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 > 0:00:11That's almost £3.6 million every day.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Deliberate crashes, bogus personal injuries,
0:00:16 > 0:00:18even phantom pets.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22The fraudsters are risking more and more to make a quick killing
0:00:22 > 0:00:26and every year it's adding over £50 to your insurance bill.
0:00:27 > 0:00:29But insurers are fighting back,
0:00:29 > 0:00:32exposing 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 > 0:00:40..sophisticated data analysis techniques...
0:00:42 > 0:00:45..and a number of highly skilled police units...
0:00:45 > 0:00:47Police! Don't move, stay where you are!
0:00:47 > 0:00:49..they're catching the criminals red-handed.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Just don't lie to us.
0:00:51 > 0:00:52All those conmen, scammers
0:00:52 > 0:00:56and cheats on the fiddle are now caught in the act
0:00:56 > 0:00:58and claimed and shamed.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10Today, a serial fraudster lashes out when he's confronted...
0:01:17 > 0:01:19..Ifed investigates a coachload
0:01:19 > 0:01:21of questionable personal injury claimants...
0:01:22 > 0:01:25Driver of the coach witnessed them running across the dual carriageway
0:01:25 > 0:01:28and hurdling the central reservation. So, it would seem
0:01:28 > 0:01:31that their injuries were not as they had claimed.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33..and a claim is put on hold
0:01:33 > 0:01:37when insurers track down two phones that were supposedly lost.
0:01:37 > 0:01:42We identified that the exact same claimant was advertising
0:01:42 > 0:01:45the exact same phones on an online marketplace site.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Insurers are fighting fraudsters on every front.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57Some of the most effective weapons in their arsenal
0:01:57 > 0:01:59are specialist consultants,
0:01:59 > 0:02:01like Tara Shelton of I-cog.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05Prior to starting up the business, I was a police officer for 15 years.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08Prior to that, and during that period, also studied psychology.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12And within the specialism of the police I was a hostage negotiator.
0:02:13 > 0:02:15Drawing on her unique background,
0:02:15 > 0:02:20she uses techniques that identify fraud more swiftly than normal.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24We definitely do have the edge when it comes to the fight against fraud
0:02:24 > 0:02:25by combining these unique skills.
0:02:27 > 0:02:28With Tara on the case,
0:02:28 > 0:02:31the net is closing in on those who seek to abuse the system.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35I think it's quite common for those that are claiming fraudulently
0:02:35 > 0:02:37to see insurers as easy prey.
0:02:38 > 0:02:40And I think it's also important to note
0:02:40 > 0:02:42that we are probably their worst nightmare.
0:02:45 > 0:02:47One of Tara's most memorable cases
0:02:47 > 0:02:51was when she was brought in to work on a claim from Sahardid Hussein.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53He'd been robbed of gadgets, including a camera
0:02:53 > 0:02:56and iPad, whilst on holiday.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59Mr Hussein had made a claim that he was approached from behind
0:02:59 > 0:03:02by a male while walking in a park in Croatia.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11That the male had robbed him of all of his goods and then run off.
0:03:20 > 0:03:25However, when the claim was actually presented, there was another policy
0:03:25 > 0:03:27that he had claimed against six months previously
0:03:27 > 0:03:29with exactly the same information.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31But this was in London.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35It was actually a member of staff in a small broker firm that spotted it,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38just by chance. Just by chance.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44What gave the game away was that the insurers concerned were both
0:03:44 > 0:03:46underwritten by the same company
0:03:46 > 0:03:48and that allowed the claims to be linked.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51In Mr Hussein's mind, he was making two separate claims
0:03:51 > 0:03:54through two different insurance companies when, in fact,
0:03:54 > 0:03:58the common thread was it was underwritten by the same company.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01And the method of both of his claims were exactly the same -
0:04:01 > 0:04:04that he was approached by a male from behind
0:04:04 > 0:04:06who had robbed him of all his goods.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09The items he was claiming for were exactly the same.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12The chance of that happening six months apart
0:04:12 > 0:04:14in two different countries is exceptionally slim.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19They suspected they had a fraudster on their hands
0:04:19 > 0:04:21and Tara's expertise was called on.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26The intelligence profiling highlighted a transient individual
0:04:26 > 0:04:28who moved from place to place as a tenant.
