Four arrested for staged car accident scam
Legal & Medical Online Magazine / 22nd November 2007
Insurers and their Fraud Bureau assist Merseyside police in arresting and prosecuting insurance fraudsters

Four arrested over car accident staging
14th, November 2007

Four people have been arrested for allegedly staging car accident claims, due to an insurance company tip-off. Allianz insurance alerted Merseyside police about a number of suspicious motor insurance claims in 2005. This led to the arrest of three men and one woman – believed to be connected to a communication company in the Liverpool area – as part of the ongoing motor insurance fraud investigation.

Detective Inspector Alyson Wilson of Merseyside Police’s Force Operations Unit said:

"This is an unscrupulous crime that affects the premiums paid by the public and impacts on the whole of the motor insurance industry. Merseyside Police is carrying out a thorough investigation into the allegations."

According to the ABI, insurance companies are uncovering and preventing fraudulent insurance claims worth over £1 million every day.

Mihar Pandya, Allianz Insurance Fraud Manager, said:

"The industry should be united in its efforts in disrupting this activity. In addition to working with the Insurance Fraud Bureau, the industry must continue to invest in its own fraud management strategies in order to remain effective in countering this threat."

Speaking to Legal and Medical, John Beadle, Chairman of Insurance Fraud Bureau, said:

“If an insurer has suspicions of fraud it is unlikely that they will have the full picture, they will usually have 50 to 60 per cent of the information they need, the Insurance Fraud Bureau can complete the picture for them by providing additional information and research.”

The four people were granted police bail following their arrest and a further ten people have so far been interviewed about their involvement.