DLG defeats siblings who tried to fraudulently claim over £450,000

Direct Line Group (DLG) has successfully prosecuted two sisters who tried to fraudulently claim more than £450,000 following a car crash.

An investigation into the collision found that three family members had falsified evidence, presented inaccurate witness statements, prepared fraudulent injury claims and provided an incorrect version of events.

A sentencing hearing went ahead on 11 November 2024 at the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

One sister received an 11-month immediate custodial sentence, while the other was given a three-month suspended sentence.

Their brother, meanwhile, admitted guilt early on for his part in the fraudulent activity and presented a full apology.

The case

The incident involved three vehicles. The first car was driven by one of the sisters and she slammed on the brakes to deliberately cause an accident.

The driver of the middle vehicle, who provided witness evidence during the court case, narrowly avoided the collision with the first car.

However, the third car driven by DLG’s policyholder shunted the middle vehicle into the one belonging to the fraudsters, resulting in a three-vehicle collision.

An investigation with Keoghs began when the fraudsters started submitting injury claims, with counter fraud experts identifying several inconsistences.

A £92,000 claim was also presented to DLG by a credit hire company, which the insurer said “appeared heavily inflated and was inconsistent with the way the incident had allegedly occurred”.

Outcome

This led to a civil trial, where it was revealed that the family members were guilty of deceit.

It was found that all three had entered a conspiracy to cause an accident and present false claims.

“Video evidence shared by the driver of the second vehicle showed family members presenting claims where they were not even in the vehicle when the incident occurred, or had provided false witness statements,” DLG said.

Following this verdict, the two sisters pleaded guilty to contempt of court and were sentenced. The brother was not pursued further.

A total of £139,595 was also ordered to be paid to DLG, with £77,721 recovered to date.

Stuart Stevens, head of counter fraud intelligence at DLG, said: “We are committed to ensuring those who attempt to make fraudulent claims against us are dealt with by the relevant authorities.

“We have highly skilled investigators who work continuously with intelligence services to identify these criminals. We work with all law enforcement agencies to assist them in preparing these cases and we are delighted that the perpetrators of this fraud have been brought to justice.”

Ben Leech, partner and counter fraud strategy director at Keoghs, added: “We are extremely pleased with this result.

“Our counter fraud team works hard to not only investigate and detect fraud but also ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice. The result shows how seriously the justice system takes insurance fraud.”