0:00:05 > 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 > 0:00:29..the fraudsters are risking more and more to make a quick killing,
0:00:29 > 0:00:33and every year, it's adding around £50 to your insurance bill.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35But insurers are fighting back,
0:00:35 > 0:00:39exposing just under 15 fake claims every hour.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42Armed with covert surveillance systems...
0:00:42 > 0:00:43Subject out of vehicle.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46..sophisticated data analysis techniques...
0:00:48 > 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.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01All those conmen, scammers and cheats on the fiddle
0:01:01 > 0:01:03are now caught in the act...
0:01:03 > 0:01:04and claimed and shamed.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15Ifed raid the home of a suspected fraudster.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Not commonplace to keep laptops in your bathroom, is it?
0:01:21 > 0:01:24..and CCTV catches out a would-be fraudster
0:01:24 > 0:01:27eyeing up an opportunity to make some easy money...
0:01:27 > 0:01:32That, to us, could look like he was searching for a suitable trip point.
0:01:32 > 0:01:33..and a professional horse rider,
0:01:33 > 0:01:36who claims an accident left her unable to ride,
0:01:36 > 0:01:40puts in an award-winning performance.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55All sorts of things can affect how much your car insurance will cost.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58Do you a garage? What do you do for a living? How old are you?
0:01:58 > 0:02:02One big factor, though, is location, location, location.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05If you live on an inner-city street with high rates of car crime,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08you are going to pay a lot more for you car insurance
0:02:08 > 0:02:12than if you live in a remote village where cars might break down but are rarely broken into.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16It's all about risk.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20Unfortunately, there are those out there who try to bypass this risk
0:02:20 > 0:02:22factor in order to make money.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27A ghost broker is a middleman who will sell someone a policy
0:02:27 > 0:02:31but then lie to the insurance providers about their details.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34So they might say a person lived in rural Hampshire
0:02:34 > 0:02:37when really they live in the city centre.
0:02:37 > 0:02:42They'll buy a very cheap policy, then sell it on for a tidy profit.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44However, the cover is worthless,
0:02:44 > 0:02:48as many of the driver's details are totally made up.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52That driver will think they're insured, but if they try and claim,
0:02:52 > 0:02:55they'll soon find out that their policy is invalid.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02It is, of course, totally illegal, but something that Tom Gardiner,
0:03:02 > 0:03:06head of fraud at Aviva, has seen too many times.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11This type of insurance fraud is particularly abhorrent because
0:03:11 > 0:03:17it exploits and preys on the most vulnerable people in society.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22They're sold policies and insurance which, when they need them, are worthless.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25And everybody else is paying additional premiums because of
0:03:25 > 0:03:27this type of activity.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33Back in 2013, the team at Aviva started getting suspicious
0:03:33 > 0:03:35that they were being targeted by a ghost broker.
0:03:38 > 0:03:43What alerted us was when we tied a number of motor insurance policies
0:03:43 > 0:03:45to just three bank accounts,
0:03:45 > 0:03:47and things unravelled quickly from there.
0:03:47 > 0:03:53Eventually, we were able to link over 150 policies to the same scam.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57Tom and his team investigated the three bank accounts
0:03:57 > 0:04:00that had been used on all these policies.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03This led them to one name - Mr Maur Dumitru.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09They quickly established exactly what they thought he'd been up to.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12What Dumitru was doing,
0:04:12 > 0:04:16alongside his job as a scrap metal worker in Manchester,
0:04:16 > 0:04:21was taking out bogus motor insurance policies with Aviva
0:04:21 > 0:04:23for friends and family,
0:04:23 > 0:04:28he was deliberately grossly misrepresenting those policies
0:04:28 > 0:04:30to get cheap cover.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33These policies were entirely worthless to the people
0:04:33 > 0:04:34that he was acting for.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39One of the big things that Dumitru would lie about was where the people
0:04:39 > 0:04:42he was getting policies for lived.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47Manchester is an expensive place to get your car insured,
0:04:47 > 0:04:51so he would say that they lived in the Scottish Highlands.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55But he didn't always do his research particularly thoroughly.
