Last amended by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 in 2021. Indirectly increased sentencing for serious fraud through broader changes to serious and organised crime sentencing framework including serious terrorism and serious organised crime offence structures.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Summary
The Fraud Act 2006 replaced the complex array of deception offences under the Theft Acts 1968 and 1978 with a single, unified offence of fraud. Fraud can be committed in three ways: by false representation (s.2), by failing to disclose information where there is a legal duty to do so (s.3), and by abuse of position (s.4). The Act removed the need for the prosecution to prove that a victim was actually deceived or that any gain or loss actually occurred — intent to make a gain or cause a loss is sufficient. Separate offences cover obtaining services dishonestly (s.11), possession of articles for use in fraud (s.6), and making or supplying articles for use in fraud (s.7). The maximum sentence for the main fraud offence is 10 years' imprisonment. The Act implemented recommendations of the Law Commission Report No 276 (2002), which had criticised the old deception offences as confusing, overlapping, and full of technical distinctions that obscured rather than defined culpability.
Key Points
- Single offence of fraud in three forms — maximum 10 years' imprisonment on indictment (s.1)
- Fraud by false representation (s.2): dishonestly making a false or misleading representation intending to make a gain or cause a loss — representation need not be believed by anyone
- Fraud by failing to disclose information (s.3): dishonestly failing to disclose information where there is a legal duty to do so, intending to make a gain or cause a loss
- Fraud by abuse of position (s.4): dishonestly abusing a position of financial trust (e.g. employee, trustee, agent) intending to make a gain or cause a loss
- Obtaining services dishonestly (s.11): dishonestly obtaining services that are made available on the basis that payment has been or will be made, where the defendant knows payment is required but does not intend to pay
- Possession of articles for use in fraud (s.6): maximum 5 years; includes any computer program or data
- Making or supplying articles for use in fraud (s.7): maximum 10 years — covers phishing kits, skimming devices, and fraudulent websites
- Dishonesty is assessed by the Ivey/Ghosh objective test (now Ivey v Genting Casinos [2017]); no requirement to prove actual deception, gain, or loss
Parts & Sections
Amendments History
2015 — Serious Crime Act 2015
Introduced a new offence of participating in activities of an organised crime group (s.45 SCA 2015), which significantly overlaps in practice with fraud offences and enhanced prosecutors' toolkit.
2021 — Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022
Indirectly increased sentencing for serious fraud through broader changes to serious and organised crime sentencing framework including serious terrorism and serious organised crime offence structures.