Are duplicate payments costing your NHS Trust more than you think?
Even with strong controls in place, many NHS Trusts are unknowingly losing money through duplicate supplier payments and missed credits. While the National Fraud Initiative (NFI) and internal checks play a role in detecting errors, recent findings suggest they may not be going far enough.
According to a 2025 report from the National Audit Office (NAO), fraud and errors cost the UK public sector between £55 billion and £81 billion last year. The report highlights a significant opportunity to recover funds through better use of data analytics, calling on the government to go beyond existing tools like the NFI and invest in more advanced methods.
In the NHS, many finance teams are already stretched. They simply don’t have the time and capacity required to conduct thorough investigations into payments or to improve controls and processes to prevent them from happening again.
That’s where technology and specialist support can make the difference.
A deeper way to recover lost funds
Many payment errors are not the result of fraud, but of process gaps, legacy systems, or simply the scale of supplier transaction volumes. Yet these mistakes accumulate and result in considerable financial loss, especially when they go unnoticed.
By applying AI-driven analytics and specialist duplicate payment recovery expertise, NHS Trusts can uncover hidden supplier credits and duplicate payments that are missed by conventional checks. These recoveries not only return money to the Trust but also reveal where future controls can be strengthened.
And unlike traditional audit-style reviews, modern services can be managed end-to-end, including the full recovery process, placing no additional demand on NHS finance teams.
Proven in practice
We have used this tried and tested approach to help the Northern Care Alliance NHS Trust to recover £870,000 in duplicate supplier payments, without adding any burden to their internal teams. The recoveries were achieved through a combination of advanced data analytics and supplier engagement, with no upfront cost or risk to the Trust involved.
Why it matters now
The NAO has been clear: stronger data analytics and smarter use of technology are essential if public bodies are to recover more of what’s lost to fraud and error.
For NHS Trusts, that starts with asking whether current tools and processes are going far enough, and whether there’s more duplicate payments and monies owed waiting to be recovered.
To find out how NHS Trusts can strengthen their processes to prevent these issues from happening in the first place, read our blog on improving controls and resilience.
Want to recover hidden funds and improve your controls?
Explore Liberata’s Duplicate Payments Recovery Service to see how we can help you strengthen your finance team and processes. Public Sector organisations can access our services through the CCS Debt Resolution Services Framework (RM6226) or on G-Cloud 14.
