A former fraud and cybercrime squad detective will lead a new Insurance Council of Australia scam-fighting operation.

Andrew Gill, who also worked as a forensic director at McGrathNicol after his career with the NSW police, says organised fraud’s cost is reflected in everybody’s insurance fees.

“By reducing fraud, we can have an impact on the cost of a premium and ensure that insurance customers are not paying for the unlawful and unfair acts of organised crime,” he said.

ICA CEO Andrew Hall says Mr Gill, who served for 24 years with the NSW police, “will be a great asset in guiding” the counter-fraud function.

“[He] will lead the new function as it becomes a standalone entity, external to ICA, working with insurers to reduce the cost of fraud and scams to insurance customers and the community.”

The Insurance Council says the unit will focus on detecting organised fraud networks and emerging fraud-related trends. It will collaborate with insurance companies to collect intelligence.

Last year ICA members detected $560 million of opportunistic insurance fraud in motor and property alone, with undetected fraud estimated to cost the industry about $400 million a year.