0:00:02 > 0:00:05Insurance fraud in the UK has hit epidemic levels.
0:00:05 > 0:00:08It's costing us over £1.3 billion every year -
0:00:08 > 0:00:12that's almost £3.6 million every day.
0:00:13 > 0:00:18Deliberate crashes, bogus personal injuries, even phantom pets...
0:00:19 > 0:00:22..the fraudsters are risking more and more to make a quick killing,
0:00:22 > 0:00:27and every year it's adding over £50 to your insurance bill.
0:00:27 > 0:00:32But insurers are fighting back, exposing 14 fake claims every hour.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35Armed with covert surveillance systems...
0:00:35 > 0:00:38That's the subject out the vehicle.
0:00:38 > 0:00:42..sophisticated data analysis techniques
0:00:42 > 0:00:45and a number of highly skilled police units...
0:00:45 > 0:00:47Police, don't move, stay where you are.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51- ..they're catching the criminals red-handed.- Just don't lie to us.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54All those con men, scammers and cheats on the fiddle
0:00:54 > 0:00:56are now caught in the act
0:00:56 > 0:00:58and claimed and shamed.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11A man who was supposedly seriously injured in Bradford Lidl
0:01:11 > 0:01:14stages a suspiciously rapid recovery.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17He decided he'd get up and he walked out of the ambulance,
0:01:17 > 0:01:21and went back into the store to speak to the store manager.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24A healthy dose of scepticism is served on an accident
0:01:24 > 0:01:27in a smoothie bar...
0:01:27 > 0:01:31and a clumsy commuter's claim hits the buffers
0:01:31 > 0:01:35when station CCTV disproves his story.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37You can see that the cause of it is him
0:01:37 > 0:01:40just being in such a rush and he's clearly not watched
0:01:40 > 0:01:42his footing at the bottom of the stairs,
0:01:42 > 0:01:44and he's just fallen down the steps.
0:01:51 > 0:01:56Supermarket shopping isn't generally regarded as the hazardous activity.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59At worst, you might forget the milk or find they've run out of
0:01:59 > 0:02:02your favourite cereal.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05But a shopper from Bradford recently suffered a serious injury
0:02:05 > 0:02:07at his local branch of Lidl.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11Good afternoon, AIG, David Halstead speaking.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15David Halstead is from Lidl's insurers, AIG.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19Mr Iqbal stated that he had slipped on a wet bakery bag
0:02:19 > 0:02:23that was on the floor in his local Lidl store.
0:02:23 > 0:02:28He sustained injuries to his lower back and to parts of his leg.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31His claim would have been worth somewhere in the region
0:02:31 > 0:02:33of £10-£12,000.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36Concerned staff rushed to help, but almost immediately his
0:02:36 > 0:02:38behaviour seemed at odds with the claim
0:02:38 > 0:02:40that he'd been badly injured.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Mr Iqbal had actually insisted on an ambulance being called
0:02:43 > 0:02:46to convey him to hospital.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49However, once he'd gone into the ambulance and he was sat outside
0:02:49 > 0:02:52the store, he decided he'd get up and he walked out of the ambulance,
0:02:52 > 0:02:55and went back into the store to speak to the store manager to ensure
0:02:55 > 0:02:58that they had accurately recorded the injuries that he
0:02:58 > 0:03:01had sustained in that fall.
0:03:01 > 0:03:02Hang on a minute.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05He miraculously got out of the ambulance without assistance
0:03:05 > 0:03:07and went back inside?
0:03:07 > 0:03:09Was he off his trolley?
0:03:11 > 0:03:14It wasn't long before Mr Iqbal contacted the supermarket
0:03:14 > 0:03:17with a claim for compensation,
0:03:17 > 0:03:19but the insurers were one step ahead
0:03:19 > 0:03:23and had viewed the CCTV footage from the day of the accident.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27It became obvious that Mr Iqbal had observed this bag on the floor.
0:03:27 > 0:03:31He was positioning his shopping trolley to one side of the
0:03:31 > 0:03:34bakery bag to stop anyone else interfering with it.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37And then slowly he walks up to that bag and you can see,
0:03:37 > 0:03:40once he's checked to see if anyone is watching him,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43he then actually falls, quite dramatically, onto the floor.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Mr Iqbal hadn't counted on the CCTV cameras
0:03:50 > 0:03:53showing what had really happened when he slipped on the bakery bag.
