0:00:06 > 0:00:09Insurance fraud has reached epidemic levels in the UK.
0:00:09 > 0:00:14It's costing us more than £1.3 billion every year.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17That's almost £3.6 million every day.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24Deliberate crashes, bogus personal injuries, even phantom pets.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29The fraudsters are risking more and more to make a quick killing.
0:00:29 > 0:00:34And every year, it's adding around £50 to your insurance bill.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36But insurers are fighting back,
0:00:36 > 0:00:39exposing just under 15 fake claims every hour.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42Armed with covert surveillance systems...
0:00:42 > 0:00:44Subject out the vehicle.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47..sophisticated data analysis techniques...
0:00:47 > 0:00:49SHOUTING
0:00:49 > 0:00:51..and a number of highly skilled police units..
0:00:51 > 0:00:53Police! Don't move! Stay where you are!
0:00:53 > 0:00:55..they're catching the criminals red-handed.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Just don't lie to us.
0:00:58 > 0:00:59All those conmen,
0:00:59 > 0:01:03scammers and cheats on the fiddle are now caught in the act...
0:01:03 > 0:01:04and claimed and shamed.
0:01:10 > 0:01:16Today, a car-con's dodgy insurance policies are uncovered...
0:01:16 > 0:01:19If you write off your car
0:01:19 > 0:01:21when you have one of these policies,
0:01:21 > 0:01:24the cost of the damage will have to be borne by you.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27And a phoney caller is encouraged to come clean.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43Now matter how experienced you are behind the wheel,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45every time you take to the road, there's a risk.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48Motor insurance offers customers protection
0:01:48 > 0:01:50in the event of an accident.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53Fraudsters have long being targeting the car insurance industry,
0:01:53 > 0:01:58but one particular scam, known as "ghost broking", is a major issue.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01A ghost broker will pretend to be a licensed insurance broker
0:02:01 > 0:02:04and obtain a cheap policy using false information.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06He'll then sell you what appears to be
0:02:06 > 0:02:09a genuine insurance policy at a bargain price.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13But what you actually receive is a completely bogus certificate
0:02:13 > 0:02:18offering zero cover that's not worth the paper it's printed on.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22If you buy one of these fake policies in good faith,
0:02:22 > 0:02:24the law is crystal clear.
0:02:24 > 0:02:29John Beadle knows the consequences of this scam can be severe.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31The bottom line with this is that
0:02:31 > 0:02:34if you write off your car
0:02:34 > 0:02:35when you have one of these policies,
0:02:35 > 0:02:38you will be un-covered,
0:02:38 > 0:02:41and the cost of the damage, or the loss of your car,
0:02:41 > 0:02:45will have to be borne by you, because you will be uninsured.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Purchasing a spurious policy from a ghost broker
0:02:48 > 0:02:51could be a financially devastating way
0:02:51 > 0:02:54to try and save a few quid on your car insurance.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56Meet Jeffrey Derek King.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01He used to hire cars to people, sell jewellery...
0:03:01 > 0:03:05A wheeler-dealer who could even sell you a cheap car insurance policy.
0:03:05 > 0:03:10But his deals on wheels weren't all they were cracked up to be.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13Mr King came to our attention because we spotted a number
0:03:13 > 0:03:16of unusual patterns in new policies being taken on
0:03:16 > 0:03:19via authorised garage outlets,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23where you purchase a new car, and they will
0:03:23 > 0:03:25issue you with a policy of insurance.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28He would continually contact our company,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31disguising his identity, but obviously he leaves footprints
0:03:31 > 0:03:35and patterns, telephone numbers, and so forth,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38which linked him together.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41With alarm bells ringing, John's team dug deeper.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44And they discovered 50 policies all connected
0:03:44 > 0:03:46by one mobile phone number.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49They all led back to a website operated by King.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52And in the end we put together
0:03:52 > 0:03:55a comprehensive intelligence package on him.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58And then, having identified who he actually was,
0:03:58 > 0:04:00and then referred that to IFED.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06IFED is the City of London Police's
0:04:06 > 0:04:09Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11A dedicated team of detectives dedicated to stopping
0:04:11 > 0:04:14insurance fraud cheats.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17There's ever more sophisticated detection tools being used by
0:04:17 > 0:04:18the industry.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21We're getting more and more cases every day.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26This elite squad has prevented millions of pounds being paid
0:04:26 > 0:04:28out to criminals in fraudulent claims.