0:04:28 > 0:04:32Who was being pursued by debt collectors, who was taking out
0:04:32 > 0:04:34a large number of insurance quotations
0:04:34 > 0:04:35which didn't suit his lifestyle.
0:04:35 > 0:04:41And who gave information to the insurers, such as an occupation type,
0:04:41 > 0:04:43that we couldn't substantiate.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Tara had done her homework on Hussein
0:04:45 > 0:04:47and her next move was to ring him.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51The call was where she unleashed her battle plan.
0:04:51 > 0:04:52RINGING TONE
0:04:52 > 0:04:55The plan was always that the call would have two halves.
0:04:55 > 0:04:57So, the first half would be
0:04:57 > 0:04:59psychologically understanding Mr Hussein.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02Psychologically being onside with Mr Hussein.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18The second half of the call, which was just in a mature, adult fashion,
0:05:18 > 0:05:20attempted to discuss the concerns that we had with the claim.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39The way he answered my questions had no depth.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43Mr Hussein failed dismally at satisfying me that he was there
0:05:43 > 0:05:44at that place at that time.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Having achieved her first aim,
0:05:56 > 0:05:58it was at this point that Tara switched to the second part
0:05:58 > 0:06:02of her strategy and informed him of the concerns surrounding his claim.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08He immediately became quite volatile, aggressive,
0:06:08 > 0:06:12rude and, psychologically, was severely backed into a corner.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22The real skill with implementing this is making the fraudster
0:06:22 > 0:06:24think that they have control.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27But they have control because I want them to think they have it.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31I actually have control.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35And, so, therefore, when it's flipped on its head,
0:06:35 > 0:06:38it becomes evidently clear that they actually have been detected.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06He did make several comments one was, which, "I have no fear,"
0:07:06 > 0:07:10because he actually was in such denial at his addiction
0:07:10 > 0:07:14of claiming fraudulently that he believed his own lies.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37The aggressive sabotaging behaviour
0:07:37 > 0:07:39might have worked on others but not Tara.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42She kept up the pressure and eventually Hussein broke.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09But even that was a lie.
0:08:09 > 0:08:14Eventually, he admitted to 22 frauds with different insurers.
0:08:14 > 0:08:15He'd travelled Europe with his con.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19From Croatia...
0:08:20 > 0:08:21..to Romania...
0:08:23 > 0:08:24..to Madrid.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33In my mind, I was of no doubt that he was just admitting
0:08:33 > 0:08:37the bare minimum, based on the information I had.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40But Mr Hussein wasn't prepared to go down without a fight.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43And staged a last-ditch attempt to talk, or rather sob,
0:08:43 > 0:08:46his way out of trouble.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50Mr Hussein called me, crying, admitting that he had committed fraud
0:08:50 > 0:08:53and, essentially, asking me for take mercy on him.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18Did I believe him, that he was remorseful? No.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21Did I believe that he'd only committed the offences
0:09:21 > 0:09:22he admitted in that call?
0:09:22 > 0:09:23No.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29It was obvious to all that these were crocodile tears
0:09:29 > 0:09:32and the file on Mr Hussein was passed to the police.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Tara's work was done.
0:09:34 > 0:09:35Or so she thought.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37I think with Mr Hussein being
0:09:37 > 0:09:40so predatory it was a case that really stuck in my mind.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44I just happened to be with a client a month or so later
0:09:44 > 0:09:46and I just said, "Can you just check this name for me?"
0:09:46 > 0:09:50And they said, "Oh, we've got three claims and he's just phoned up
0:09:50 > 0:09:53"a minute ago screaming and shouting at us, asking where his money is."
0:09:54 > 0:09:58With Tara listening in, the client called Mr Hussein back.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01They just asked if my name meant anything to him.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05The phone went completely silent and he hung up.
0:10:09 > 0:10:10DIAL TONE
0:10:11 > 0:10:15In my opinion, Mr Hussein has a severe addiction
0:10:15 > 0:10:18to fraudulently claiming against insurers.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22But Tara had stopped him in his tracks.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25And, ultimately, his addiction landed him in jail.
