Fradulent car crashes staged by criminal gangs are costing insurance companies £350 million every year, it has been claimed.
“Crash for cash” cons are becoming more common and sophisticated, detectives warn, with the schemes offering high rewards for low risks.
A specialist unit has been set up by the Metropolitan Police to tackle the problem, which involves fraudsters deliberately causing accidents before ripping off insurance companies.
The bogus claimants cash in by billing insurers up to £50,000 for bogus courtesy car hire, vehicle storage, personal injury claims and legal fees.
Detective Chief Inspector Nick Chalmers, of the force’s traffic crime unit, said it is only a matter of time before someone is killed in a staged crash.
He added that a recent report by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) suggests that the cost of similar scams could be £350 million every year.
Mr Chalmers said: “It is dangerous not just to the car targeted but to other people confronted with carnage on the roads.”
Detectives at the Met’s traffic crime unit have started training frontline uniformed officers to watch out for the signs of a suspicious crash.