0:04:29 > 0:04:34From now on, insurance cheats needs to look over their shoulders.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38It's all fraud, it's all crime, and it can all lead to prison.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Police! Don't move! Stay where you are!
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Simon Styles is IFED's financial investigator,
0:04:45 > 0:04:48and was part of the team that took on the case.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52RSA's enquiries had already identified that King was behaving
0:04:52 > 0:04:55very suspiciously by making dozens of calls to them
0:04:55 > 0:04:57under various guises.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02So, the first thing that IFED detectives did was to take
0:05:02 > 0:05:04a closer look at his business activities.
0:05:05 > 0:05:09From the outside, Jeffrey King appeared to be
0:05:09 > 0:05:12a hard-working individual, an entrepreneur, if you like.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16IFED quickly established that King had his fingers in lots of pies.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20But it was one of his online enterprises
0:05:20 > 0:05:22that stood out in particular.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Mr King had advertised for
0:05:25 > 0:05:27the selling of insurance
0:05:27 > 0:05:29on 28 occasions via the internet.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Those companies were checked and details from that were taken
0:05:33 > 0:05:38which showed that Jeffrey King was behind those advertisements.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41And it was from that that the investigation really took
0:05:41 > 0:05:43a step forward.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45King many have been a man of many trades,
0:05:45 > 0:05:49but licensed insurance broker wasn't one of them.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51He was selling fake insurance policies which
0:05:51 > 0:05:55unlucky recipients believed to be 100% genuine.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58IFED quickly sussed out that King was taking advantage of
0:05:58 > 0:06:02a special offer available at certain car dealerships,
0:06:02 > 0:06:04where customers who'd brought brand-new cars
0:06:04 > 0:06:08could claim a week's free insurance cover.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11He just obtained the dealer code off a flyer
0:06:11 > 0:06:13at any dealership.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15He was then able to ring RSA, purporting to be anybody,
0:06:15 > 0:06:18and having the details of a registration number,
0:06:18 > 0:06:20was able to obtain free seven-day cover.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22And as a result of that,
0:06:22 > 0:06:25received, by e-mail, the cover.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27And it's from that cover he would sell on to
0:06:27 > 0:06:30unsuspecting members of the public.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33So, King had a source of genuine certificates
0:06:33 > 0:06:35he acquired with false information.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38He then doctored the document with the details of the individual
0:06:38 > 0:06:42he intended to pass the worthless policy off to.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45But, little did he know, that IFED were on to him.
0:06:45 > 0:06:46And with his MO revealed,
0:06:46 > 0:06:48it wasn't long before the case against King
0:06:48 > 0:06:51started to accelerate.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53I was able to link
0:06:53 > 0:06:56the certificates that were purchased by
0:06:56 > 0:07:00Mr King to money that was placed in his account.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03That came to just over £65,000.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07As a financial investigator, it's Simon's job to look for
0:07:07 > 0:07:11connections between suspected fraudsters and their income.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15And in the case of King, there was no shortage of evidence.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18By now, we had obtained evidence that Jeffrey king was acting
0:07:18 > 0:07:20as a ghost broker.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22We decided to visit his home address
0:07:22 > 0:07:24and ask him directly what he was up to.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30On the 6th December 2013, officers from IFED carried out
0:07:30 > 0:07:35two early-morning raids on addresses linked to Jeffrey Derek King.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38DS Craig Mullish heads up a team
0:07:38 > 0:07:40that raids his home address.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42The plan of action today is to execute
0:07:42 > 0:07:46a warrant in Chadwell Heath, Essex, and in addition to that,
0:07:46 > 0:07:50simultaneously, there'll be another warrant executed in East London.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53The element of surprise is crucial to a successful raid.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58Targeting multiple addresses at the same time prevents
0:07:58 > 0:08:01communication between any of the suspects, and minimises the
0:08:01 > 0:08:05risk of potentially damning evidence from being destroyed.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08All our enquiries linked Mr King to the family address.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12Just before the raids took place, I identified another address
0:08:12 > 0:08:14that he'd recently moved to.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17And so we decided to knock on two doors
0:08:17 > 0:08:21on the day of Mr King's arrest.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24Over in East London, DC Alex Cooley is leading the raid
0:08:24 > 0:08:27on King's second potential location.