0:10:25 > 0:10:26The police had more than enough evidence
0:10:26 > 0:10:29to mount a successful prosecution.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32And he was sentenced to 13 months in the slammer.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Still to come - a personal injury claim falls over
0:10:43 > 0:10:46when the claimants fail to get their story straight.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48All three individuals were telling us different things.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51One of them said that they were in a van at the time of the collision,
0:10:51 > 0:10:54where it was clearly a car that was being claimed for.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59And a caller uses bully-boy tactics to try and force through a claim.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15In January 2012,
0:11:15 > 0:11:17the police joined the fight against insurance fraud
0:11:17 > 0:11:20by forming an elite squad known as Ifed,
0:11:20 > 0:11:22the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28Ifed deal with a wide variety of insurance fraud offences.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32From serious crash for cash, to household fraudulent claims,
0:11:32 > 0:11:37we are responsible for bringing insurance fraudsters to justice.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40They've made over 660 arrests
0:11:40 > 0:11:43and have saved millions of pounds in fraudulent insurance claims.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46Money which, ultimately, goes back in our pockets.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49From now on, fraudsters need to watch their backs.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52Insurance fraud isn't easy money, it has risks and consequences.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55You could get a criminal conviction and you can go to jail.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Police! Don't move, stay where you are.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03One of the most common insurance frauds in the UK involves
0:12:03 > 0:12:07faked whiplash injuries sustained in road traffic collisions.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13Insurers and the police are now working together to put
0:12:13 > 0:12:16the brakes on these types of claims.
0:12:16 > 0:12:20Ifed's Detective Sgt Mark Forster investigated one such case
0:12:20 > 0:12:22featuring a huge number of suspects.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26The claim involved a coach crash
0:12:26 > 0:12:32and 35 claimants from that coach, all who were claiming personal injury.
0:12:32 > 0:12:36I believe the insurance company had a reserve on all of the claims
0:12:36 > 0:12:38together at around £150,000.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43According to the claimants, they were travelling by coach
0:12:43 > 0:12:46to a dog track when they were rear-ended by a car...
0:12:47 > 0:12:50..causing them serious whiplash-type injuries.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52The car driver accepted responsibility
0:12:52 > 0:12:55and the claims were made against his insurers.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59They contacted the coach driver to get his side of the story.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02And, almost immediately, alarm bells started to ring.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07What concerned the driver was the fact that he didn't feel an impact
0:13:07 > 0:13:11and that he was alerted by passengers sitting on the back-seat.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14He was confused as to how they knew there had been an impact
0:13:14 > 0:13:16when there was an advertisement on the back window
0:13:16 > 0:13:20and you couldn't physically see out of the back of the coach.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23It was almost as if they were expecting it
0:13:23 > 0:13:24and knew it was going to happen.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30It seemed strange that 35 people could have been badly injured
0:13:30 > 0:13:33from an impact that he hadn't even felt.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35And further doubts were raised by the behaviour of the claimants
0:13:35 > 0:13:38immediately after the alleged collision.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41All of the males decided that they wanted to go back to the pub
0:13:41 > 0:13:43and didn't want to continue to the trip that they had
0:13:43 > 0:13:45arranged at the local dog track.
0:13:45 > 0:13:46Driver of the coach witnessed them all
0:13:46 > 0:13:48running across a busy dual carriageway
0:13:48 > 0:13:52and hurdling the central reservation to run back into that pub.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56So, it would seem that their injuries were not as they had
0:13:56 > 0:13:58claimed at the time.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02The insurers strongly suspected that a large-scale fraud was being
0:14:02 > 0:14:07attempted so they declined the claim and referred the case to Ifed.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10An investigation was launched into the suspected ringleaders.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13We looked at Ben Carberry, we knew he was responsible
0:14:13 > 0:14:17for booking the dog track and also booking the coach on the night.
0:14:17 > 0:14:20We looked at Liam Gray and we looked at Kevin Hamilton,
0:14:20 > 0:14:22the driver of the other vehicle.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27We could see there was a definite link between all three males.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30They were ringing one another, texting one another,
0:14:30 > 0:14:35one or two hours before the collision and afterwards, that evening.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37Ifed was convinced that they were dealing with fraud
0:14:37 > 0:14:39on an almost industrial scale.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44Mark and his colleagues moved in to arrest Carberry and Gray,
0:14:44 > 0:14:46starting at the property of a relative of Gray,
0:14:46 > 0:14:49which they believed was his home address.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51KNOCKING
0:14:51 > 0:14:53Police! Come down.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59- Is Liam here?- Liam?
