A central database set up by insurers in South Africa has cut up to $62 million in fraudulent claims. Johannesburg newspaper Business Day says as much as 35% of claims are fraudulent, so the three-year-old database has paid for itself in that time.

The South African Insurance Association says the database isolates anomalies such as multiple claims. It also helps to identify people who submit an unusually high number of claims.

Now the South African insurers are investigating the possibilities of using new technology like voice stress analysis programs on suspicious claimants.

Co-operation between the insurers has also led to the formation of an industry-police forensic investigations committee, which has been effective in identifying criminal trends and identifying organised crime syndicates which specialise in such fields as arson and car hijackings.