London: Publicly reported fraud in the UK last year rose to £2.1 billion (Dh11.9 billion), a 50 per cent increase from 2010, accounting firm BDO said.
Tax crimes accounted for the highest percentage of the total value of fraud, with an average of £13 million a case, BDO said in a statement. The firm also saw "a boom" in fraud in the retail sector, and a decrease in the value of cases in the financial and insurance industries.
The figures are based on publicly reported cases of fraud of more than £50,000 between December 1, 2010, and November 30.
BDO has seen a sevenfold increase since it began tracking the figures in 2003, when the total was £331 million. There were 413 reported cases of fraud with an average value of £5 million in 2011, BDO said. "When the economic climate is difficult there is even more focus on the bottom line and driving out unnecessary costs, so fraud is more likely to be uncovered," said Simon Bevan, the head of the fraud group at BDO.
According to the UK government, Britain is losing about £38 billion a year to fraud.