0:04:55 > 0:05:01In one instance, Dumitru had taken out 62 policies in a street
0:05:01 > 0:05:04that only had 28 residences.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07It was abundantly clear to Tom and his team
0:05:07 > 0:05:09that they'd found their ghost broker.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14Once we'd connected all of the policies to Dumitru,
0:05:14 > 0:05:19we put together an evidence pack and handed it out over to Ifed.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22The Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department, or Ifed,
0:05:22 > 0:05:24is a specialist police unit
0:05:24 > 0:05:26dedicated to tackling insurance fraud.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30They'll use their expertise, detective work
0:05:30 > 0:05:33and financial investigation to come after anyone committing
0:05:33 > 0:05:37insurance fraud, be it for a few pounds or several million.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Sergeant Steven Holland and other Ifed officers picked up the case
0:05:42 > 0:05:46from Aviva and wasted no time in starting their investigations.
0:05:47 > 0:05:53Ifed immediately began research into Mr Dumitru's bank accounts to see if
0:05:53 > 0:05:56money was going in and out to Aviva.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59We also checked computer and telephone records
0:05:59 > 0:06:04to see if any communication between himself and Aviva was happening
0:06:04 > 0:06:07so we could substantiate the claims.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10The police needed to prove indisputably
0:06:10 > 0:06:13that Dumitru was the ghost broker.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17And it didn't take long for this proof to emerge.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21The key piece of evidence that we used was the computer,
0:06:21 > 0:06:24and being able to trace the address of the computer
0:06:24 > 0:06:29and some reasonably basic checks revealed Mr Dumitru's home address.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32The police had all they needed.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34They knew that Mr Dumitru's home computer
0:06:34 > 0:06:37had been the one used to set up all of those policies.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41All they needed to do now was to go out and arrest him.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51It's 7am, and two of Ifed's finest, Detective Sergeant Tom Hill
0:06:51 > 0:06:53and Detective Chief Inspector David Wood,
0:06:53 > 0:06:57are on their way to Dumitru's house to apprehend him.
0:06:58 > 0:07:02So, we've got a search warrant to search and we'll seize computer
0:07:02 > 0:07:06equipment and mobile phones that we believe were used
0:07:06 > 0:07:09to take out the policies.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12A raid like this is always tense.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15On any knock like this, we like to get in as quick as we can.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19It's very important for all sorts of reasons -
0:07:19 > 0:07:21officer safety, safety of the occupants,
0:07:21 > 0:07:24and also for securing evidence -
0:07:24 > 0:07:28that we go in quick, enter and take control of the premises.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31David makes sure that all his team are ready for action.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35What we're doing now is we're all getting in position,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38we've got officers covering the back, should anyone try and get away,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41or any evidence get discarded from the back of the property.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45And then, once we're ready, we'll start knocking on the door.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48- Open the door.- Hello, police.
0:07:48 > 0:07:49Open the door, please.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53Police.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56There definitely seems to be someone home,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58but it takes a while for them to open up.
0:08:00 > 0:08:01- Morning.- Morning.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04Police officers. We've got a search warrant for your address.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08It's a result for the team.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10Dumitru is in.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12We're City of London Police...
0:08:13 > 0:08:18Once inside, Ifed begin their search of the property.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20- Do you speak English?- Yes, a little.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23OK, we have a search warrant,
0:08:23 > 0:08:25so we've got a warrant to search this address.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Do you understand?
0:08:27 > 0:08:31The court have issued a warrant that allows us to search this address.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36The police need to understand everything the suspect is saying,
0:08:36 > 0:08:39as it could be relevant to their case.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45Dumitru might be talking about something that will affect Ifed's search of the property.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48With no way of knowing, Tom has to interject.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51Do you mind... Just stop a minute.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54Do you mind just speaking in English? Just speak in English. OK?
0:08:54 > 0:08:57- Otherwise, we'll just take one of you to the car and...- OK, OK.
0:08:57 > 0:08:58That's all right.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02Upstairs, there's been a development.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06We've found a lot of laptops.
0:09:06 > 0:09:11It's not commonplace to keep laptops in your bathroom, is it?
0:09:13 > 0:09:16And that find seems to spark many more.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21They've found...
0:09:21 > 0:09:25a pile of laptops in the wardrobe, so we will seize them.
0:09:27 > 0:09:32Crucial to any Ifed investigation is to examine financial paperwork
0:09:32 > 0:09:35to look for anything suspicious.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37On one day, there are five separate payments
0:09:37 > 0:09:40to the one insurance company, each going out...
0:09:40 > 0:09:43sums between 40, 50, £60.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45That is highly unusual and wouldn't normally happen
0:09:45 > 0:09:49on a genuine policyholder's account.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52So we've got five separate payments going out.