0:08:27 > 0:08:28We have to remain on our guard.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31We have no reason to believe the suspect is aware that we're
0:08:31 > 0:08:33going to be turning up early in the morning,
0:08:33 > 0:08:36so he could react in any one of a whole number of ways.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40Today, the evidence that we'll be looking for would be
0:08:40 > 0:08:45computers and any device capable of storing data.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Together with documentation relating to insurance policies.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55It's not uncommon for suspects to make a dash for it.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57So, before knocking on the door,
0:08:57 > 0:09:00officers get into position to cover all escape routes.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03- Good morning.- Morning.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05HE KNOCKS
0:09:05 > 0:09:08Oh, hi. Morning to you. City of London Police.
0:09:09 > 0:09:12DS Mullish enters King's home address,
0:09:12 > 0:09:14placing him under arrest on suspicion of fraud.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18The team then search King's home...
0:09:20 > 0:09:24..and after three hours emerge with several bags of key evidence.
0:09:26 > 0:09:27Having swept King's property,
0:09:27 > 0:09:29DS Mullish inspects his car
0:09:29 > 0:09:32for further incriminating documents.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34From what you say...
0:09:34 > 0:09:36- Yeah.- ..we're not going to see anything in this car, right?
0:09:36 > 0:09:38- Yeah, yeah, yeah.- Yeah?- Yeah.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42- You stay there.- OK.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50Despite King's casual attitude,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54it doesn't take long to find even more evidence.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57The document seized from the suspect's vehicle is
0:09:57 > 0:10:01a copy of an insurance document in another person's name,
0:10:01 > 0:10:02other than the suspect,
0:10:02 > 0:10:07which is further evidence of the crime that we're looking into today.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10With a hefty haul of evidence bagged and tagged,
0:10:10 > 0:10:13it's loaded up, along with King.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17The evidence that we've found today relates to various insurance policy
0:10:17 > 0:10:20documentation in other peoples' names apart from the suspect.
0:10:20 > 0:10:24Which is good evidence to suggest they are absolutely linked
0:10:24 > 0:10:27into the investigation that we're currently undertaking,
0:10:27 > 0:10:31and we've also seized mobile phones and electrical devices.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Motor documentation, MOT certificates.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36All in all, very good evidence.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41Over in east London, DC Cooley and his team have searched King's
0:10:41 > 0:10:44family home, which has been equally successful.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48We found documentation relating to motor insurance policies,
0:10:48 > 0:10:51we found a letter reportedly written by the suspect
0:10:51 > 0:10:56to an insurance company brokering terms and conditions
0:10:56 > 0:10:58on behalf of a reported client.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03The haul of evidence meant the brakes had been well and
0:11:03 > 0:11:06truly applied to King's operation.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09We found a large number of
0:11:09 > 0:11:10bogus certificates.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13We found original certificates that had been scanned and changed,
0:11:13 > 0:11:15and these details had been sent to
0:11:15 > 0:11:17unsuspecting members of the public,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20to drive around without any cover whatsoever.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25This was the evidence IFED needed to take King offline for good.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29When given the opportunity to tell his side of the story,
0:11:29 > 0:11:32King refused to break down.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35He tried to justify the certificates
0:11:35 > 0:11:38in his possession by making no comment.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41He made no comment throughout the investigation.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43He thought it would go away.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45But it wasn't going to.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47The case proceeded to court, at the Old Bailey,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50where King pleaded not guilty to three counts of fraud by
0:11:50 > 0:11:54false representation, and one count of money laundering.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57But the evidence was overwhelming.
0:11:57 > 0:12:01Jeffrey King was found guilty by a unanimous verdict and
0:12:01 > 0:12:03he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08King's illegal sales of fake insurance policies had been
0:12:08 > 0:12:10shut down for good.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15For Simon, it was the end of a long, complex investigation.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17But his work wasn't quite done yet.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20It was my job to follow the money.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23I found that Mr King had made an awful lot of money
0:12:23 > 0:12:25from criminal activity.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28I managed to return £20,000 to victims of crime.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31Job well done.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34Jeffrey King thought no-one would come knocking at his door.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38He was wrong. This is a message to everyone out there who is thinking,
0:12:38 > 0:12:41or is committing, insurance fraud, that we won't stand for it.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44Like Mr King, we'll follow you, we'll track you down,
0:12:44 > 0:12:48we'll knock on your door, and you will be sentenced and convicted,
0:12:48 > 0:12:52and spend time behind bars to think on where you went wrong.
