Consumer finance leader stops fraud 64% faster
Approving genuine customer loans faster while blocking organised fraud before it impacts profits.
Overview
1. The Ambition
To prevent bad lending before it starts. Our client invested in faster, smarter controls to cut fraud losses, reduce manual effort, and accelerate profitable approvals.
2. The Solution
AI-powered predictive analytics to flag organised fraud earlier, automate decisions in seconds, and stay agile against fast-changing risk signals.
3. The Results
Fraud spotted 64% faster, 10% more detected, referral rates halved. Lower write-offs, better resilience, and stronger conversion. All from one strategic decision.
Company
Consumer Finance leader
Industry
Finance & Lending
Location
United Kingdom
The Ambition
Our client wanted to get ahead of downstream lending losses connected to organised crime, including the time wasted chasing repayments that would never land.
With over 350,000 finance applications a year and fraud becoming harder to spot, existing controls were reaching their limit. Rules alone couldn’t catch more subtle fraud types, including synthetic identities, and high referral rates were putting pressure on teams.
Our client chose to act early. By investing in stronger front-end controls, the client aimed to cut manual reviews, intercept organised fraud before approval, and approve more genuine customers - all without exceeding risk appetite.
“With Precision AI and support from Synectics’ data scientists, we’re detecting application fraud 64% faster, cutting manual reviews and boosting profitability. We’d never go back to life before Synectics.”
- Consumer Finance leader
The Solution
The client deployed Precision, Synectics’ AI predictive analytics engine, to detect third-party fraud earlier and apply friction-right controls that disrupt organised activity.
The model draws on National SIRA intelligence, National Fraud Initiative data, bureau insights and device-level signals - each weighted and recalibrated to adapt to shifting fraud behaviours.
Decisions are returned in under five seconds with transparent reasoning, giving teams the clarity to automate with confidence and act faster. This moved the client beyond the reactive methods still common in the sector.
The Results
The impact was immediate. Fraud detection speed increased by 64%, and the client identified 10% more fraud than before. Referral rates fell to 2.5%, easing pressure on internal teams and enabling faster approvals for genuine customers. Manual case volumes dropped sharply.
When a new organised fraud tactic involving gift cards emerged, Precision was already blocking 90% of cases. With visibility of how the attack was taking shape, the team fine-tuned controls quickly to close the remaining gap.
These gains also improved business performance: fewer write-offs, faster decisions, and stronger fraud controls where it matters most. As the client put it: “We’ll never go back to life before Precision. It helps us stop fraud faster and serve good customers with confidence.”
About our client
A market-leading consumer finance provider helping high street retailers offer accessible credit across 350,000+ annual applications for electronics, home goods, personal care and more.
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