0:09:52 > 0:09:54It's very good evidence for us.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57In addition to the frequent payments to the insurance company,
0:09:57 > 0:10:01there's also sums of money being deposited into the account.
0:10:01 > 0:10:07Several deposits of £1,200, £150, £800.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11So there's money coming into the account, which we suspect to be from
0:10:11 > 0:10:16people that are buying the bogus policies from these suspects.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21Busy bank account she's got there.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23With the search complete, Ifed take Dumitru,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27along with all the evidence seized at his house, back to the station.
0:10:29 > 0:10:31Ifed had their man.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34We interviewed Mr Dumitru and in that interview,
0:10:34 > 0:10:37he stated that he believed he wasn't doing anything wrong.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39And that the money going into his account,
0:10:39 > 0:10:44that we had called a setting up fee, was actually just a cash present.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48Ifed had more than enough evidence to charge Dumitru,
0:10:48 > 0:10:52in spite of his attempts to brush off the allegations with outrageous lies.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55But he wasn't going to go down without a fight.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00Still to come, Mr Dumitru becomes...
0:11:00 > 0:11:03a wanted man.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07He then failed to attend court and effectively went on the run.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09And a warrant was then issued for his arrest.
0:11:15 > 0:11:17Now, if I was a singer,
0:11:17 > 0:11:19I might consider getting my voice box insured,
0:11:19 > 0:11:21or a boxer, my fists.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24Dancer on Strictly, twinkle toes.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28In fact, most sports people do decide to pay for extra insurance
0:11:28 > 0:11:30to cover themselves in case of injury.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33You can't earn money when you're out of the game.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38Claire Mitten from i-Cog Claims Management remembers a recent case
0:11:38 > 0:11:41involving a professional horse rider.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44The claim came to us as a medical claim.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47The insured had been on a horse, she dismounted the horse,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50and as she did so, she turned her body at such an angle
0:11:50 > 0:11:54that she twisted the muscles in her back and caused herself severe pain.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58Sounds very unpleasant indeed, and the effects of such an injury on a
0:11:58 > 0:12:02professional sportswoman were considerable.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06The insured advised us that she was classified as totally disabled,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10which basically meant she couldn't carry out her everyday activities.
0:12:10 > 0:12:11She wasn't able to compete,
0:12:11 > 0:12:13so therefore she was losing money at the same time.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18Claire rang up the horse rider to hear about the accident first-hand.
0:12:57 > 0:13:02The rider's account of the accident sounded grim and very painful.
0:13:02 > 0:13:07However, Claire and the team at i-Cog have a vast amount of knowledge of patterns of behaviour
0:13:07 > 0:13:09when someone's had a traumatic injury.
0:13:09 > 0:13:14And for Claire, there was already cause for suspicion in this rider's story.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16So, as soon as the injury happened,
0:13:16 > 0:13:20the insured said the pain was so severe that it was ten out of ten.
0:13:20 > 0:13:25She still didn't feel the need to phone an ambulance or a doctor.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28For somebody that's stating that their injury is ten out of ten
0:13:28 > 0:13:30and so severe, as she did,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32the first port of call would be to phone an ambulance and get yourself
0:13:32 > 0:13:36to A&E to get checked out, especially with a back injury.
0:13:51 > 0:13:52No, no. No.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58Two uncomfortable weeks later,
0:13:58 > 0:14:01the rider finally went to hospital and stayed overnight.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04During that time, she received painkiller injections in her back.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05So the horse rider admitted that just a couple of weeks after her injury,
0:15:05 > 0:15:07she went to France for a competition.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11This was clearly something she shouldn't have done when claiming
0:15:11 > 0:15:15for total disablement, which included all loss of earnings.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18But the rider insisted it was a one-off.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17Unbeknownst to the claimant,
0:16:17 > 0:16:21the i-Cog team had done some background research and they knew
0:16:21 > 0:16:23she was taking them for a ride.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Claire had found evidence that the rider had competed just three days
0:17:53 > 0:17:55after her fall off the horse.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Yet, for months, she had been telling her insurers
0:17:58 > 0:18:00she couldn't ride at all.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01But it didn't end there.
0:18:01 > 0:18:03Claire was in her stride.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Let's just review that last line.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07"I have to make a living as well, you see."