0:14:59 > 0:15:01- No?- Maybe.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03It seemed that they had drawn a blank
0:15:03 > 0:15:05but Ifed officers aren't easily discouraged.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09At the end of the day, we need to speak to him.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11We'll catch up with him sooner or later.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14Basically, we've gone into the address,
0:15:14 > 0:15:16all our checks showed that he was still living there.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20She's saying he's not living there, he doesn't live there.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24Still to come, Mark's persistence pays off
0:15:24 > 0:15:26when he eventually finds one of the suspects
0:15:26 > 0:15:28holed up in a toilet.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30Does he often hide in your en-suite?
0:15:30 > 0:15:34It must be a bit scary for you when you come in at night.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41No-one enjoys being office bound,
0:15:41 > 0:15:45so it makes a nice change to hold a meeting off-site.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49Feeling chipper, a man insured with Assurant Solutions decided
0:15:49 > 0:15:53to host a high-powered business meeting in a fast-food restaurant.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56What happened next left a nasty taste in his mouth.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01Andy Morris works for the insurers involved.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07This particular claim, our agents received notification that
0:16:07 > 0:16:08the claimant had lost
0:16:08 > 0:16:11two mobile phones and a wallet.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16With the loss of these phones worth almost £1,000,
0:16:16 > 0:16:18it was far from being a happy meal
0:16:18 > 0:16:21but his insurance policy meant he could put in a claim.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23During the initial call,
0:16:23 > 0:16:27he explained that both phones had gone missing from the same pocket.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50Our agents are trained to treat customers fairly,
0:16:50 > 0:16:55so, despite our concerns and our fraud triggers questioning
0:16:55 > 0:17:00the size of the claimant's pocket, we processed the claim.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04But if he thought he could pocket an easy pay-out, he was wrong.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06Following standard procedure,
0:17:06 > 0:17:09his previous insurance history was analysed.
0:17:09 > 0:17:14In this case, the claimant had had two very recent,
0:17:14 > 0:17:16successful claims for high-end smartphones.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20That was one of the key triggers in this case.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24It seemed that the businessman had something of an appetite for insurance claims.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26Meanwhile,
0:17:26 > 0:17:29he was trying to pressurise the company into a quick pay-out.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44Assurant Solutions launched an investigation
0:17:44 > 0:17:47to look into the circumstances of his claim more closely.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51The claimant told us that they had gone to the restaurant manager
0:17:51 > 0:17:55and asked if anybody had handed the phone in and they left their details.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Sounds reasonable, apart from the fact that it didn't happen.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16When we checked and telephoned the restaurant,
0:18:16 > 0:18:19there was no such evidence or no such record.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23And further enquiries threw up more question marks.
0:18:23 > 0:18:28During this time, we identified that the exact same claimant
0:18:28 > 0:18:34was advertising the exact same phones on an online market place site.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37This wasn't a case of crossed lines, these were, beyond doubt,
0:18:37 > 0:18:39the two phones in question.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44We identify each of the phones through a unique identification number
0:18:44 > 0:18:49and we were able to prove that the two phones that were being
0:18:49 > 0:18:54sold and advertised on the market place were the very two phones
0:18:54 > 0:18:59that the claimant was claiming for that had disappeared from his pocket.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02The insurers simply weren't prepared to swallow the story
0:19:02 > 0:19:04that the phones had been lost.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08So we contacted the customer when we identified that
0:19:08 > 0:19:11he was attempting to sell the phones that he was claiming for.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15Quite clearly, it is a serious indication of fraud at this time
0:19:15 > 0:19:18and the claimant claimed that he was selling
0:19:18 > 0:19:22the phones on behalf of his brother and immediately withdrew the claim.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35In the face of the evidence against him, the businessman
0:19:35 > 0:19:39realised that he had bitten off more than he could chew.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43Whilst it is amusing that somebody is concocting a story
0:19:43 > 0:19:46that goes beyond the realms of belief and possibility,
0:19:46 > 0:19:50actually this costs the industry £2 billion a year.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53People making fraudulent claims around smartphones
0:19:53 > 0:19:55and devices is nearly £1 billion.