0:03:55 > 0:04:00Given the evidence that we had, which was overwhelmingly demonstrative that
0:04:00 > 0:04:03it was a fraudulent claim, really we had little option
0:04:03 > 0:04:06other than to refer the matter to IFED.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09Also known as the City of London Police's
0:04:09 > 0:04:11Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15IFED specialise in combating insurance fraud.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Made up of an elite group of officers, including DC Mike Monkton,
0:04:19 > 0:04:24they were immediately suspicious that Iqbal might have had previous.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26Asking for it to be put in the accident books
0:04:26 > 0:04:28will suggest there's a bit of preplanning
0:04:28 > 0:04:31and knowledge of how the insurance industry works.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34Most people wouldn't know that companies have accident books
0:04:34 > 0:04:38and things need to be recorded.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Sure enough, the IFED investigation revealed that this
0:04:40 > 0:04:44supermarket scammer was an unsavoury character.
0:04:44 > 0:04:46When IFED started looking into Iqbal,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49they discovered that he'd put a previous claim in.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53In May that year, he'd claimed he was injured when visiting a gym.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57He said he was using a punch bag, and apparently it came back and
0:04:57 > 0:04:58hit him in the face.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02And then he hit the gym's insurers with a claim for personal injury.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05It was all starting to sound familiar.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07Both cases were, sort of, grouped together,
0:05:07 > 0:05:11so the Lidl case and the gym case
0:05:11 > 0:05:13were referred to the Crown Prosecution Service.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17He was charged with two counts of fraud by false representation.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19He was sentenced, in total, to ten months' imprisonment,
0:05:19 > 0:05:22which was suspended for a period of two years.
0:05:22 > 0:05:27He was also ordered to complete 280 hours' community service.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Mr Iqbal, not only trying to defraud Lidl
0:05:30 > 0:05:33out of the money to benefit himself,
0:05:33 > 0:05:36there's naturally a cost to the emergency services, when they called
0:05:36 > 0:05:39the ambulance out to take him to the hospital,
0:05:39 > 0:05:41and again for the police when they were called
0:05:41 > 0:05:43in to investigate this crime.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46The fact that Iqbal was prepared to waste the precious resources
0:05:46 > 0:05:48of the police and ambulance service,
0:05:48 > 0:05:52who could have been helping people genuinely in need,
0:05:52 > 0:05:54was reflected in the judgment against him.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58He was also ordered to pay nearly £10,000 in costs,
0:05:58 > 0:06:01that was divided between the two insurance companies,
0:06:01 > 0:06:05and also an amount to the National Health Service.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08I mean, in my opinion, Iqbal, he knew what he was doing,
0:06:08 > 0:06:10he knew it was wrong to make these claims,
0:06:10 > 0:06:15but he still tried to basically con the insurance industry out of money
0:06:15 > 0:06:17that he wasn't entitled to.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20If Mr Iqbal had used his loaf, he'd have realised that he
0:06:20 > 0:06:24would never have gotten away with the bakery bag scam.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29Mr Iqbal slipped up when he got back on his feet too quickly,
0:06:29 > 0:06:33but across pond, this con artist managed to squeeze every last
0:06:33 > 0:06:38drop from his smoothie bar fall.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42On the face of it, Danny Johnston suffered a horrific accident
0:06:42 > 0:06:45when he visited Juist-a-Minute.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Seen here entering the premises, he walks to the counter,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52then innocently peruses the menu of fruity treats,
0:06:52 > 0:06:55completely unaware of the lurking danger.
0:06:58 > 0:07:02Before he can place an order, disaster strikes.
0:07:02 > 0:07:03Man down.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07Not exactly a small chap, Johnson takes a heavy fall.
0:07:09 > 0:07:11Despite the other customers' heartless lack of concern,
0:07:11 > 0:07:16he later claimed that he had possibly fractured his wrist.
0:07:16 > 0:07:18Juist-a-Minute staff members call for help
0:07:18 > 0:07:20and he's attended by the fire department.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22A good 20 minutes after the fall,
0:07:22 > 0:07:25he's eventually stretchered to a local hospital.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Johnson later attempted to claim compensation from Juist-a-Minute
0:07:32 > 0:07:34for his fruity fall,
0:07:34 > 0:07:37which he alleged had been caused by spilled liquid on the floor.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41He claimed that the company had been negligent by not mopping it up
0:07:41 > 0:07:45and making the area safe for its health-conscious customers.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49The smoothie bar decided to check out his story and studied the CCTV.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55The fall certainly looks bad but, less than a minute before,
0:07:55 > 0:07:56this happened.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Let's see that again.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07The man with a cap on deliberately pours his drink on the
0:08:07 > 0:08:12floor using his right hand, which is partially shielded from the camera.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15The position of the spilled liquid was in the exact
0:08:15 > 0:08:18location of the fall.