0:12:58 > 0:13:03Later, a man is prepared to reverse into another motorist - twice -
0:13:03 > 0:13:04for a pay-out.
0:13:04 > 0:13:05It makes me angry.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08This fraud is... Well, it's disgraceful, really.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15Often, it's the first thing we reach for when we wake up
0:13:15 > 0:13:18and the last thing we look at before we go to sleep.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Smartphones are now an integral part of modern life.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25But, with handsets costing around £500,
0:13:25 > 0:13:28they are a high-value commodity which insurance cheats
0:13:28 > 0:13:31have identified as an easy way to make a quick buck.
0:13:32 > 0:13:37Whether you're calling, texting, e-mailing, sharing, surfing,
0:13:37 > 0:13:39or streaming, today's smartphone
0:13:39 > 0:13:42is something many just can't live without.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46So, what happens if your device gets accidentally damaged, or ditched?
0:13:48 > 0:13:52Luckily, there are people like Andy Morris at Assurant Solutions
0:13:52 > 0:13:55who protect our phones against all manner of device disasters.
0:13:56 > 0:14:00Andy's team received one particular call from a customer
0:14:00 > 0:14:03who'd made a few phone faux pas in quick succession.
0:14:05 > 0:14:09The very first claim that this individual submitted to us
0:14:09 > 0:14:16was for a loss of an iPhone which would have a value of over £500.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20That was assessed on its own merits and the claim was accepted.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22Amazingly, within a week,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26the claimant telephoned us back again to process a claim.
0:14:26 > 0:14:30So the claimant had previously said that his first phone
0:14:30 > 0:14:32had been stolen from his workplace.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35He then submitted a second claim, stating he'd left
0:14:35 > 0:14:39the replacement handset on the bus while on the way into work.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41Now, once is unlucky,
0:14:41 > 0:14:44but to lose two phones in as many weeks raised suspicion.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48Our fraud team felt it was worthwhile
0:14:48 > 0:14:51investigating a little further.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54With the claimant's run of bad luck not ringing true,
0:14:54 > 0:14:57a claims investigator gave him a call
0:14:57 > 0:15:00to talk through the details of his most recent claim.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28It seemed like a plausible story,
0:15:28 > 0:15:32but Andy's team had been doing their homework and it appeared
0:15:32 > 0:15:35the handsets have more in common than just their make and model.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Upon further investigation of the second claim
0:15:40 > 0:15:44and reviewing both the second claim and now the first claim,
0:15:44 > 0:15:47it became very clear that both devices
0:15:47 > 0:15:50had been sold to the same recycling shop.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54This information was put to the claimant.
0:16:39 > 0:16:45Our fraud agents had received the information from the recycling shop.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50Not only the receipts of the transaction but, also, the identity
0:16:50 > 0:16:55and the documentation that the claimant had provided to that shop.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58The claimant hadn't just sold on his phones,
0:16:58 > 0:17:00he'd inadvertently sold himself out
0:17:00 > 0:17:04by providing the recycling shop with his genuine personal details.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08Armed with this knowledge, it was time to take the challenge to him.
0:17:34 > 0:17:40During the call, the claims handler provides lots of opportunity
0:17:40 > 0:17:42for the claimant to be honest.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46He actually declines to take that opportunity.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51While the claimant is given the chance to press cancel on his lie,
0:17:51 > 0:17:53he refuses to tell the truth.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56But it isn't long before he pushes redial,
0:17:56 > 0:17:58managing to get through to a claims handler
0:17:58 > 0:18:01who's unfamiliar with the case.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04The claimant, unprompted,
0:18:04 > 0:18:09then telephones back and asked to speak to our claims handler.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14And it would be a call the claims handler would never forget.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30OK. Let's hear that one more time.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54The claimant had attempted a successful claim, initially,
0:18:54 > 0:18:58and then, effectively, tried it on again.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02As the claimant talks through details of his admission,
0:19:02 > 0:19:04the full extent of the fraud becomes clear.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27After selling his first phone to a recycling shop,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30the claimant has then sold the replacement handset
0:19:30 > 0:19:31to the same store
0:19:31 > 0:19:34and attempted to make separate insurance claims
0:19:34 > 0:19:36for both devices.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52He then has a discussion with our claims handler
0:19:52 > 0:19:57to ask about what would be the consequences of his behaviour.
