Funny I saw this on TV the night before last as being a US trend, just seen this so it seems it's happening here too -

Fraud gangs 'stage car crashes'

by Steve Wright

Bradford has become a hotbed for car insurance fraudsters operating as organised crime rings.

Gangs are staging car `accidents' in a bid to defraud insurers out of thousands of pounds, pushing up premiums for honest drivers in the district.

More than 30 cases across Bradford and Leeds are being investigated by police after they were alerted by insurance companies.

Detective Inspector John Armitage, of Bradford South CID, said the investigation was in its early stages.

But it seemed that two types of `accidents' were being staged by the gangs.

One involved deliberately causing accidents by braking hard in front of other vehicles at junctions.

The other was where insurance cheats delivered their car to the crime rings who then smashed them up so they could make claims.

Det Insp Armitage said: "The insurance companies have contacted us and said this is what they think is happening. They have asked us to look at about 30 cases.

"We have had a meeting with representatives of the insurance companies. They have provided us with documents and we are looking at them with the fraud squad to see if there is any evidence."

Det Insp Armitage said one example of insurance fraud they were examining involved a Toyota Celica which was claimed to have been written off twice in two weeks in different accidents with different drivers and insurance companies.

He said Bradford appeared to have a particular problem with this type of insurance fraud.

He said: "The insurance companies are saying the people involved in the scam will be involved in other sorts of crimes.

"We have no information about the people allegedly involved which links them to organised crime, but it is an organised crime type of offence in that they are making a business out of it."

Insurers say the fraudsters are not only pushing up insurance premiums for Bradford's honest drivers but also endangering innocent people's lives in deliberate crashes.

Counter-fraud manager for Royal & Sun Alliance, John Beadle, said: "The M62 corridor is acknowledged as a hot bed for these kinds of rings and Bradford is among those places where it's predominantly happening.

"The industry is now aware of this and is trying to tackle what is clearly an organised criminal activity. It's not the odd individual. Our belief is that it's part of an organised crime racket.

"Insurers are wise to this and the people who are involved in this should not be working on the assumption we are not onto them."

Criminals employ a variety of tactics to defraud insurers ranging from targeting innocent drivers to damaging cars behind closed doors in lock-ups.

In other cases `accidents' are agreed between co-conspirators using hire cars.

Mr Beadle said: "These are a massive problem to all insurers and they are dangerous. We know in some places they are targeting commercial vehicles such as petrol tankers."

The extent of the financial cost is still unknown but honest drivers are footing the bill.

"The M62 corridor is statistically the worst area in the country for this," said Mr Beadle. "It ultimately costs everyone money in the North because if you live in that area it's inevitable your insurance premiums will go up."

Last December it was revealed unsuspecting motorists were facing claims of thousands of pounds for whiplash injuries after a number of staged `accidents' between the Bingley relief road roundabout and the Magnet roundabout at Crossflatts.

And last month a national newspaper claimed an accident claims company in Bradford was arranging car crashes for clients as part of an insurance rip off. Police are waiting to receive a dossier on the claims.

Insurance fraud investigator Mark Jones said staging a minibus accident was "all too easy." Most claims were for

You're supposed to get two cars, each filled 5-a-piece. Then have an accident, and each person then claims for whiplash...roughly

Been giving it some thought then Rob??

Perhaps you could use Chris's tank and his mates turbocharged ST170. Get two Fords off the road in one go, three if you squash one in the middle

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/showpost.php?p=409317&postcount=34

Been giving it some thought then Rob??

Good lord no...I'm lucky enough to live along the M62 corridor, so have heard a few tales recounted of these antics!

Perhaps you could use Chris's tank and his mates turbocharged ST170. Get two Fords off the road in one go, three if you squash one in the middle

Hmm...5-a-piece...3 cars... :rubchin:

Rob.

thats mad :eek:

Been giving it some thought then Rob??

Perhaps you could use Chris's tank and his mates turbocharged ST170. Get two Fords off the road in one go' date=' three if you squash one in the middle [/quote']

:orb_toung

Chris

"Briskoda coach trip carrying 55 members involved in shock collision with modded fabia silverline estate carrying ten illegals.All coach passengers report severe whiplash but say they will settle for

I like your thinking Laurence, subtle but innovative

Would be nice to clear a few Dagenham dustbins off the highways though. :jab:

Would be nice to clear a few Dagenham dustbins off the highways though. :jab:

That's the real problem - Ford have mastered reliability now so there's more than ever on our roads

Chris

Sounds like banger racing.

Hmm...5-a-piece...3 cars... :rubchin:

Rob.