Minister quizzed about 'cash-for-crash' scams

Transport minister Jim Fitzpatrick said figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) suggested there could be as many as 2,500 staged crashes a year in Britain by 2010. He said the practice was a "concern" and one that needed to be "monitored closely".

The scams involve criminals staging vehicle crashes between themselves or forcing innocent motorists into collisions so they can make an insurance claim, often including accounts of fictitious injuries. A successful scam can net the criminal tens of thousands of pounds.

At question time, Tory MP for Leominster Bill Wiggin claimed that the majority of such crimes were being committed in the north of England.

He told the Commons: "This crash-for-cash is a particular nasty crime whereby elderly, vulnerable and particularly female drivers are targeted by fraudsters trying to crash into their cars to get money."

Mr Wiggin asked the Government minister: "What will you do to make sure best practice is spread through the country as 40% of people would not even know if they were a victim of this crime?"

Joint operations

Mr Fitzpatrick responded: "It is very difficult to detect whether or not a crash has been staged for insurance purposes for fraud purposes or not.

"The Association of British Insurers has made an estimate that the number of road accidents caused by fraud gangs will rise to 2,500 by 2010 up from 1,000 in 2005."

He added: "This is a very much a matter for the insurance industry for their fraud bureau, and it is for the police to try to detect the crime, but obviously it is a matter of concern that has to be monitored closely."

The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) was launched in July 2006, to clamp down on organised, cross-industry insurance fraud in order to protect honest policyholders.

The IFB has been working closely with several police forces to tackle cash-for-crash crime. As recently as March of this year a joint operation with West Yorkshire Police led to three more people being charged in connection with such scams. Overall, during the course of their 10 month investigation, twenty two people have been arrested.

A separate joint operation involving the IFB and Hertfordshire Police led to four arrests in April of last year. Assets estimated to be in excess of £2 million were identified as part of the investigation.

The IFB runs a free and confidential helpline. Members of the public are being urged to call if they have any information on staged motor accidents or other types of insurance fraud. The number is 0800 328 2550.