Two friends who manipulated insurers’ websites to secure £187,000 worth of car insurance for just £30 have been sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court.James Edwards and Daniel Wilson obtained policies for 13 cars in eight months (June 2011 to February 2012), including one for a high performance car that should have cost £68,000.
The pair went online and signed-up for seven policies from insurethebox and six from a second insurer, but when it came to paying they managed to corrupt the systems so they only had to handover a tiny fee.
The case came to court after Wilson was stopped in a car by Merseyside Police in September 2011 and produced an insurethebox insurance certificate that the insurer had voided days earlier and reported to the force. Merseyside Police subsequently instigated an investigation that included a further six fraudulent insurethebox policies. The seven policies were worth more than £157,000 but the insurer had received just £15.50. Each policy referred to James Edwards or his personal details.In January 2012 the second insurer referred six policies to the City of London Police Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED). The policies were worth more than £30,000 but the insurer had received only £15. Again, the policies featured James Edwards or his personal details.Soon after IFED detectives arrested Edwards at his house on Bowlands Drive in Bootle. A search of the 20-year-old’s bedroom revealed a key fob and care booklet from the second insurer in his bed and correspondence from insurethebox including two policy cancellation letters.IFED then took on Merseyside Police’s investigation into Wilson. The 20-year-old was arrested in April 2012 and both men were charged with two counts of conspiracy to defraud.Edwards later admitted to the two counts while the prosecution accepted Wilson’s plea to an offence of possession of a false document.At Liverpool Crown Court today (Friday 14 June 2013) a Judge gave Edwards a 16 month prison sentence suspended for two years and a two year supervision order. Wilson, of Moor Lane in Crosby, was ordered to undertake 50 hours unpaid work. He was also given a 12 month supervision order and a 12 month community service order.Det Sgt Tom Finnegan, who led IFED’s investigation, said: “Edwards and Wilson manipulated the insurers’ websites to secure car insurance policies worth tens of thousands for only a few pounds. “They obtained these policies in a bid to convince police and highways authorities that they were legally insured drivers so they could move around the country undetected.“Thanks to excellent work by Merseyside Police, a thorough investigation by IFED and prompt detection by the two insurers, these fraudsters have been exposed and made to pay for their crimes.”Andy Loftus, Motor Underwriting Manager at insurethebox, said: “This case highlights the benefits of insurers, using a combination of sophisticated monitoring tools and skilled analysts, working with the police to quickly identify and stamp out fraudulent activity. We are sending a clear message to potential fraudsters that insurethebox, other insurers and the authorities will not let them get away with this type of behaviour”.
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