0:20:04 > 0:20:09Come winter time, the bad weather makes our streets treacherous.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13Around 6,000 road traffic collisions are thought to be caused by snow
0:20:13 > 0:20:17and ice annually, making it a busy time of year for motor insurers.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22Sarah Hill from insurance lawyers BLM dealt with a claim
0:20:22 > 0:20:25from an icy accident.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28This was a family affair claim.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31This was a road traffic accident where a mother was driving
0:20:31 > 0:20:34the vehicle, she was turning right, she lost control in the snow
0:20:34 > 0:20:39and collided with the fence on the corner property.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41She had two passengers,
0:20:41 > 0:20:44her daughter and a cousin, in the vehicle at the time of the accident
0:20:44 > 0:20:48and they both sustained injuries as a result of the impact with the fence.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Initially, given the weather conditions,
0:20:54 > 0:20:58the circumstance of the accident looked very plausible indeed.
0:20:58 > 0:21:02It wasn't until the statements started to come in from the driver
0:21:02 > 0:21:05of the vehicle, mother, and from the other two passengers
0:21:05 > 0:21:09that there were some clear inconsistencies in relation
0:21:09 > 0:21:12to the circumstances surrounding the accident.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17Anyone who has been in an accident knows how serious it is,
0:21:17 > 0:21:19so you would expect all three accounts to be the same,
0:21:19 > 0:21:23but in this case they couldn't even agree on the basics.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27In particular, one of the passengers had said that the vehicle had hit a wall,
0:21:27 > 0:21:31whereas the driver was saying that the vehicle had hit a fence.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34This inconsistency made a big impact on the insurers
0:21:34 > 0:21:36and they decided to put the claim on ice
0:21:36 > 0:21:41while an investigator was appointed to take detailed statements.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44Yet more discrepancies were revealed to the point
0:21:44 > 0:21:46where serious doubts began to creep in.
0:21:46 > 0:21:50All three individuals were telling us different things at different times.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54One was saying that the accident took place at 6.30 in the morning.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57Another was saying it was 7.30 in the morning.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00One of them said they were in a van at the time of the collision
0:22:00 > 0:22:04where it was clearly a car that was being claimed for.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Rule number one of trying to pull a fast-one on insurers,
0:22:07 > 0:22:09get your story straight.
0:22:09 > 0:22:14One of the individuals said that the vehicle had been driven from the scene.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17We know that was not correct because the owner of the property
0:22:17 > 0:22:21came out at 7am and found the abandoned vehicle in her property.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25The passengers had vanished but, thinking on her feet,
0:22:25 > 0:22:29the property owner videoed the scene and this was passed to the insurer.
0:22:32 > 0:22:37The claims were already suspicious, even before the video footage
0:22:37 > 0:22:41came in, but once that video footage had been seen it was quite clear
0:22:41 > 0:22:47that this accident, whilst had happened, the claims
0:22:47 > 0:22:52that were being presented by the two passengers clearly couldn't have been genuine.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57There was only one set of footprints in the snow
0:22:57 > 0:22:58leading away from the vehicle.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03The claimant was then informed about the content of the video
0:23:03 > 0:23:05and started to backtrack.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08The driver couldn't give any explanation
0:23:08 > 0:23:10for one set of footprints in the snow.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13It's very hard to think there's a rational explanation for one set
0:23:13 > 0:23:17of footprints unless, of course, we are suggesting that the driver
0:23:17 > 0:23:20was carrying her daughter and her cousin on her back
0:23:20 > 0:23:22from the scene of the accident.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24Wonder woman this wasn't.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29Instead, there was a much more likely reason for what had happened.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33The inconsistencies in the evidence indicated
0:23:33 > 0:23:39that this was a poor attempt by the claimants to cash in on injury claims for people
0:23:39 > 0:23:43that were not present in the vehicle at the time of the accident.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46In this particular case, when presented with the evidence
0:23:46 > 0:23:49the individuals decided, quite rightly,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51not to progress their claims.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54The chances of a pay-out had totally melted away
0:23:54 > 0:23:56and anyone thinking they could just walk away from this
0:23:56 > 0:24:01type of claim is risking more than a frosty reception from insurers.
