Richard H

Counter Fraud Manager | Fraud Risk, Investigations & Prevention | Operational Controls | Governance Reporting | Training & Capability | Emerging Risk & AI

United Kingdom

About

I’m a Counter Fraud Manager with 10 years’ experience across regulated insurance/financial environments and the charity sector, leading fraud prevention, detection, investigation and response. I specialise in embedding practical controls into customer journeys (“controls by design”), producing decision‑ready management information (MI) and Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) for governance, and improving operational effectiveness through process redesign and automation. In my current role, I work cross‑functionally with Operations, Finance, Product/Change, Data Protection and Second Line of Defence (2LoD) teams to reduce fraud exposure, improve detection and escalation, and support consistent decision‑making. I’m also active in emerging risk topics (including AI‑enabled fraud) and regularly translate external insight into practical operational recommendations. I am also a regular conference speaker, joining panels on matters around fraud risk, prevention, and also threats and opportunities presented by AI. Core areas: fraud risk frameworks, investigations and evidence handling, governance MI/KRIs, control improvement, training/capability uplift, and safe adoption of new tools and technology.

Experience

  • Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) (Full-time · 4 yrs 6 mos)
    • Counter Fraud Manager
      Aug 2025 - Present · 11 mos

      Lead fraud prevention, detection and response across customer‑facing operations; provide SME support, training, governance insight and MI/KRIs, and embed controls cross‑functionally. - Embedded controls into major operational and technology change activity, ensuring data/records controls supported investigation and regulatory readiness without blocking delivery. - Improved detection and triage through automation and enhanced reporting, reducing time‑to‑identify priority events and lowering manual workload across teams. - Strengthened governance reporting by refining fraud KRIs with 2LoD into clearer senior‑level insight for decision‑making and oversight. - Delivered consistent capability uplift across Operations through onboarding/refresher training, mandatory learning oversight, and clearer standards for identification, referral and investigation quality. - Led investigations and response activity, maintaining audit‑ready evidence trails and stakeholder decisioning; delivered significant fraud prevention outcomes (aggregate). Improved customer outcomes by refining risk controls to be more proportionate and responsive, reducing unnecessary friction while maintaining robust protection.

    • Fraud Manager
      Jan 2022 - Aug 2025 · 3 yrs 8 mos

  • Advisory Board Member at Financial Fraud Awareness Campaign (FFAC)
    Sep 2024 - Present · 1 yr 10 mos

  • AXA Health (11 yrs 4 mos)
    • Senior Fraud Investigator
      Sep 2019 - Dec 2021 · 2 yrs 4 mos

      Led complex fraud investigations involving regulators and police; prepared evidence and presented cases to internal and external stakeholders.

    • Fraud Investigator
      Nov 2016 - Sep 2019 · 2 yrs 11 mos

      Conducted proactive and reactive fraud, waste and abuse investigations; used data analytics to identify outliers and develop investigative lines.

    • Senior Customer Service Advisor
      Sep 2010 - Nov 2016 · 6 yrs 3 mos

      Managed complex complaints and escalations; coached and developed new advisers; created training materials and supported process improvements.

  • Sales Advisor at Debenhams
    May 2009 - Aug 2010 · 1 yr 4 mos