First-Half Insurance Fraud Detections Reach Record 620 Billion Won

Automobile Insurance Leads with 288 Billion Won in Fraud Detected
High Proportion of Detected Fraud Involved Those in Their 60s and Office Workers
Expedited Cancellation of Insurance Planner Registrations

The amount of insurance fraud detected by insurance companies in the first half of this year reached an all-time high. In particular, automobile insurance accounted for the largest share of detected cases. Regulatory authorities plan to expedite procedures for canceling the registration of insurance planners who have been convicted, in order to ensure that those who have committed illegal acts can no longer work in the market.

According to the "2026 First Half Insurance Fraud Detection Status and Response Measures" released by the Financial Supervisory Service on September 28, the amount of insurance fraud detected in the first half of this year was 620 billion won, a 51.8 billion won (9.1%) increase from the same period last year. The number of detected individuals also rose to 53,865, up 2,849 (5.6%) from the same period last year. The Financial Supervisory Service explained, "The increase in the detected amount is due to strengthened cooperation with related agencies to actively respond to hospital-led insurance fraud."

By product, automobile insurance accounted for 288 billion won, making up 46.5% of the total and ranking first. Long-term insurance followed at 244.5 billion won (42.7%). The category with the largest increase in detected amounts compared to the same period last year was long-term insurance, which rose by 34.3 billion won.

By type of insurance fraud, cases involving manipulation of accident details, such as excessive claims for insurance money, amounted to 379.8 billion won (61.3%), the highest proportion. False accidents accounted for 17.4%, and intentional accidents for 13.9%. In more detail, within the manipulation of accident details, the detected amount increased significantly compared to the same period last year for excessive claims through forged or altered medical certificates and manipulation of automobile accident details.

By age group, those in their 60s made up the largest number of detected cases at 13,247 (24.6%), followed by those in their 50s at 12,259 (22.8%), those in their 40s at 9,619 (17.8%), and those in their 30s at 8,399 (15.6%). By occupation, office workers accounted for the highest proportion at 27.2%, followed by full-time homemakers at 10.9%, unemployed and day laborers at 9.2%, and automobile transportation workers at 4.2%.

Compared to a year ago, insurance fraud involving office workers (up by 2,058), full-time homemakers (up by 1,233), and insurance industry personnel (up by 450) increased.

The Financial Supervisory Service plans to continue expanding its collaborative system with relevant institutions—such as the National Police Agency, Ministry of Health and Welfare, National Health Insurance Service, and the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service—in order to actively respond to hospital-led insurance fraud. In particular, it aims to activate a "fast track" through cooperation with the police from the investigation stage to increase the rate of investigations initiated, as well as shorten the time it takes to request investigations.

In addition, for insurance planners convicted of insurance fraud, the authorities will promptly cancel their registration to prevent offenders from re-entering the insurance market. This is in accordance with an amendment to the Insurance Business Act, which allows for the removal of insurance planners convicted of insurance fraud from the market; the related system will go into effect in March next year, following passage in the National Assembly.

The Financial Supervisory Service is also operating a "special reporting and reward period" in conjunction with the National Police Agency's special crackdown on insurance fraud until the end of next month, and has expanded the scope of eligible reports from traditional indemnity insurance to automobile insurance.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.