0:20:13 > 0:20:19This claimant, actually, is noticeably concerned
0:20:19 > 0:20:22about the potential consequence of his fraudulent behaviour.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38Er, maybe not the next best time to be asking for an upgrade.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51Due to the customer's honesty, it resulted in us
0:20:51 > 0:20:55not needing to do any more investigation in this case
0:20:55 > 0:20:58and the claimant withdrew their claim.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01On this occasion, the claimant had a lucky escape.
0:21:01 > 0:21:03It could easily have been a different story,
0:21:03 > 0:21:07as the insurer could have blacklisted, or prosecuted him,
0:21:07 > 0:21:08for attempted fraud.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15Now, how do you do your grocery shopping?
0:21:15 > 0:21:18I know Sunday evenings wouldn't be the same for my wife and I
0:21:18 > 0:21:21without a cup of tea and a bit of an online shop.
0:21:21 > 0:21:23I am a hopeless romantic.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Well, one in four of us now do our main food shop online.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29And, to meet demand, supermarkets have introduced
0:21:29 > 0:21:33thousands of new commercial delivery vehicles to UK roads.
0:21:33 > 0:21:36While this service has been eaten up by customers,
0:21:36 > 0:21:40it also provided a tasty target for insurance cheats,
0:21:40 > 0:21:42who caused deliberate crashes.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44A practice known as "crash for cash".
0:21:46 > 0:21:47You might be wondering
0:21:47 > 0:21:50why fraudsters would target delivery vehicles
0:21:50 > 0:21:54It's a subject Tom Gardiner is well versed in.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56In the past, commercial vehicles have been deliberately targeted
0:21:56 > 0:21:59by fraudsters because they know that they will be insured
0:21:59 > 0:22:03and that they are likely to get a pay-out.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06With delivery drivers clocking up so many miles every day,
0:22:06 > 0:22:09the risk of incident is high.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13Just like the one involving a car and an Iceland delivery van
0:22:13 > 0:22:15in Luton, in 2014.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18The initial claim that was reported by Mr Hussein
0:22:18 > 0:22:22was for damage to his vehicle and for whiplash injuries,
0:22:22 > 0:22:24following what appeared to be, on the face of it,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27a straightforward rear-end shunt at a junction.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30It looked like an everyday claim.
0:22:30 > 0:22:35A whiplash injury may be worth £1,500-£3,000.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38It may have appeared to have been a run of the mill accident
0:22:38 > 0:22:40but Mr Hussein didn't waste any time
0:22:40 > 0:22:44in getting in touch with Iceland store manager Ian Bisby.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47The driver of the vehicle called me and told me
0:22:47 > 0:22:50that my driver had driven into him.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53He said, my driver hadn't stopped at a T-junction,
0:22:53 > 0:22:55damaged his car and he had a witness.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00And that he wanted our insurance details to take the matter further.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04But it wasn't long before Ian was to hear a different story.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06Within moments, my driver called me
0:23:06 > 0:23:08and said a customer reversed into him.
0:23:08 > 0:23:09On the face of it, I thought,
0:23:09 > 0:23:11the customer's probably more plausible.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14He was stationary at a T-junction. My driver approached him.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17My driver hit him. That's the way I probably would have viewed it.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21The driver in question was Ashley Dissan.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24And he wasn't about to let his side of the story be discounted.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27I saw his reversing lights come on.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29And I thought it was a little bit strange.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31You know, seeing as though we were at a set of lights.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35The only way forward is forwards.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38And then he'd come back so far that the impact had happened,
0:23:38 > 0:23:42he rolled forward, I thought, OK, maybe he just got stuck in gear.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44And then I saw the reversing lights come on again.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47When he started coming back, that's where it, kind of,
0:23:47 > 0:23:50hit me that he's just not stopping.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52I was just lost for words. I got out of the van
0:23:52 > 0:23:55and I, obviously, asked him "What were you doing?"
0:23:56 > 0:23:59He said, "I tried to get it into gear and it got stuck into reverse."
0:23:59 > 0:24:03"I do apologise." I was, like, "OK. That's fair enough."
