The Insurance Fraud Bureau has released the top 30 high-risk postcodes for ‘Crash for Cash’ scams
Established in 2006, the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) is a not-for-profit organisation leading ‘the insurance industry’s collective fight against insurance fraud’. The IFB has two primary objectives, the first is to help insurers to identify fraud, the second is to support law enforcement to prosecute fraudsters. They currently work with all major insurance providers in the UK.
Over 15 months of research has gone into the latest information available from the Insurance Fraud Bureau. Between October 2019 and December 2020, the IFB analysed over 2.7 million motor insurance claims and discovered more than 170,000 claims are suspected to have been linked to ‘Crash for Cash’ scams.
As a result, the following top 30 high-risk postcodes for ‘Crash for Cash’ scams have been revealed:
- B25 | Birmingham
- B34 | Birmingham
- B8 | Birmingham
- BD7 | Bradford
- BD3 | Bradford
- WS1 | Walsall
- BB9 | Blackburn
- BD8 | Bradford
- B27 | Birmingham
- RM18 | Romford
- B33 | Birmingham
- WF13 | Wakefield
- BD15 | Bradford
- OL8 | Oldham
- HX1 | Halifax
- M8 | Manchester
- LS8 | Leeds
- N9 | London
- WF16 | Wakefield
- LU3 | Luton
- WS2 | Walsall
- BD2 | Bradford
- BD5 | Bradford
- B11 | Birmingham
- HP12 | High Wycombe
- B28 | Birmingham
- RM8 | Romford
- LU4 | Luton
- IG3 | Dagenham
- BD9 | Bradford
How can you avoid ‘Crash for Cash’ scams out on the road?
The IFB have several great tips of what to look out for:
Keep a good distance
- 2 seconds in dry conditions
- 4 seconds in wet conditions
- 20 seconds in icy or snowy conditions
Stay alert
- Drive safely and stick to the highway code
- Look ahead for potential hazards including unusual driving behaviour
- Focus on the vehicle and those in front as well – scammers often disable brake lights
- Be cautious when pulling out of a side road, especially if encouraged to do so by a third party
- If other drivers or their passengers are behaving suspiciously or their vehicle is in poor condition (including dents along the rear) then stay calm and keep back
Look for the ‘Crash for Cash’ Scam Signs
- The driver or their passengers appear to be unphased after the collision
- The driver of their passengers appear to exaggerate injuries
- Pre-written insurance information
Another alternative is adding additional vehicle hardware to your fleet, including a dash cam. Since 2015, dash cam footage has been court-admissible and used to help prosecute drivers. HaulTech’s range of connected, commercial-grade dash cams has a proven history of protecting drivers on the road. Not only have these systems help to mitigate false claims for HaulTech customers such as SJ Walchester Ltd, Logikal Network and M&J Transport (Hoddesdon) Ltd but also save money as well.
Are you in a Crash for Cash hotspot? Would you like to protect yourself on the road from a potentially deliberate incident and defend yourself from these scams? Then contact the HaulTech team today on 01782 662244, saying hello@haultech.co.uk or clicking here to learn more about the right dash cam solution for you.
