Fraud Mitigation Practices and Financial Performance of Insurance Companies in Kenya

Abstract

Many insurance firms have failed as a result of fraud. Insurance firms face the possibility of fraud from both their internal and external settings. Fraud presents both policyholders and insurance companies with significant and costly challenges. Insurance fraud causes a company high settlement costs and losses eventually affecting their performance. This research aimed to assess how fraud mitigation practices affect the financiallperformance of insuranceecompanies in Kenya. This study was founded on the FraudTTriangle Theory,FFraud Diamond Theory and theeFraud Management Life Cycle Theory. A descriptive research design was adopted and a target of all the 56 licensed insurance firms in Kenya. A census of the 56 licensed insurance firms in Kenya was applied. Both secondary and primary methods were used in data collection. The respondents were the claims manager in each of the insurance firms. The completed questionnaires were sorted, edited and coded for easy inputting in the computer system for analysis. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were employed in the data analysis. The study found that fraud mitigation practices affect the financial performance of insurance companies in Kenya. Fraud prevention, fraud detection and fraud response practice have positive and significant effects on the financialpperformance of insurance companies in Kenya. The organisations perform fraud risk assessments on a regular basis. Human resource departments do thorough pre-employment screening, and organisations have robust anti-fraud procedures in place. There are internal and external audits that detect any fraud. The businesses have fraud detection systems in place, and firm resources are counted on a regular basis. Employees who are accused of or related to fraud risk disciplinary action. The organisations have developed risk response plans and carry out fraud investigations. To help the government comprehend the scope of the issue, the Insurance Regulatory Authorityyshould create regulations mandating all insurance providers to gather and submit statistics on fraud. The insurance firms should ensure that they provide adequate training to their employees on fraud management. The insurance firms should have harsh penalties and disciplinary actions for any employee linked to fraud since such employees could be a major loophole in the fraud mitigation process. The insurance companies should also place a primary emphasis on the prevention of fraud through the use of cutting-edge technology and rely on the aid of specialized vendors to assist them in achieving this goal.