0:08:18 > 0:08:23He then leaves the premises and, seconds later, Johnson enters...
0:08:23 > 0:08:26looks at the location of the spill, walks around,
0:08:26 > 0:08:28doesn't purchase anything,
0:08:28 > 0:08:32returns to the spill and then executes the fall.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38The footage had effectively grassed up Johnson
0:08:38 > 0:08:40and his accomplice David Williams.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44The company crushed the claim
0:08:44 > 0:08:48and passed their evidence to the authorities.
0:08:48 > 0:08:49Juice-tice was served.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52Williams received 12 months' probation,
0:08:52 > 0:08:57community service and a large fine, while Johnson is still at large.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00They'd been bananas to think they could get away with
0:09:00 > 0:09:02extracting money from the smoothie bar
0:09:02 > 0:09:07and callously wasting the fire department's precious time.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15A fraudster is found out
0:09:15 > 0:09:19when his tall tales turn out to be a stack of lies.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22I think it's highly unlikely that he could have been burgled five
0:09:22 > 0:09:25times and I think it's highly unlikely that he would have been
0:09:25 > 0:09:29unlucky enough to be the victim of a street robbery three times.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Running isn't always good for you, especially if you're
0:09:32 > 0:09:33late for a train...
0:09:33 > 0:09:36You can clearly see this gentleman running into the station,
0:09:36 > 0:09:38he's obviously in a great hurry.
0:09:38 > 0:09:39Running, the way he is,
0:09:39 > 0:09:42it's looking like it's a disaster about to happen.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46..and the Royal Mail delivers on preventing postal insurance scams.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48It was a satisfying result
0:09:48 > 0:09:52in that the identified the fraud, we acted on it and we stopped it.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03Many fraudsters slip up because they don't realise that insurance
0:10:03 > 0:10:07companies share information about fraud.
0:10:07 > 0:10:13Insurers also have long memories, as this next story demonstrates.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16John Beadle, RSA's Counter Fraud Manager,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19was involved from the beginning.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23This case is a very good example that justice can sometimes take
0:10:23 > 0:10:24a very long time.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28So this was way back in August 2008,
0:10:28 > 0:10:33when Mr Hussain took out a policy with us and, within a month,
0:10:33 > 0:10:37made a claim for a burglary at his house in Leeds.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43He alleged that a number of items amounting to some several
0:10:43 > 0:10:47thousand pounds were stolen during this burglary -
0:10:47 > 0:10:52these included a TV, a surround sound system,
0:10:52 > 0:10:55a laptop, a Louis Vuitton bag,
0:10:55 > 0:11:01a Cartier wristwatch, £500 cash and other expensive items.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06Right from the start, doubts were raised about Mr Hussain's
0:11:06 > 0:11:08version of events.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11Well, we were a little suspicious because of the
0:11:11 > 0:11:15close proximity to the claim to the policy being taken out,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18although that can happen, of course.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22Even so, the case warranted further investigation and RSA
0:11:22 > 0:11:25took a closer look at the man who claimed to be the
0:11:25 > 0:11:27innocent victim of a burglary.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30We looked into the claim and, very quickly,
0:11:30 > 0:11:32established that Mr Hussain
0:11:32 > 0:11:37had made similar claims with two other insurers.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40When we looked further into these with other insurers,
0:11:40 > 0:11:44we realised they were for all the same items.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47If the story Mr Hussain was telling was true,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50then he'd owned three sets of the same items.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53He'd been burgled three times and each time the burglars had
0:11:53 > 0:11:55taken the same things.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58He was either the unluckiest man in Yorkshire
0:11:58 > 0:12:00or something wasn't right.
0:12:00 > 0:12:02Proof of the latter came from his documentation.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06When we shared the invoices supplied by Mr Hussain,
0:12:06 > 0:12:09it became apparent that the invoices were identical.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13So having been paid out by his insurers for these bogus claims,
0:12:13 > 0:12:16he has then come to us, making an allegation of burglary
0:12:16 > 0:12:18for the same items,
0:12:18 > 0:12:21using the same invoices.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24RSA immediately acted to stop the claim going through
0:12:24 > 0:12:28and then reviewed their communications with Mr Hussain.