0:19:07 > 0:19:10Up till this point, the woman had said that she hadn't been able to
0:19:10 > 0:19:13make a penny from her profession as a horse rider
0:19:13 > 0:19:17and had been claiming for total loss of earnings.
0:19:17 > 0:19:22For Claire, the finish line was in sight and she was odds-on favourite to win.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35At this point, she tried to blame it on insurers.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38She tried to explain that when she originally rang the insurance company,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41they told her what to tick and they told her what information to put on
0:19:41 > 0:19:43the claim form. This wasn't the case.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46We'd already checked this out with the insurance company.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49She was just trying to get as much money out of them as she possibly could at this point.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07A success for Claire and the team at i-Cog.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11Lying to your insurer makes your whole claim invalid,
0:20:11 > 0:20:14so i-Cog recommended the rider received no further payments
0:20:14 > 0:20:18and that she should also pay back the money for her hospital stay,
0:20:18 > 0:20:22which she would have been entitled to, if only she'd stuck to the truth.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Now, I, like most people,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32despair at over-the-top health and safety policies.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34I mean, who doesn't mind their head?
0:20:34 > 0:20:36Most of the time, anyway.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40But if you're a shop owner and someone slips over on your wet floor
0:20:40 > 0:20:42or trips on something you should have got fixed
0:20:42 > 0:20:44and it was deemed to be your fault,
0:20:44 > 0:20:47it can be very expensive to sort out.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50For shopkeepers, taking out public liability insurance means that if
0:20:50 > 0:20:53they do have to pay out on a claim for personal injury,
0:20:53 > 0:20:56it's not quite so bad for business.
0:20:56 > 0:21:02Allianz are an insurance provider that looks after many businesses and shops.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06It's Mihir Pandya's job to deal with the claims that come in.
0:21:07 > 0:21:11He recalls a case involving one of his clients.
0:21:11 > 0:21:16We received our first notification of the claim in July 2013 when our
0:21:16 > 0:21:19policyholder, who owns a small petrol station,
0:21:19 > 0:21:24told us that he'd received a letter suggesting that somebody had tripped
0:21:24 > 0:21:27on a cover outside on the forecourt.
0:21:27 > 0:21:32The individual concerned sustained injuries to his neck,
0:21:32 > 0:21:34back and shoulders.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39With a claim this serious, the team at Allianz needed to see
0:21:39 > 0:21:42any evidence of a potential trip hazard for themselves.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47As is standard procedure in these types of claims,
0:21:47 > 0:21:51we instructed one of our claims investigators
0:21:51 > 0:21:55to go and talk to anyone who might be working at the petrol station
0:21:55 > 0:21:57on the day in question,
0:21:57 > 0:21:59to take photographs of the forecourt,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02and just get a general feel of the circumstances.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06They found there was a manhole on the forecourt
0:22:06 > 0:22:08with a badly laid cover.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13At this point in their investigations,
0:22:13 > 0:22:16Allianz received a full written statement from the claimant,
0:22:16 > 0:22:19outlining just how badly he'd been injured.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25The claimant indicated that he was hurt to the point where he could not
0:22:25 > 0:22:29walk home unaided, so therefore called a friend to come
0:22:29 > 0:22:31and pick him up from the forecourt.
0:22:31 > 0:22:36The man was claiming £2,500 in compensation.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41And it seemed indisputable that the petrol station owner was at fault.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43However, there was a twist.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47The owner was adamant that no such fall had ever taken place.
0:22:48 > 0:22:49Lucky for us,
0:22:49 > 0:22:53it turned out that the owner of the petrol station had retained
0:22:53 > 0:22:56CCTV footage for the day in question.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04The team at Allianz spied the man in question at the premises
0:23:04 > 0:23:06on that fateful day.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10He's the one wearing the blue T-shirt,
0:23:10 > 0:23:12and arrives with two other people.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16What we have are three individuals crossing the forecourt...
0:23:18 > 0:23:20..and they enter the petrol station...
0:23:21 > 0:23:24..and they purchase cans of drink
0:23:24 > 0:23:27and then they leave the petrol station and disappear.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32Seemingly, the most dramatic thing to happen to the man that day was
0:23:32 > 0:23:34buying a can of fizzy pop.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39Confused, the investigators looked more closely at the footage.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42You can see one of them, the individual in the white T-shirt,
0:23:42 > 0:23:44kicking the ground.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47And that, to us,
0:23:47 > 0:23:51could look like he was searching for a suitable trip point.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55So perhaps the claimant's friend noticed the manhole cover,
0:23:55 > 0:23:58then they all went into the shop to buy fizzy drinks.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01Suddenly, an idea of how to make some easy money
0:24:01 > 0:24:04popped into the claimant's head.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07He could say he'd tripped over that manhole cover.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13But he wasn't banking on the premises having CCTV cameras.
