On 13 February 2025, media reports revealed seven people had been arrested for allegedly making fraudulent child abuse claims through the predatory practice of “claim farming”.
The scam involves making fraudulent claims of historical sexual abuse against innocent teachers or carers in pursuit of financial compensation. Prospective claimants are coached on how to make these claims through law firms, with “claim farmers” allegedly receiving a benefit for each referral.
The IEU welcomes the news that this predatory practice is in the sights of NSW law enforcement agencies through these arrests.
The union met with NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for Education Prue Car in late 2024 and raised the union’s concern with “claim farming” and its devastating impact on current, retired and former IEU members.
Growing problem
The individuals arrested in February by detectives from Strike Force Veritas had allegedly targeted vulnerable adults who were former young offenders, inmates and school students.
The scammers encouraged their ‘clients’ to file fraudulent compensation claims for historical abuse while in care.
Detective Superintendent Gordon Arbinja noted that the false claims were allegedly made under three compensation schemes, including the National Redress Scheme. He said the seven arrests were “just the tip of the iceberg”.
“Claim farming” has been a substantial and growing problem in non-government schools with a big increase in claims of historical sexual abuse in the past few years. False claims of sexual abuse have had catastrophic impacts on innocent teachers, their families, their colleagues and the school community.
How the union can help
IEU officers received a briefing from our solicitors in 2024 outlining the issue and its impacts, and how the union can help if a member is facing such an allegation.
Aside from the impact on the wellbeing of the falsely accused, “claim farming” exploits genuine survivors of child sexual abuse.
Survivors deserve redress for crimes committed against them. Submitting fraudulent applications exploits those survivors and undermines the integrity of schemes set up to compensate them.
New laws passed in NSW
Legislation has already been passed in Queensland to make the practice illegal and the NSW government passed the Claim Farming Practices Prohibition Bill 2025 on 27 March.
The new laws crack down on claim farming by:
- prohibiting a person from contacting another person to encourage them to make a relevant claim
- prohibiting a person from buying or selling a relevant claim referral, and
- preventing lawyers who are convicted of these offences from charging legal costs in relation to the claim, and to require them to refund any costs already charged.
“The NSW government has legislated to put a stop to the insidious practice of claim farming that exploits the trauma of vulnerable people,” said NSW Attorney General Michael Daley in a statement to the media on 28 March.
“No one should be harassed or intimidated into making a civil claim which may not be in their best interests.
“The predatory practices can worsen the trauma and distress experienced by victim-survivors.
“This ban has been developed in close consultation with the community, including victim-survivors and their advocates.”