0:12:28 > 0:12:33It's quite often the case that somebody who knows that their
0:12:33 > 0:12:38claim is being investigated will actually be very aggressive
0:12:38 > 0:12:41and push for immediate payment.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43In this case, Mr Hussain was doing exactly that.
0:12:43 > 0:12:48He was trying to put pressure on the claims handler to settle claim,
0:12:48 > 0:12:50saying that he would complain to the
0:12:50 > 0:12:56ombudsman about the poor service that RSA was providing.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59But these bully boy tactics hadn't worked.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02The insurers were convinced by the evidence that they had to put
0:13:02 > 0:13:04a stop to Hussain's activities.
0:13:04 > 0:13:10So we had determined that this was a complete and utter fraud
0:13:10 > 0:13:13and we reported Mr Hussain
0:13:13 > 0:13:17to the police and, needless to say, we did not pay this claim.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21But Hussain was prepared to go to any lengths to avoid being
0:13:21 > 0:13:24brought to book and he came up with an outrageous tactic to
0:13:24 > 0:13:26try and escape justice.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30Quite strangely in this case, Mr Hussain was alleging
0:13:30 > 0:13:33that it wasn't him who was making the claim
0:13:33 > 0:13:36and there's a mistaken identity,
0:13:36 > 0:13:40and it was somebody else making the claim on his behalf.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44Certainly we didn't believe him, but it just cast enough
0:13:44 > 0:13:47doubt in the minds of the Crown Prosecution Service.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51The CPS took the view that it wouldn't be safe
0:13:51 > 0:13:55to continue with the prosecution and it was dropped at that time.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58Sometimes these things happen and you have to just
0:13:58 > 0:14:02shrug your shoulders and get on with the next case.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06It was a bitter blow, but RSA had stopped Hussain in his tracks
0:14:06 > 0:14:08and avoided a fraudulent pay-out.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11As far as they were concerned, there the matter rested...
0:14:11 > 0:14:13until five years later.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17Out of the blue, we were contacted by Northumbria Police,
0:14:17 > 0:14:22investigating an alleged street robbery involving Mr Hussain,
0:14:22 > 0:14:27where he has had a number of very expensive items stolen
0:14:27 > 0:14:29during the robbery.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32It all sounded very familiar and, true to form,
0:14:32 > 0:14:35Hussain hadn't stopped there.
0:14:35 > 0:14:38They actually found he'd made three such claims.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41I think it's highly unlikely that he could have been burgled five
0:14:41 > 0:14:45times and I think it's highly unlikely that he would be
0:14:45 > 0:14:48unlucky enough to be the victim of a street robbery three times.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Obviously, the police thought so as well
0:14:51 > 0:14:53and all these cases were joined together,
0:14:53 > 0:15:00and he was prosecuted for fraud, totalling in excess of £90,000.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04So in early 2015, Mr Hussain appeared at Crown Court
0:15:04 > 0:15:09charged with nine counts of fraud and, after a trial,
0:15:09 > 0:15:12he was found guilty on all nine counts.
0:15:12 > 0:15:17Mr Hussain was then sentenced to two years' imprisonment.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21So after a five-year wait, we do feel that
0:15:21 > 0:15:23justice was, at last, served.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27Proving that the best things come to those who wait.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35Online shopping has made it that much easier
0:15:35 > 0:15:39to indulge your inner Imelda Marcos.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41Shoes are big business.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43Quick and efficient delivery services go hand-in-hand with
0:15:43 > 0:15:46successful footwear sales.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48But when things go wrong,
0:15:48 > 0:15:50insurance is there to step in and foot the bill,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54but only if the claim is genuine.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57Martin Hancock is the Royal Mail investigation manager
0:15:57 > 0:16:01and he looked into a case of shoe returns going walkies.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05Royal Mail was receiving a number of compensation claims for missing
0:16:05 > 0:16:08parcels going to a company in Cheshire.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11Customers had been sending back shoes they'd bought that
0:16:11 > 0:16:13didn't fit and requesting refunds,
0:16:13 > 0:16:16but the company claimed that the parcels were going missing
0:16:16 > 0:16:18in the post and told their customers
0:16:18 > 0:16:21to claim a refund from the Royal Mail.
