Man sentenced after 13 fraudulent claims for damage to his car

A man in Liverpool has been sentenced after he admitted making 13 fraudulent claims for damage to his car.

Neil Oldfield, 40, was sentenced yesterday (11 December) at Liverpool Crown Court after he said the damage was caused by heavy goods vehicles.

Between 14 April 2016 and 20 January 2017, Oldfield made 13 false insurance claims across multiple companies, including Royal Mail and NFU Mutual. On each occasion, he would claim that damage had been caused to the wing mirror of his car when being overtaken by a heavy goods vehicle, which then failed to stop.

He used false invoices and photographs to support each claim.

After Oldfield made the claims, one driver was deemed careless because he failed to stop following the alleged accident. The driver then resigned from work after receiving criticism from his manager.

Following a joint investigation by the City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) and Royal Mail, Oldfield was arrested.

Then, following a search warrant of the property, Royal Mail investigators and Merseyside Police found and seized many documents linking him to the frauds. The total value of fraudulent claims by Oldfield amounted to £5,976.

Oldfield pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud by false representation and was sentenced to eight months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and 20 days at an attendance centre.

City of London Police detective constable Kevin Hughes, who led the investigation, said:

“Oldfield not only attempted to con insurance companies out of thousands of pounds through his multiple false claims, but his criminal actions also put innocent people’s careers at risk and sadly resulted in one man resigning from his job.

“IFED and Royal Mail have ensured that justice has been served to Oldfield. We hope this acts as a warning to any others who are thinking of making false insurance claims that they will be found out and suitably punished.”