challenges
(1)
 A new threatening situation
– More systematic and organized fraud
 Less uncovered national insurance fraud compared to
other types of economic crime
– Tax and duty, insurance fraud, etc
 Control challenges involving users living abroad
 Why?
– How do some people unlawfully allocate benefits without being caught by
established control measures?
– How can the benefits be maintained over time without being caught by
established control measures?
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 28
Some questions and challenges (2)
 The Value of medical certificates/statements?
 Did all treatments and tests actually occur?
 False / stolen identities. An increasing topic !!!
 Different social security number in each country?
 Increasing organized crime and social welfare fraud
 More open borders
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 29
Some (possible) answers
 Focus on the challenges
 Organize and specialize
 Focus on preventing fraud
 Assess necessary changes in the legislation
 Information – use of media
 Campaigns
 Develop new and better control methods
 Cooperate across the borders
WE HAVE STARTED THE WORK, BUT STILL HAVE A
(LONG?) WAY TO GO !!
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 30
NAV, 19.10.2009
Side 31