Latest from NFU Mutual;
A Nuneaton man, Nawzad Zwar Khedir, has been jailed for 10 months after admitting to lying in Court about an accident he purposefully caused in a supermarket car park. The man engineered the collision with the mother and her young child by intentionally positioning his car in the woman’s path as she reversed. Following the collision, he made a claim against the other driver, an NFU Mutual member and car insurance policyholder.
After listening to the concerns of the NFU Mutual member who was targeted by the fraudster, counter fraud investigators for the leading rural insurer gathered evidence which proved the accident was induced by the claimant. CCTV footage showed that the fraudster waited for his target to reverse out of her parking spot before quickly positioning his car in her path, causing the collision. Medical records also showed that he had a history of similar car park collisions.
Despite the evidence secured by NFU Mutual investigators on behalf of its member, the fraudster proceeded to take his claim to County Court before discontinuing his claim shortly before trial. NFU Mutual then invited the court, on the basis of the evidence, to make a finding of Fundamental Dishonesty against the fraudster. The Judge found the claimant and his claim to be fundamentally dishonest and ordered costs of around £20,000 to be paid to NFU Mutual.
Following the concerns raised about the claimant’s dishonesty in his original case, the NFU Mutual counter fraud team has since pursued the fraudster for Contempt of Court. Faced with the evidence, the fraudster admitted to engineering the collision and lying in Court and has been jailed for 10 months.
Commenting on the case, David Pritchard, Claims Fraud Manager at NFU Mutual, said: “Insurance fraud is a big business, thought to cost every UK policyholder £50 a year in premiums.
“‘Crash for cash’ fraud like this endangers the safety and hits the wallets of innocent people. At NFU Mutual, which is owned by and operated for its members, fraud against one member constitutes fraud against all members.
“In this case, we acted quickly on our member’s concerns to gather the evidence required to prove she and her young child had been the victim of fraud and bring the fraudster to justice.
“We hope this conviction sends a clear message that NFU Mutual will do all in our power to stand up for our members and root out insurance fraud wherever we see it.”
Stuart Poole, partner at DWF, who acted on behalf of NFU Mutual on the case, said:
“The success in this case is a testament to the great work and collaboration between DWF and NFU Mutual. In pursuing this successful contempt of court action, NFU Mutual have sent a clear message that they will not tolerate fraudulent claims being made against them.”
‘Crash for cash’ can be any insurance fraud claiming on a motor collision, ranging from claiming on non-existent crashes, collisions planned between people who know each other, or engineering a collision with an innocent road user. These frauds cost an estimated £340 million per year and can drive up the costs of insurance for innocent people.
NFU Mutual is committed to tackling all forms of insurance fraud by maintaining effective controls and procedures and pursuing and taking robust action against those who seek to defraud members.
Individuals looking to protect themselves from ‘crash for cash’ fraud should:
- Never pay a claimant informally or on the side of the road. Inform your insurance provider and allow them to investigate.
- Consider installing a dash camera, which will provide clear evidence of fraud. Prices can start from below £30.
- Remember the highway code, maintaining appropriate stopping distance (2 seconds in dry conditions, 4 seconds in wet, 20 seconds in snow or ice) and remaining alert for hazards.
- Leave extra distance if the driver in front is acting suspiciously.
- If you are involved in an accident, be wary of suspicious behaviour by the other driver or passengers, such as exaggeration of injury or if you are provided with pre-written insurance information. Make a note of suspicious behaviour.
For further information, visit: www.nfumutual.co.uk/news-and-stories/help-our-customers-beat-fraud-and-financial-crime/
Be the first to comment