0:16:21 > 0:16:22Over a 15-month period,
0:16:22 > 0:16:26we received over 200 complaints for compensation for missing parcels.
0:16:26 > 0:16:31Each claim varied between £10-£50 for the shoes.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34In total, all the claims coming into Royal Mail
0:16:34 > 0:16:37totalled around £7,500.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39That's a big amount for Royal Mail,
0:16:39 > 0:16:41especially on the volume of complaints.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44It was disproportionate to other companies in the area.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46It was a huge amount of money
0:16:46 > 0:16:49and Royal Mail kicked off an investigation.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52One of the first steps was to analyse the claims.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54Sure enough, a pattern emerged.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57It only affected first and second class parcels,
0:16:57 > 0:17:00and not other parcels that were traceable.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04The company were receiving signed for and special delivery items,
0:17:04 > 0:17:08all these parcels were being delivered without any going missing.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12The fact none of the traceable items were going missing was suspicious.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15But there was a possible explanation.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19We suspected the company on the majority of parcels going to
0:17:19 > 0:17:21their premises for first or second class,
0:17:21 > 0:17:23they were denying receipt of them.
0:17:23 > 0:17:24They were actively encouraging them
0:17:24 > 0:17:28to claim compensation from Royal mail.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31Without trail of paperwork to prove otherwise,
0:17:31 > 0:17:34the customers had to take the company's word for it.
0:17:34 > 0:17:36The motivation was purely financial.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39We believe that the company were telling customers that parcels
0:17:39 > 0:17:42were going missing in the post so they could resell shoes
0:17:42 > 0:17:45they had already sold before.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48The company, by doing this, made money twice
0:17:48 > 0:17:50out of the sale of the shoes.
0:17:50 > 0:17:53They had potentially uncovered a huge scale fraud,
0:17:53 > 0:17:56but they still needed solid proof.
0:17:56 > 0:18:01We purchased shoes from them and returned the parcels to them.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05We knew the parcels had been delivered and waited for a refund.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08No refund came and, when we contacted them,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11they told us our parcels had gone missing in the post.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16It simply wasn't true, but the response confirmed
0:18:16 > 0:18:19suspicions that at an organised scam was at foot.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23As a result of our enquiries, we performed an operation that
0:18:23 > 0:18:26involved searching the business and home premises.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29During these searches, we recovered the shoes we had sent in and
0:18:29 > 0:18:34also customers had sent in, and were allegedly missing in the post.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37It was the evidence that the investigation team needed
0:18:37 > 0:18:40and the company was now on the back foot.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43We interviewed both the director of the company,
0:18:43 > 0:18:47who admitted fraud that led to subsequent prosecution in court.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52Both received a 12-month suspended sentence, £6,000 costs
0:18:52 > 0:18:56for the investigation and court and had 200 hours' community service.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00They also paid £7,500 compensation back to Royal Mail.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03It was a satisfying result, in that we identified the fraud,
0:19:03 > 0:19:06we acted on it and we stopped it.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09And again, Royal Mail does that on every case.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18The UK's roads are regularly patrolled by
0:19:18 > 0:19:19organised criminal gangs
0:19:19 > 0:19:22on the hunt for ordinary motorists like you and me.
0:19:22 > 0:19:24Their aim?
0:19:24 > 0:19:30To trigger induced collisions, so-called crash-for-cash accidents.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32Detective Inspector Dave Hindmarsh,
0:19:32 > 0:19:36of the Metropolitan Police explains how it works.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40An induced collision is where you generally have what's called
0:19:40 > 0:19:42a decoy car and a client car.
0:19:42 > 0:19:47The client car's the car that they want someone to crash into.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51Once they've found their target, then the decoy car will cause the
0:19:51 > 0:19:57client car to break and a collision occurs.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00These gangs don't care who gets hurt or how badly -
0:20:00 > 0:20:03they just want to get their hands on the insurance money.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07A staggering £392 million is fraudulently lost to
0:20:07 > 0:20:10crash-for-cash gangs every year.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12The police have had enough
0:20:12 > 0:20:15and they're determined to get these criminals off our roads.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18DI Hindmarsh recently broke one of the capital's biggest
0:20:18 > 0:20:20crash-for-cash fraud rings.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23This particular case was brought to us
0:20:23 > 0:20:26by a uniformed officer in the south of London
0:20:26 > 0:20:29who had come across a collision.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33He'd become very suspicious about the collision.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36There was some discrepancy around the ownership of the vehicle
0:20:36 > 0:20:38and insurance, which had led to a individual being arrested.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41He later found a crib sheet,
0:20:41 > 0:20:46with, effectively, a how to commit an induced collision.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50Further investigation into the suspect, named Malik Ahmad,
0:20:50 > 0:20:53led the police officer to claims management company
0:20:53 > 0:20:55called Star Accident Claims.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58He identified that the person he'd arrested was in fact
0:20:58 > 0:21:00the son of the owner.
