Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department

A former veterinary nurse has been sentenced to eight months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, after she made false and exaggerated insurance claims for her pets using the systems at her workplace. Gemma Cole, 31, of Staples Barn, Henfield, was also dismissed from her job. Cole was employed as a veterinary nurse at a surgery in West Sussex. She had insurance policies for her cats and dogs under Petplan and Pets at Home, subsidiaries of Allianz, and submitted fraudulent claims for them from December 2018 to May 2023. Cole was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on 29 August 2024 to eight months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, and must also complete a 20 day rehabilitation activity requirement. In May 2023, the head veterinary nurse at the practice contacted Allianz to report that Cole had been using Vet Envoy, the system it used to submit insurance claims, to make fraudulent claims. Allianz compared the claims made by Cole against her pets’ records and found that she had claimed for £13,334 worth of medication and treatments that they had not actually received. In October, IFED officers executed a search warrant at Cole’s home address and seized a large quantity of pet medication, including the below, that had been dispensed as a result of the fraudulent claims. Detective Constable Richard Fox said: “Cole exploited her access to her employer’s systems for over four years to receive insurance payouts that she wasn’t entitled to. Submitting claims on insurance that you have deliberately exaggerated is fraud and Cole will now rightly have to face the consequence of having a criminal record.” Read more ➡ https://bit.ly/4e2WxtU

New figures from the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) show that over 4,000 people have been targeted by moped 'crash for cash' fraud in the last three years, leading to fraudulent insurance claims worth an estimated total of £70 million. These collisions pose a threat to the safety of innocent road users and can also have a traumatic effect on victims. We're working with the IFB to raise awareness of moped 'crash for cash' fraud and how the public can protect themselves against it. ⬇

A man who submitted a series of fake home insurance claims to RSA Insurance for the second time, has been jailed for 20 months. Joel Mtebe, 37, of Darwen Fold Close, Chorley, was first sentenced in 2017, after he made 15 fraudulent claims on home insurance policies underwritten by RSA. From March 2019 to February 2022, Mtebe took out six further home insurance policies underwritten by RSA using fictitious identities and made 15 fake claims against them. Nine of the claims were successful and resulted in him receiving payments worth a total of £11,750. However, RSA linked Mtebe to four of the six policies and referred the case to IFED for investigation. Read more ➡ bit.ly/3XfbseQ

Falling victim to online insurance fraud such as 'ghost broking' or 'paid ad spoofing' can have devastating consequences. Detective Chief Inspector Tom Hill and Detective Constable Deborah O'Louglin-Whitby spoke to the Association of British Insurers about how to stay safe online and the role that IFED plays in combatting insurance fraud.

A man has been sentenced after he unsuccessfully made a 'wheely' big claim on insurance for a stolen tractor, when it had actually been repossessed by a finance company. Officers ploughed through the case and Luke Morley, 43, of Elliott Road, Leicester, pleaded guilty at Exeter Crown Court on 25 June 2024 to fraud by false representation. Morley was sentenced at the same court on 14 August 2024 to 12 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months. He must also pay prosecution costs worth a total of £1,630 and complete 150 hours of unpaid work. In January 2018, Morley renewed an agricultural vehicle insurance policy underwritten by AXA. He made a claim on the policy in May 2018 and alleged that the tractor, which was worth around £26,000, had been stolen from a field where it had been parked. Morley claimed that he had reported the theft to Devon and Cornwall Police. However, initial enquiries showed that there was no stolen marker against the tractor and that Morley had provided a fake police reference number to support his claim. After further investigation, AXA found that the tractor had been repossessed by a finance company in October 2017 and the claim was rejected.

A court has granted a confiscation order against a man who was sentenced in 2023, after he pocketed £43,384 by exploiting an error that he found in his insurer’s payment system. Chima Ogubunka, 50, of Honeysuckle Close, Southall, was given three months to pay £38,944 at Inner London Crown Court on 5 August, following confiscation proceedings brought by IFED. Failure to make the payment within three months will result in Ogubunka facing two years imprisonment. Ogubunka took out a business insurance policy in June 2019, which he cancelled during a 14 day cooling-off period without paying the premium. However, due to the error in the payment system, the cost of the premium was paid into his bank account. After he discovered the error, Ogubunka took out 20 further insurance policies for a series of fictitious companies and cancelled them during the cooling-off period. His actions came to light after staff in the insurer’s customer service team raised concerns over a series of policies that followed the same pattern of cancellations and refunds. The insurer rectified the error in the payment system and referred the case to IFED.   Ogubunka pleaded guilty at Inner London Crown Court on 25 April 2023 to 18 counts of fraud by false representation, following an investigation by IFED. He was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and a 15 day rehabilitation activity requirement.

Last week, officers carried out a search warrant in Luton in relation to ‘ghost broking’. A 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of fraud by false representation, after officers suspected that he was selling invalid insurance policies. He has since been released under investigation.

A 'ghost broker' who made £17,600 by selling bogus car insurance policies on Instagram has been sentenced. Wahidullah Usmani, 22, of Prayle Grove, Cricklewood, enticed his victims using Instagram posts like the ones below, but left them with insurance that was not valid. Usmani was sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to 24 months imprisonment, suspended for 24 months. He must also complete a 15 day rehabilitation activity requirement and pay £1,000 in costs. 'Ghost broking' is the name given to a tactic used by fraudsters who sell fake insurance policies, often via social media platforms or messaging apps. Victims usually only realise that they do not have genuine cover when they try to make a claim on insurance or are stopped by police. The case was referred to IFED by LV= General Insurance and supported by the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB). Read more ➡ https://bit.ly/3WyEPZs

According to the latest figures from the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), the number of people who fell victim to 'ghost brokers' on social media increased by 6 per cent last year. While one in five 18-24 year olds now use social media to search for car insurance, a recent YouGov survey revealed that only one in ten people are familiar with ghost broking. We're working with the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), Association of British Insurers and the insurance industry to raise awareness of ghost broking and how the public can protect themselves against it. ⬇

IFED were part of a presentation by the Economic and Cyber Crime Academy (ECCA) for a group of senior Italian officers from the Guardia di Finanza, an Italian law enforcement agency under the authority of the Minister of Economy and Finance. The Italian delegation visited the City of London Police to get a further insight into the threat, risk, and harm that the UK faces in relation to fraud and economic crime. Insurance fraud is prevalent within Italy, and IFED shared best practice as to how we endeavour to counteract this area of criminality. The meeting was also beneficial for cross-border working and international collaboration.