More than 5,000 blue badges for disabled motorists were registered to dead people in Northern Ireland, the Audit Office said.
With millions overpaid in housing benefit and massive savings identified in domestic rates, auditor general Kieran Donnelly said data should be properly matched between public bodies to prevent fraud.
He looked at the National Fraud Initiative (NFI) for 2008/09. So far more than £11 million (€13.13 million) of fraud, error and overpayments have been identified and it is believed total savings from the initiative may ultimately exceed £16 million (€19.1 million).
Mr Donnelly said: “I am keen to explore with bodies how working together we can further develop and widen our involvement in NFI. I therefore welcome all approaches by both public and private sector bodies highlighting potential data sets that will help expose and reduce public sector fraud.”
The report’s key findings are:
By September 2010 housing benefits of £2.2 million (€2.6 million) and 2,240 cases of suspected fraud have been identified. It is projected that overpayments will rise by a further £1.5 million (€1.79 million);
Almost £8.4 million (€10 million) in savings involving non-payment, fraud and error have so far been identified in domestic rates and it is projected that figure will rise by a further £3.2 million (€3.83 million).
A total of 5,142 blue badges issued to those with severe mobility problems and which give entitlement to parking concessions were registered to dead people.
Suspected fraud, error and overpayment of £729,000 (€870,000) was found involving pension payments.
A total of £209,000 (€249,000) was overpaid to suppliers.
The report identified opportunities for gaining greater benefit from another NFI initiative under way for 2010/11. These included prioritising and following up data matches and considering whether the quality of records can be improved.
The auditor general added: “Although the roll out of NFI in Northern Ireland has been very successful, I believe that there is considerable scope to further exploit the potential of data matching.
“It is important that public sector bodies embrace this new tool, making it a key component of their counter fraud strategy, and embed it into their core business.”
PA