Monday, July 07, 2008
Car insurance fraud costs £5m a week
Car insurance fraud in the UK amounts £5m a week, according to the industry trade body.
The Association of British Insurers said its members uncovered 24,000 fraudulent motor insurance claims last year at a cost of £5 million every week.
The ABI estimated that the number of dishonest motor claims detected had risen by 70 per cent over the last three years to a high in 2007.
One of the “cheats” reported by the association was a car owner who claimed his car had been stolen.
It was proved later that he had actually pushed it over a cliff and planned to use the insurance payout to meet his hire purchase payments.
Another case saw a policyholder claiming for damage to her Land Rover when it hit the front of her house.
While she said it was caused when her foot slipped off the brake, insurers discovered the damage was caused deliberately, following an argument with her partner.
Nick Starling, the ABI's director of general insurance and health, said: “Insurance fraud is no victimless crime.
“Honest motorists pay through higher insurance premiums – an extra £40 a year on average. This is why insurers are ramping up their crackdown to weed out the cheats.”
DATED: 07.07.08
FEED: MT
The Association of British Insurers said its members uncovered 24,000 fraudulent motor insurance claims last year at a cost of £5 million every week.
The ABI estimated that the number of dishonest motor claims detected had risen by 70 per cent over the last three years to a high in 2007.
One of the “cheats” reported by the association was a car owner who claimed his car had been stolen.
It was proved later that he had actually pushed it over a cliff and planned to use the insurance payout to meet his hire purchase payments.
Another case saw a policyholder claiming for damage to her Land Rover when it hit the front of her house.
While she said it was caused when her foot slipped off the brake, insurers discovered the damage was caused deliberately, following an argument with her partner.
Nick Starling, the ABI's director of general insurance and health, said: “Insurance fraud is no victimless crime.
“Honest motorists pay through higher insurance premiums – an extra £40 a year on average. This is why insurers are ramping up their crackdown to weed out the cheats.”
DATED: 07.07.08
FEED: MT