0:21:00 > 0:21:04The son, in fact, worked at the claims management company.
0:21:04 > 0:21:08The fact that Ahmad, an employee of Star Accident Management,
0:21:08 > 0:21:10had been involved in an induced collision
0:21:10 > 0:21:13immediately put the operations of the whole company under suspicion.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18The father, also named Malik Ahmad, was arrested too.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22There was a search carried out, where the police officer seized
0:21:22 > 0:21:28in excess of 56 files that he believed were suspicious.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31The files that were taken were all collisions
0:21:31 > 0:21:33that were in the process of being dealt with through the
0:21:33 > 0:21:35insurance companies.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39My team looked at 26 of the claims.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43We contacted various individuals who were named within those
0:21:43 > 0:21:46claims and identified that some of them
0:21:46 > 0:21:49weren't even aware that their details have been used.
0:21:49 > 0:21:54It proved to us that this company had been forging signatures,
0:21:54 > 0:21:57forging people's details,
0:21:57 > 0:22:00so saying that people were witnesses to a particular collision
0:22:00 > 0:22:03when they weren't,
0:22:03 > 0:22:05or that they had been in a collision
0:22:05 > 0:22:08as a passenger when they had not been.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Accident management companies fraudulently exaggerating claims
0:22:11 > 0:22:15for a bigger pay-out is sadly nothing new,
0:22:15 > 0:22:18but the truly sinister aspect of this case was that the company was
0:22:18 > 0:22:21inducing its own accidents,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24putting other road users at risk of injury or even death.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26Their motive was pure greed.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29We only looked at 26 files.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32Now, the value to the loss to the insurance companies
0:22:32 > 0:22:35was around about £290,000.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38The criminals were pocketing a staggering amount of money
0:22:38 > 0:22:42and endangering others. They had to be shutdown.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45We took the case to the Crown Prosecution Service,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49who gave us the authority to charge four individuals.
0:22:49 > 0:22:53Justice was then served on the four-man gang
0:22:53 > 0:22:56who tried to claim £290,000.
0:22:56 > 0:23:01The father and son received three and a half years' imprisonment.
0:23:01 > 0:23:06Another individual, Jamal Akbar, received two years' imprisonment
0:23:06 > 0:23:10And finally, Mashood Ahmed, received
0:23:10 > 0:23:14a suspended two-year prison sentence.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17Thanks to the efforts of DI Dave Hindmarsh and his team in pursuing
0:23:17 > 0:23:19the mob of ruthless crooks,
0:23:19 > 0:23:22there's one less crash-for-cash ring on the UK's roads.
0:23:28 > 0:23:32And it's not just drivers who are preyed on by fraudsters.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35Public transport is a major target too.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38Someone who deals with this on a daily basis is Julia Randall,
0:23:38 > 0:23:43fraud protection officer for a transportation company First Group.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45As a company, we have a zero tolerance to fraudsters
0:23:45 > 0:23:48and, therefore, all claims, regardless of value,
0:23:48 > 0:23:50will be investigated thoroughly.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53We see a constant flow of claims into the department where
0:23:53 > 0:23:55a fraud has been attempted.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57However, we will fight each and every
0:23:57 > 0:24:00one of the claims and this year we have had some fantastic successes.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03Anyone thinking about pursuing a fraudulent claim against us,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06they should remember the tools we have in place -
0:24:06 > 0:24:10CCTV, telematics, the latest analytical software -
0:24:10 > 0:24:13we also have highly skilled and trained fraud operatives,
0:24:13 > 0:24:17and we will push for the highest penalties.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20And it's these tools that allows them to be so successful
0:24:20 > 0:24:23in detecting and prosecuting fraud.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25If you have an injury claim and it's genuine, that's fine.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28We just want to pay you what it's worth.
0:24:28 > 0:24:29But if you exaggerate your claim,
0:24:29 > 0:24:33we can kick the whole claim out under fundamental dishonesty.
