The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission publishes the status of providers on their register, with 26 non-compliant Queenslanders currently subject to banning orders.

Home Care Nurses Australia (HCNA) managing director Busi Faulkner said a number of her more vulnerable clients have recently been coerced into managing their own NDIS plans.

Ms Faulkner said a client “absconded” with an unregistered male provider on February 7 about 5am, forcing HCNA to submit a missing person’s report with police to track the client down.

She said it took 13 hours for the client to be returned to the home care and disability service provider.

“(The fraudulent provider) escorted the client to the police station in order to clear his name,” Ms Faulkner said.

“I had to call this man every 30 minutes while we tracked the client on the phone.

“Then we had to have a meeting to explain ourselves...because we are registered – I thought that’s a real waste of time, that’s a concern if someone can just walk into another service provider’s house and take a client.”

Ms Faulkner claims fraudulent providers “manipulate” clients into thinking they have been “abused”.

“We are fighting as providers, the issue is that integrity is just dissolving,” she said.

“The NDIS is all about choice and control and we are too but not everyone is capable of being in control of their finances and are easily taken advantage of,” she said.

“All providers, whether NDIS registered or not, need to be held to the same standard and a better complaints system is needed to weed out these fraudulent behaviours.”

Ms Faulkner said former employees have also called the NDIA and asked for a clients plan to be changed.

“There must be more checks in the process to ensure that people with disability are not being influenced in their decision making process” she said.

“What is going to stop that guy from doing it again, what’s going to stop other people? – it’s like it never happened.”

The Federal government established the Fraud Fusion Taskforce in late 2022.

In January 2023, the NDIS Commission issued 11 banning orders, three suspensions of registration and one revocation of registration concerning matters of fraud against the NDIS.

Providers and their workers are required to comply with the NDIS Code of Conduct, including acting with integrity, honesty and transparency and providing support and services in a safe and competent manner with care and skill.

The NDIS quarterly report to disability ministers found Quarter 2, 2022 to 2023 “continued to see an increase in the number of tip-offs received by the Agency”.

“The NDIA received 3,792 tip-offs in this quarter as compared to 2,422 for the same period in 2021–22. A total of 7,125 tip offs have been received this financial year, when compared with 4,742 from the same period last financial year,” the quarterly report read.

“As of 31 December 2022, there were thirty-nine fraud matters under investigation and an additional ten matters under preliminary evaluation for investigation.

“Of these, thirteen matters are before the courts under prosecution, with a total alleged fraud value of $13.4 million.”