Fraudster who made £75,000 worth of travel claims caught after LV checks

Police have revealed that a man used different identities to make £75,000 worth of fraudulent travel insurance claims.

Sam William Carr, of St Peters Terrace, Bolton, changed his name multiple times by deed poll and used the identities of his family and friends to make bogus claims.

The Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (Ifed) highlighted that the 34-year-old took out 13 travel policies with five insurance companies and made scam claims for lost luggage and money against them.

Companies targeted included LV=, Aviva, Axa Partners, Travel Insurance Facilities and Reactive Claims.

Detective Constable Vincent Baughan, from Ifed, said: “Travel insurance is intended to be a reassuring safety net should the worst happen, not a means of personal financial gain.

“Carr had very little regard in terms of who he implicated in his crimes, using the identities of innocent friends and family members to claim on several policies.

“He even booked flights that he never took, showing the lengths that he went through to try and avoid detection.”

The case

The court heard that on 11 April 2019, Carr, who had taken out a travel insurance policy with LV= under the name Cruise Pierce, claimed that his luggage was lost during a flight to Australia 15 days earlier and £1,000 in cash had been stolen from his hotel room.

However, Checks made by LV= and its fraud team showed that the luggage could only have been missing for 11 days.

And the claims were rejected after Carr did not respond to the insurer’s attempts to contact him.

Further enquiries showed that Carr had used different legal names and aliases to make fraudulent claims with Aviva, Axa Partners, Travel Insurance Facilities and Reactive Claims.

He also supplied numerous addresses, including those of family members and storage units he rented when he took out the policies.

Carr would either claim for baggage that he stated had gone missing during flights abroad or money stolen from his destination hotel room.

He supplied fake banking documents, utility bills and flight boarding passes to evidence the claims. In other instances, he genuinely booked the flights, but did not travel.

Carr’s activity resulted in him being paid a total of £11,321, as most of the claims were not paid out after they were deemed fraudulent.

Ifed officers located Carr during a search warrant executed at his cousin’s home address with Greater Manchester Police.

When nobody answered the door, officers forcibly removed it and found Carr standing behind it and he was arrested.

Sentencing

During his police interview, Carr answered “no comment” to all questions asked.

However, he pleaded guilty at Inner Crown Court to 10 counts of fraud by false representation.

Carr was sentenced at the Royal Courts of Justice on 20 March 2024 to 20 months imprisonment, suspended for two years.

He must also complete 200 hours of unpaid work and a 30 day rehabilitation activity requirement.

Carl Mather, manager of the special investigations unit at Aviva, said: “Aviva welcomes this sentencing.

“Sam Carr’s attempt to defraud a number of travel insurers was as brazen as it was foolish because this case perfectly highlights the capability which exists within the industry.

“More than ever, there is a willingness among insurers to share intelligence and work together when fraud is detected.”

Ben Fletcher, director of financial crime at LV= General Insurance, added: “This is a fantastic result and I’m proud of the investigation led by my team with the police to bring another fraudster to justice.

“Our range of tactics and intel help us find these criminals and ensure they’re stopped and we continue to fight against all types of insurance fraud such as travel, car and home fake claims.”