0:24:01 > 0:24:05There is still a potential for those individuals
0:24:05 > 0:24:07to be criminally prosecuted for just bringing
0:24:07 > 0:24:11the claims in the first place because they were fabricated claims.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Previously, in Liverpool, Ifed's DS Mark Forster
0:24:20 > 0:24:23was on the trail of Liam Gray and Ben Carberry -
0:24:23 > 0:24:27two men suspected of masterminding a huge insurance scam
0:24:27 > 0:24:32involving coach passengers claiming for injuries in an accident that never happened.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35I believe the insurance company had a reserve on all of the claims
0:24:35 > 0:24:37together at around £150,000.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41Mark was being given the runaround.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43All our checks showed that he was still living there.
0:24:43 > 0:24:46She's saying he's not there, he doesn't live there.
0:24:46 > 0:24:51Through various enquiries, we managed to identify
0:24:51 > 0:24:56another address situated in the city centre of Liverpool.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59This was where they hoped to find Ben Carberry.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01Do you just live here on your own?
0:25:01 > 0:25:03The Ifed team believed that Liam might be with him
0:25:03 > 0:25:06and they immediately went to check out the flat.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Carberry was inside but there was no sign of Liam.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12Where's Liam?
0:25:12 > 0:25:13Is he in there?
0:25:13 > 0:25:15No.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18But he was there, hiding in an en-suite bathroom.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24Right, you are being arrested.
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Does he often hide in your en-suite, does he?
0:25:27 > 0:25:29It must be a bit scary for you.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31Have you got a mobile telephone? You'll get it back.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33Having flushed out both suspects,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36Mark started on the search for evidence,
0:25:36 > 0:25:39particularly the phones used on the night of the collision.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42He needed to categorically link the handsets to the suspects.
0:25:42 > 0:25:45The team now moved on to the final part of the raid,
0:25:45 > 0:25:49a search of Liam's actual home address. They didn't have to go far.
0:25:50 > 0:25:54I'm just going down now to a flat in the same building,
0:25:54 > 0:26:00which we know is a flat that is currently being occupied by Mr Gray.
0:26:01 > 0:26:03Police! Hello.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05With Liam under arrest upstairs,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08they weren't expecting to find anyone else in the flat
0:26:08 > 0:26:12but what they did find was more evidence in the form of driving documents.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15This particular driving licence is in the name of a gentleman
0:26:15 > 0:26:19who was driving the vehicle,
0:26:19 > 0:26:21driving the car that hit the coach at the rear.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26Though it was found in Liam Gray's flat, it belonged
0:26:26 > 0:26:29to Kevin Hamilton and was the breakthrough the case needed -
0:26:29 > 0:26:31the rock solid link between the two men.
0:26:31 > 0:26:36It's nice for us because it shows the association between the gentleman
0:26:36 > 0:26:40we have arrested today and the person who was driving the car.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44This association strongly pointed to fraud.
0:26:44 > 0:26:49There'd be no connection between the two parties in a genuine accident.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53Hello. Hello, mate. Are you all right?
0:26:53 > 0:26:55Yeah, we found a few nice bits and pieces
0:26:55 > 0:26:59all sort of scattered on the bed so it looks like he has had a tip-off that we are coming
0:26:59 > 0:27:02and he has rummaged through a load of stuff potentially
0:27:02 > 0:27:05with a view of getting rid of it but he's not done too good a job by the look of it.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09With the search completed,
0:27:09 > 0:27:14the suspects were then taken to a local police station for interviews.
0:27:14 > 0:27:15The raid had been a huge success
0:27:15 > 0:27:19and eventually Mark's investigation moved to the endgame, court.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24All three defendants, Liam Gray, Ben Carberry and Kevin Hamilton,
0:27:24 > 0:27:27pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud
0:27:27 > 0:27:30in relation to this coach crash.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32All three defendants received
0:27:32 > 0:27:35terms of imprisonment at Southwark Crown Court.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38Liam Gray was sentenced to 14 months' imprisonment,
0:27:38 > 0:27:40Ben Carberry 11 months
0:27:40 > 0:27:43and Kevin Hamilton a four-month prison sentence.
0:27:47 > 0:27:52These three defendants were all young men with their whole lives in front of them.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56This one moment of stupidity in organising a fraud,
0:27:56 > 0:27:58which was essentially for greed,
0:27:58 > 0:28:01has potentially affected the rest of their lives.