Response to fraud must transform faster, warns City of London Police
The City of London Police has warned that the policing response to fraud must accelerate if it is to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated criminals, as the force marks 20 years as the UK’s National Lead Force for Fraud.
Commissioner Pete O’Doherty said fraud and cyber crime now account for almost half of all crime and called for a faster transformation of the national response through closer collaboration with industry and government.
“We now stand at a critical crossroads,” he said. “Fraud and cyber crime account for nearly 50 per cent of all crime, and the policing response must keep pace with the scale and sophistication of the threats.
“We cannot wait another 20 years. The next decade must deliver the fastest transformation in the response to fraud this country has ever seen.”
The City of London Police has led the national policing response to fraud since 2006, when the Home Office accepted recommendations that a specialist force should coordinate investigations into complex financial crime.
Over the past two decades, the force has established specialist units including the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED), the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) and the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), while also leading the development of the new national Report Fraud service.
The commissioner said partnership working with the banking, finance, telecommunications and insurance sectors had become central to tackling fraud.
“The police response to fraud depends on public and private integration,” he said. “Our partnerships with banking and finance, telcos and the insurance industry have prevented fraud, protected victims and disrupted criminal activity.”
The force highlighted a series of recent operational successes, including this year’s Operation Henhouse, a month-long national fraud enforcement campaign coordinated with the National Economic Crime Centre. The 2026 operation resulted in 557 arrests, £9 million secured through Account Freezing Orders, £2.8 million in cash seizures and £15.3 million in non-cash assets seized.
The City of London Police also pointed to the launch of Report Fraud in January 2026, describing the new national reporting service as a major step towards improving intelligence gathering and victim reporting.
Fraud minister Lord Hanson paid tribute to the force’s work over the past 20 years. “I recognise the vital contribution over the last 20 years that the City of London Police has made as the national lead force for fraud,” he said. “We are working closely with the City of London Police to implement the government’s new Fraud Strategy. Together we will drive down fraud and keep the public safe.”
Chair of the City of London Police Authority Board, Tijs Broeke, said the anniversary demonstrated the value of specialist policing capabilities at a time when policing reform is under consideration. “As the Government considers policing reform, City of London Police is already delivering an important service and has a vital role in tackling the growing threat of fraud,” he said.
The warning comes as the Government prepares a new fraud strategy and continues to examine wider policing reform, including the future role of specialist national capabilities.