đź’¸ Invisible Profits: The Exploitation of Trust in the NDIS
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) was created to empower people with disability, to provide dignity, choice, and control. But for some providers, it has become a goldmine – a publicly funded trough feeding private enrichment through opaque billing, inflated services, and minimal scrutiny.
This is a forensic look at how some registered providers – especially in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and assistive technology – are abusing the system. And what you can do if you suspect it’s happening.
🧾 How the Rorts Work
NDIS participants often rely on providers for critical services:
- Ongoing therapy
- Mobility aids
- Daily living assessments
- Home modifications
But the absence of price competition, inconsistent oversight, and the complexity of plan management have created ripe conditions for abuse.
Here’s what unethical behaviour looks like:
1. Overcharging for standard services
Routine physio or OT appointments (normally $100–$150) billed at $300+ per session
Claiming for “initial assessments” multiple times without justification
Charging for administrative time, thinly disguised as “consultation”
👉 NDIS price limits are clear, but not always enforced when participants don’t know what to question.
Reference:
2. Excessive travel claims
Charging 2+ hours for a local visit
Billing for travel both ways, even when visiting multiple clients in a single area
No evidence or GPS logs to back it up
NDIS rules allow travel charges under strict conditions. Many providers push the limit — or ignore it entirely.
Reference:
NDIS Provider Travel Rules
3. Inflated equipment pricing
A $1,200 shower commode billed to the NDIS at $4,500
“Custom” equipment sold at 3x retail price
Participants often feel pressured to accept whatever is proposed – or aren’t shown cheaper options
This isn’t about care – it’s about margin. And in some cases, the same provider owns the supplier.
4. Unnecessary or padded services
- Providers recommending frequent reassessments that aren’t clinically required
- Offering vague “functional capacity” reports to justify more hours
- “Plan inflation” strategies that game the system without truly helping the participant.
⚠️ Warning Signs for Participants and Families
You’re being told what you “must” accept without alternatives
You never see itemised invoices or quotes
You feel rushed to agree before a plan review
Equipment seems overpriced, but no one will explain
Services are claimed but not delivered, or not needed.
🛡️ What You Can Do: Report It
If you suspect an NDIS provider is rorting the system, you can and should report it – even anonymously.
🚨 Official Reporting Channels:
🔹 NDIS Fraud Reporting Hotline
đź“ž 1800 650 717
✉️ fraudreporting@ndis.gov.au
🔹 NDIS Commission – Provider Misconduct or Complaints
đź“ž 1800 035 544
(TTY 133 677; Interpreters available)
🔹 NDIS Tip-Off Portal (Disability Fraud)
đź“š Further Reading & Investigations:
ABC Investigations – NDIS Providers Exploiting Loopholes
Guardian Australia – Calls Grow for Crackdown on NDIS Rorting
NDIS Commission: Code of Conduct
🧠Final Word: Who Pays for the Rorts?
Not the providers. Not the government.
The cost of rorting is paid by:
People with disability whose supports get reduced
Families who lose faith in the system
And a public scheme that risks political backlash
Ethical providers exist. Many do brilliant work.
But the silence around unethical practice must end.
If someone’s profiting from the system without integrity, call it out – and help restore the NDIS to its true purpose.
Also by Lachlan McKenzie:
Dear reader, we need your support
Independent sites such as The AIMN provide a platform for public interest journalists. From its humble beginning in January 2013, The AIMN has grown into one of the most trusted and popular independent media organisations.
One of the reasons we have succeeded has been due to the support we receive from our readers through their financial contributions.
With increasing costs to maintain The AIMN, we need this continued support.
Your donation – large or small – to help with the running costs of this site will be greatly appreciated.
You can donate through PayPal or credit card via the button below, or donate via bank transfer: BSB: 062500; A/c no:Â 10495969
Much of what you write is true and it’s those parasites who make it hard for genuine Participants.
However, when my teenage grandson who is autistic and cognitively challenged his mother obtains written quotes which includes travel from his OT, Speech and Physiologist for every NDIS Funding review. I don’t know how other Participants can get funding without those written quotes. Also every Provider must write a review that accompanies those written quotes.
It’s crazy Anne, as you will see in my comment too.
Rorting of the system is terrible. The bigger problem I believe though is the view that the public gain from bad, but essential reporting of misbehaviour. People love to badmouth others without being properly informed and then there are those who question public spending for social benefit. I run a small disability business for up to 20 clients. We do three nights respite four times a year for those who are eligible and weekly supports. I started my business during Covid when major providers had stopped some essential support and the clients and families were suffering. My clients love our team and we are told the supports we provide are better and more personable than bigger organisations can provide.
I think it is absurd that an OT has to be empployed to assess every time something is required. An example, during Covid I started Zoom sessions for group supports. One client with cerebral palsy needed an OT report which cost $1500 for a tablet that would cost $800, total cost to the NDIS $2300. At the time reviews required OT assessments with parents saying an OT was required to prove their child still had a disability. Crazy. Thank you for your article.