Insurance Fraud Bureau – IFB
The established Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) seeks to expose organised insurance frauds in the UK. The last 5 years has witnessed a dramatic increase in the number and scale of organised car insurance fraud and scams. Some gangs are making exceptional sums of money by defrauding motor insurers.
The IFB operates the Fraud Cheatline. If you know anyone involved in committing insurance fraud, you are paying for this with increased insurance premiums. This money can then be used to fund other criminal activity. Please help the IFB in their fight to protect honest customers. You can report insurance fraud to the IFB by calling them on 0800 422 0421.
Undetected general insurance claims fraud total £2.1 billion a year adding on average £50 to the annual costs individual policyholders face, on average, each year. As well as the increasing scale of the criminal operations, the complexity of each claim and scam is becoming overwhelming.
It is not just the insurers who are suffering. Innocent motorists in the UK are becoming the victims of such crimes. Policyholders’ lives are being put at risk by criminal behaviour on the road. Sudden braking with no warning (achieved by disconnecting the rear brake lights of the gangs car) giving the following driver no opportunity to stop – even from a (considered) safe distance.
This type of activity is often refereed to within the industry as an ‘Induced Motor Accident’. This is organised fraud, whereby an innocent motorist is induced to crash into the back of the fraudster’s vehicle. Claims are made to the innocent motorist’s insurer, often including several accounts of fictitious injuries from gang members.
Other examples include fraudulent arson, fraudulent disability claims and supplier fraud where insurers receive bills for work that have been exaggerated or not done. In many cases these criminal gangs have bogus claims running with numerous insurers at one time.
The big question is ‘Is it possible to beat these gangs, reduce the risks to innocent motorists and reduce car crime and fraudulent claims. The answer is definitely yes, with insurers working in partnership with the police and policyholders to beat the fraudster’s and protect the honest policyholders.