Fraudster who tried to scam two insurers sentenced

A fraudster who made a string of bogus claims against Allianz and LV= has been sentenced.

In a statement released yesterday (23 August 2023), the two insurers said the scammer made several fake claims across a range of policies, including ones for stolen items and property damage.

After both firms spotted that fraudulent activity was taking place, their UK fraud teams worked together to gather enough evidence to present to the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB).

The fraudster was then prosecuted and later found guilty of four charges relating to fraud by false representation.

Sentenced

At a sentencing hearing at Newport City Magistrates’ Court earlier this year (July 2023), the scammer was ordered to carry out 150 hours of community service and serve a 12 month community order.

They were also ordered to cover costs. 

James Burge, head of counter fraud at Allianz Commercial, said: “The case emphasises the close and continued working of the fraud teams across all aspects of Allianz and our proactive approach in highlighting cases to the IFB which result in criminal charges.

“Despite no prison sentence being passed, the work across all teams highlights the zero tolerance approach that Allianz takes to all cases no matter how large or small.”

This came after Allianz Trade launched a standalone fraud insurance product for businesses following a post-pandemic rise in employee fraud and external scams in the UK.

Launched earlier this year (20 July 2023), the trade credit insurer said the new product covers internal fraud by employees, such as bribery, embezzlement and misappropriation or theft.

It also covers external fraud, including robbery, burglary, intercepted payments, payments made on the basis of a forged order and impersonation fraud.