0:24:03 > 0:24:05He took responsibility.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09After that, we just followed on with exchanging insurance details.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12He may have been apologetic at the scene of the accident,
0:24:12 > 0:24:14but that didn't last long.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17It was Ashley's word against Mr Hussein's.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20However, Ashley did have an all-seeing ally
0:24:20 > 0:24:22who would reveal the truth.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25What was unusual about this particular case was,
0:24:25 > 0:24:28over and above our driver's evidence,
0:24:28 > 0:24:31there was dash-cam evidence from our driver's van.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35What the dash-cam footage revealed was that this wasn't
0:24:35 > 0:24:38a straightforward rear-end shunt, at all.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42Dash-cams have been commonplace in commercial vehicles for years.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45And what this one revealed was that Mr Hussein
0:24:45 > 0:24:49was telling porky pies bigger than any Ashley's van was carrying.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52So, let's see what actually happened.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55It's a row of traffic. Everyone's got their brake lights on.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58Looks like they're waiting to go on to the main road in Luton
0:24:58 > 0:25:02Oh! The car in front of my driver reversed back into him.
0:25:02 > 0:25:04For no particular reason.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08The car hit Ashley's van.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11Mr Hussein may have lied about how the accident happened
0:25:11 > 0:25:15but, maybe, the act itself was genuine driver error.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17He's just put a brake light on
0:25:17 > 0:25:20and he's reversing again. Into my van.
0:25:21 > 0:25:22It's the second time.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28It seems that Mr Hussein was running a buy-one, get-one-free special
0:25:28 > 0:25:30on shunts that day.
0:25:30 > 0:25:31It was conclusive evidence
0:25:31 > 0:25:35that Ashley's version of events checked out.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39Well, it makes me angry because the gentleman told me quite clearly
0:25:39 > 0:25:41my driver drove into him.
0:25:41 > 0:25:43It's fraud. It's disgraceful, really.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46The camera never lies.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49And with Mr Hussein's deception discovered,
0:25:49 > 0:25:52he was in for a nasty shock.
0:25:52 > 0:25:56Mr Hussein was trying to submit a fraudulent claim for damage
0:25:56 > 0:26:00to his vehicle and for a whiplash compensation.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03In this case, the evidence was so overwhelming that,
0:26:03 > 0:26:08not content with just repudiating the claim, we then presented
0:26:08 > 0:26:12the case to the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department to prosecute.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16The IFED team were successful in bringing the case against
0:26:16 > 0:26:19this fraudster and justice was delivered.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22At court, Mr Hussein pleaded guilty to fraud
0:26:22 > 0:26:25and he received 100 hours community service,
0:26:25 > 0:26:29over and above not receiving a penny pay-out himself.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32Mr Hussein actually had to repay his own insurers for the damage
0:26:32 > 0:26:36that he had caused to his own vehicle, as well.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Mr Hussein's attempt at fraud could have had severe consequences
0:26:39 > 0:26:42for Ashley and his family.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45We treat safety of our customers very importantly.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48The driver in question could have gone down the disciplinary route
0:26:48 > 0:26:51and, possibly, lost his job, if we felt he was lying to us
0:26:51 > 0:26:54in an investigation or causing an avoidable accident.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58He's a driver by trade and his future employer might say,
0:26:58 > 0:27:01"Why did you leave your last job?" "I was sacked for crashing a van."
0:27:01 > 0:27:04The dash-cam may have saved Ashley's bacon
0:27:04 > 0:27:07but he had already suffered needless stress.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11I was always questioning whether I'm going to get that dreaded line
0:27:11 > 0:27:15of, "I'm sorry, unfortunately, you've lost your job."
0:27:17 > 0:27:21But, luckily for me, with the equipment of the dash-cams,
0:27:21 > 0:27:25I'm here today and, obviously, going to be here tomorrow.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34Nobody likes paying more than we have to for everyday services,
0:27:34 > 0:27:37but this is exactly what's happening with insurance fraud.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40Scammers and conmen are swindling their way to pay-outs
0:27:40 > 0:27:41that they don't deserve.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44The knock-on effect is that the extra costs result in ever
0:27:44 > 0:27:46increasing premiums.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49We're getting hit in the pocket and it's not just organised
0:27:49 > 0:27:50criminal gangs to blame.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54Exaggerated household claims also take their toll.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56But instead of getting away with it,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00more and more of these fraudsters are being Claimed And Shamed.