City of London Police appoints new Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department lead

IFED investigates serious, organised and opportunistic insurance fraud, as well as identifying and stemming emerging trends. It is jointly funded by the Association of British Insurers ABI and the Corporation of Lloyd’s.

Since its inception in 2012, IFED has now secured over 500 convictions. In the past year these have included a man who impersonated his female partner to make a £1 million fake death claim, a married couple who used their children to inflate a car accident claim and a company director who doctored papers to try and steal £405,000 from his insurer.

Det Chief Insp Michaels has more than 27 years experience as a police officer and has worked in City of London Police’s Uniformed Policing Directorate for the past two and a half years. Prior to that, her background was as a detective working in fraud, the Criminal Investigation Department and the Major Crime Unit, where as a senior investigating officer she dealt with reactive and proactive investigations.

“I am excited to be working with such a successful and dynamic team, which has produced brilliant results over the past nine years in tackling the ever-changing threat posed by insurance fraudsters,” said Det Chief Insp Michaels.

“The unit’s hard work has ensured that those who endangered the public by engaging in insurance fraud have faced serious consequences, and I will be doing my utmost to ensure this continues, as well as scoping for proactive opportunities.

“The IFED has recently agreed three more years of funding and we are looking forward to working with our stakeholders in the insurance industry in meeting the challenges that will present themselves in that time.”

She takes over as head of the IFED team from Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fyfe, who has taken up a position with the force’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau.