Cash for Crash Case

[basil6345789]

Just seen the report of this on BBC Text. Unbelievable that these crimes are not stopped earlier, as so much intelligence is held about this evil.

[Clarets4me]

The Insurance Companies are certainly aware of it, try an insurance quote based on a street parked car with a Clitheroe postcode and then compare it with one in Burnley or Blackburn !
Insurers report that the perpetrators tend to target single women drivers with children in the car, or elderly couples...

[Sidney1st]

Simple solution is for insurance companies to stop paying out for whiplash.

It can't be proven or disproven that someone has it, so on that basis an insurance company shouldn't really pay out for something that can't be proven medically 100%.

That would in theory see insurance costs drop, although we know they won't in reality.

[arise_sir_charge]

The government are imposing a fixed tarrif for whiplash claims that will see awards reduced massively. This is due for October 2018.

Also costs will be further limited so less of an incentive for solicitors to get involved.

One of the biggest issues in motor insurance is car hire charges arising from accidents. Some of the sums paid in car hire are eye watering.

[basil6345789]

Good but they could move in on these people and bust them proactively.

[arise_sir_charge]

Good but they could move in on these people and bust them proactively.

They do. After a number of years of doing very little the police now have a specialist team, IFED, which is funded by the insurance industry.

Insurance fraud is like all other crime, some one off chancers but also some very organised groups making plenty of money.

[Quickenthetempo]

The only way round it is to get a dash cam.

Unfortunately it costs insurance firms too much to fight it. Cheaper just to pay out.

I was working in Blackburn in a wagon a few year back and had a tight squeeze to get past a car. We both slowed down to 2mph to get through and passed fine. Two weeks later the firm I worked for got a claim for car damage, whiplash etc and 8 witnesses saw it. We were going that slow even if we did hit each other no chance of whiplash. Insurance wouldn't fight it. I was going spare even though it wasn't costing me

[Wile E Coyote]

Convenient how public spirited those EIGHT witnesses were!

The whole thing is horrendous, there are a few key areas in the UK where these scams occur regularly, unfortunately we live in one such region.

The legal side of the claims is usually equally bent.

The upshot of this massive deception, we ALL pay much more for our cover. Scandalous situation.

[Sidney1st]

The government are imposing a fixed tarrif for whiplash claims that will see awards reduced massively. This is due for October 2018.

Also costs will be further limited so less of an incentive for solicitors to get involved.

One of the biggest issues in motor insurance is car hire charges arising from accidents. Some of the sums paid in car hire are eye watering.

Ah so we can expect a sudden rise in whiplash claims to get them in before the changes are implemented.....
They don't pay out for whiplash in Europe do they?
I'm vaguely recalling some article which stated something along those lines.

As for car hire, they should limit the firms they're hired from and negotiate fixed tariffs, or alternatively ensure that there are specified body shops around the country that have x amount of courtesy cars.

It's all a big con that's been allowed to get out of hand for years by lazy insurance companies who've been content to jack up the prices of everyone elses insurance to pay for it.

[Sidney1st]

This is worth a read - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/pers ... urope.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[arise_sir_charge]

Believe me when I say that insurers do try and combat insurance fraud, it's how I make money!

They are however faced with a difficult court system that operates in the balance of probabilities and in some cases, like the one mentioned above, it is more cost effective to simply pay as opposed to investigate. It's frustrating but they have to do this in the best interests of keeping costs and therefore premiums down.

I personally have given evidence to the Transport Select Committee in Parliament as part of the consultation process to get where we are today.

As for hire cars, there are tarrifs in place but allowing people like for like vehicles etc as opposed to just giving them what is available increases costs dramatically.

[Claretforever]

Whiplash is definitely real, and unfortunately, despite my previous skepticism, I can testify to it. It's horrible, and can take months and months to 'fully' (I'm not sure you ever really do properly to 100%?) recover from a genuine case. Unfortunately, and I have no hard evidence for this, but 3/4 of cases are probably a load of rubbish. I used to say 90% before I was affected.

The claim culture has to stop. In the 80's when it was going on in America and reported massively over here on the news, you could just tell the way we were going to go.

[Sidney1st]

I've had whiplash, don't get me wrong.
I didn't claim for it though and still went to work on the Monday, the crash was on a saturday night, but the whiplash didn't kick in properly until the sunday morning.

I've also been sat in Burnley general about something un-related and watched someone walk in full mobile, put on a different walk when he's in reception and claim he's got whiplash.

Funnily enough he was still able to climb back into his car and drive, but I suppose that was made easier by the fact that his seat belt was already clipped in place, so he could sit on top of it and lean his seat back as some idiots do.....

Now I'm not suggesting he was faking the whiplash claim, but I'd be willing to bet my house on it that he was certainly lying.

[Garnerssoap]

What claretforever said
Used to think it was a made up injury till I got it

Got hit whilst stationary by some car thieves being chased at 90 mph by the cops. Was fine on the night then a few days later - it started to get worse and worse. Months after it became excruciating whenever I drove for more than 1/2 an hour. Actually made me vomit on a drive back from Newcastle

Still get bad aches now 5 years later

[RingoMcCartney]

Top 10 cash for crash areas:

1. Birmingham

2. North London

3. East London

4. Leeds

5. Harrow

6. North West London

7. Bradford

8. Luton

9. Coventry

10. Oldham

Saw a piece about it a couple of years ago on breakfast tv a couple of years ago. They went to a stretch of raod that had more claims per mile than anywhere in the UK. Its was a stretch of dual carraigeway with several roundabouts on it. What had blown the illeagal scam was, one claim that had a doctors report (he was in on it!) came in to the insurance companies showing a medical examination took place at 10.30. The fake accident was reported at 12.30!!! It was in Bradford.

[Quickenthetempo]

Like has been said Whiplash is very bad if genuine. My sister got it 5 years ago and still torments her despite having lots of physio.

It's easy to tell who is genuine or not as the fakers normally take the 2nd offer so they don't get investigated too much.

If you asked a genuine Whiplash victim if they would go through it all again for 5-10k would they do it? Then 99% wouldn't.

[FulledgeClaret]

It would cost nothing for car manufacturers to make dash cams standard equipment, most of the tech needed is in the car already nowadays simple camera in rear view mirror that stores to the vehicles media unit is all that's missing from most cars post 2010.

[bob-the-scutter]

It would cost nothing for car manufacturers to make dash cams standard equipment, most of the tech needed is in the car already nowadays simple camera in rear view mirror that stores to the vehicles media unit is all that's missing from most cars post 2010.

We`ve had them in our cars for a few years now. The ones I got for the wife & are GPS enabled so they show your correct speed as well, handy for when the speed scammers in their little yellow vans try to say you were doing 40 in a 30 when you know full well you were actually doing 25 (Trust me this happened to me!) I also had some fat chancer in TESCO car park accuse me of running into her car as it was parked up while she was shopping. After telling her I will have it all on camera if she wants me to show her she quickly changed her mind.

[Judehamish]

I was driving a vehicle that was shunted from behind (diabetic driver on cruise control went into a diabetic coma) and made a claim in 2014.

I'm still in pain today on a long drive so I can tell you that whiplash is a very real injury .

[LordBob]

I had an accident in County Wexford in 1995 I was run off the road and the car, a Xantia, turned and rolled I thought it was a miracle that I wasn't killed I didn't even think I was injured but now all these years later I have no feeling in my right hand and I have neck damage that I'm not prepared to have repaired because of the high risk factor. There was never a claim for injury I didn't think it was justified I was alright, I thought. Believe me whiplash is real.

[john'sroseyspecs]

Got hit from behind years ago by a taxi minibus full of lads going to a night out. My car was a mess. Totally zero my fault. A couple of weeks later my insurance company contacted me about the case. The taxi firm owner and his family were stating they were in the taxi, I had been reversing out of a side street and they all had whiplash. Three days from the court case before they finally gave it up. **** **** ****

[Westyorkclaret]

This will give you an insight to how low this crime is

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-39118662" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;