In dental practices, like in any business, fraud can go on undetected for a long time if the warning signs are ignored. Some of the common warning signs of fraud are:
- A sudden unexplained shortage in the cash account. It can lead to checks being returns, late tax payments, and supplier complaints of lack of payment.
- A drop in patient fees and profit margins. The fraudster may not be recording patient fees in the practice management system and pocketing the fees.
- Missing transactions. In the unrecorded patient fees schemes, the fraudster will end up destroying patient records to conceal their theft.
- In a lapping scheme, where one patient’s payments are posted to another patient’s account to conceal the employee’s earlier theft. It would always be a good idea to spot check deposits to accounts receivable to insure that the name on each check agrees with the posting in accounts receivable.
- A sudden change in the employee’s lifestyle which is extravagant and without explanation.
- When patients’ receivables are skimmed, many accounts will go into delinquency. There will be an increased number of complaints by patients who received a statement with an erroneous balance.
- Fraudsters may issue false write-offs or discounts to cover skimming. An unusually high number of unauthorized adjustments and discounts can be an indication of employee theft.
- The employee who is committing the fraud will usually be very territorial, works long hours and never takes time off.
If you recognize any of these signs as occurrences in your dental office and believe your practice could be a victim of fraud, please contact us.