Co-Operative Bank partners with GB for local authority fraud initiative
The Co-Operative Bank is promoting anti-fraud and identity management initiatives to local authorities and other public sector organisations in partnership with GB Group.
Following a successful trial involving a series of seminars over the past year, the goal is to introduce relevant software and services, including GB’s URU solution, to help prevent ID fraud and improve revenue collection.
Ian Smith, senior manager in The Co-operative Bank’s Public Sector Banking division, says: “We have joined forces with GB because we wanted to be able to provide local authorities with a range of identity management solutions which have the potential not only to save councils many thousands of pounds, but also valuable time, making sense on a business level as well as a practical level.”
The National Fraud Authority estimates costs from the crime at over £30 billion each year, with £200 million of housing and council tax benefit overpaid in England in the past two years. Housing tenancy fraud is said to have reduced the available stock of social housing in England by 50,000 properties.