0:24:15 > 0:24:19In his statement, the claimant tells us that he was on his own
0:24:19 > 0:24:23and after purchasing his drink, he left the petrol station,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26tripped over the cover, landed on his hands and knees,
0:24:26 > 0:24:27sustained injuries,
0:24:27 > 0:24:31and because he was on his own and he couldn't get home unaided,
0:24:31 > 0:24:33he called a friend to come and pick him up.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35Looking at this, complete lie.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40The CCTV footage had brought the claimant's story
0:24:40 > 0:24:43tumbling to the ground and, unsurprisingly,
0:24:43 > 0:24:45Allianz decided not to pay out.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51They did however decide to take the matter to Ifed.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56Ifed made arrangements to call the claimant in,
0:24:56 > 0:24:58and within the interview,
0:24:58 > 0:25:00the claimant made a full and frank admission
0:25:00 > 0:25:04that this was completely made up and it was an attempt
0:25:04 > 0:25:06to defraud Allianz insurance.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11On this occasion, Ifed gave him a police caution.
0:25:13 > 0:25:18It's disappointing that this wasn't taken to court and the claimant
0:25:18 > 0:25:19receiving a custodial sentence,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22but the fact is he received a police caution,
0:25:22 > 0:25:24that means he's got a criminal record,
0:25:24 > 0:25:28it means it goes on the insurance fraud register and it means that
0:25:28 > 0:25:30he's not going to be able to do that again.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37Let's head back to the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department,
0:25:37 > 0:25:43who are carrying out a dawn raid on a suspected ghost broker, Mr Maur Dumitru.
0:25:43 > 0:25:45Open the door, please.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49Under questioning, Dumitru started to be liberal with the truth.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52We interviewed Mr Dumitru, and in that interview,
0:25:52 > 0:25:56he stated that he believed he wasn't doing anything wrong,
0:25:56 > 0:25:58and that the money going into his account,
0:25:58 > 0:26:02that we'd called a setting up fee, was actually just a cash present.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04Ifed had work to do.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07They had to prove beyond any reasonable doubt
0:26:07 > 0:26:10that Dumitru was guilty.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14Two years later, and Ifed's hard work paid off.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18The evidence against Dumitru was irrefutable.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22At court, Mr Dumitru pled guilty to fraud by false representation.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26And he was due to appear at the Old Bailey in July 2015.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32On the day of Dumitru's sentencing,
0:26:32 > 0:26:37the judge sat waiting for him to arrive. He waited and waited.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41Dumitru never showed up.
0:26:41 > 0:26:42He'd gone on the run.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47We made concerted efforts to locate Mr Dumitru.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53With efforts from ourselves and our colleagues at Greater Manchester Police,
0:26:53 > 0:26:57we managed to locate him and he was arrested in Manchester.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03Dumitru went underground for nine months before the police finally
0:27:03 > 0:27:07caught up with him. This time, they weren't taking any chances.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10He went back to the Old Bailey the following day and was remanded in
0:27:10 > 0:27:13custody until he was sentenced.
0:27:13 > 0:27:18He was sentenced to 18 months for fraud by false representation,
0:27:18 > 0:27:22and also a further two months for failing to appear in court for sentencing.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27A great result for Ifed and for Tom and his team at Aviva,
0:27:27 > 0:27:30who had originally spotted the fraud.
0:27:30 > 0:27:35So, Dumitru had cost the insurance company £200,000,
0:27:35 > 0:27:40and for his fraudulent activity, plus his failure to appear at court,
0:27:40 > 0:27:42he is now in prison for 20 months.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51Whether it's exaggerating real injuries,
0:27:51 > 0:27:53totally making up a story for a dodgy claim,
0:27:53 > 0:27:57or masterminding insurance fraud on an industrial scale,
0:27:57 > 0:28:00insurers are coming down hard on the people who think they can make
0:28:00 > 0:28:03a quick buck with their scams and cons.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05But the fraudsters need to think again,
0:28:05 > 0:28:09as more of them than ever before are being caught in the act...
0:28:09 > 0:28:11and claimed and shamed.