0:24:34 > 0:24:36Julie and her colleagues at First Group,
0:24:36 > 0:24:38like claims team manager Lee Ingram,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41have long been training their sights on fraud.
0:24:41 > 0:24:46Lee recently brought his expertise to a case at a train station.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48A gentleman was claiming that he's injured his leg after
0:24:48 > 0:24:50falling down some stairs.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53According to the injured passenger,
0:24:53 > 0:24:56it wasn't down to clumsiness or haste.
0:24:56 > 0:24:57The claimant is saying that the cause
0:24:57 > 0:25:01of his fall is due to the bottom step being defective,
0:25:01 > 0:25:03possibly slippery due to its metal construction as well
0:25:03 > 0:25:05due to the cold weather.
0:25:05 > 0:25:06And also, the fact the hand rail
0:25:06 > 0:25:09didn't go all the way down to the bottom step.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12He's saying, for that reason, he's lost his footing on the last step
0:25:12 > 0:25:14and fallen flat on his face.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18The man backed up this claim with a medical report.
0:25:18 > 0:25:19The injury claim submitted to us
0:25:19 > 0:25:24involved a rupture to the Achilles tendon and a ruptured calf muscle.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28The injury resulted in him being in plaster for around nine weeks.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30He would've had private surgery costs.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33He would've needed some help with his domestic chores.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37It would have come to about £50,000, including legal costs,
0:25:37 > 0:25:40so not a small claim.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44Far from it. In fact, it was around double the average annual wage.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47With such a large amount of money at stake, Lee decided to investigate
0:25:47 > 0:25:50and discovered that no-one else had seen the fall.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53There weren't actually any witnesses to this accident,
0:25:53 > 0:25:55that we are aware of, other than probably the best witness
0:25:55 > 0:25:58that we could have had, which was CCTV footage.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03Ah, our old friend, CCTV footage.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06Presumably this would corroborate this man's story,
0:26:06 > 0:26:09especially as train stations have cameras everywhere.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13You can clearly see this gentleman running into the station.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17He's obviously in a great hurry to get to his train.
0:26:17 > 0:26:21Running, the way he is, it's looking like it's a disaster about to happen.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24You can see him running down the middle of the stairwell.
0:26:24 > 0:26:30As he gets to the bottom here, he just takes a real heavy fall.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33It is a nasty fall, it looks like it hurts.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38To add insult to injury, the doors close
0:26:38 > 0:26:41and the man also misses his train.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45Looking at this footage, are we to blame for it is?
0:26:45 > 0:26:49You can see that the cause of it is him just being in such a rush.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53He's clearly not watched his footing at the bottom of the stairs
0:26:53 > 0:26:55and he's just fallen down the steps.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58Not for the first time in his career, Lee found that the
0:26:58 > 0:27:01CCTV evidence was completely at odds with the claim.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04There's no disputing the fact that this was quite a nasty fall,
0:27:04 > 0:27:06it was never in doubt.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09The question is - what has caused the fall?
0:27:09 > 0:27:13According to the passenger, the main culprit was a defective step,
0:27:13 > 0:27:15something else Lee looked at.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18He's saying it's slippery when it's cold
0:27:18 > 0:27:22and the metal is not appropriate material for this type of step.
0:27:22 > 0:27:25So we've gone out and inspected it, and what we've actually found out
0:27:25 > 0:27:28is that the step itself is made of concrete.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31The temperature that day, having checked the weather records,
0:27:31 > 0:27:35never dropped below four, so there was no freezing involved.
0:27:35 > 0:27:37The steps are all coated with a non-slip surface,
0:27:37 > 0:27:40so the step was definitely not defective.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44Unsurprisingly, the claim came off the rails at this point.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48We turned the claim down to his solicitors and
0:27:48 > 0:27:50we've never heard from them since.
0:27:52 > 0:27:54There are signs in most stations saying that you shouldn't
0:27:54 > 0:27:56run in the station.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00If you look back to when you were a child and running down a corridor,
0:28:00 > 0:28:03you would have heard a teacher's voice saying, "Stop running."
0:28:03 > 0:28:06There was a reason for that, it's dangerous to run in a busy place.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Accidents can happen.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11Probably the moral to this particular story is that people need to
0:28:11 > 0:28:14take more care to safeguard their own safety
0:28:14 > 0:28:16and stop looking for someone to blame.