Preventing Crash Fraud

Fraudulent claims cost companies thousands of pounds each year, particularly when it comes to commercial fleet companies.

Crash-for-cash can be defined as “to stage or deliberately cause a road traffic collision solely for financial gain”.  Findings from the IFB (Insurance Fraud Bureau) found there were 55,573 claims linked to suspected crash-for-cash scams in 2015.  This figure increased considerably by 2017, with Aviva claiming that in 2017 one of these scams happened every three hours on UK Roads.  

The increase in frequency of these scams has a negative effect on Premiums, causing them to rise to cover the cost of the fraud.  As a Fleet Manager, this is a concern; it will inevitably have a negative effect on company profits.

A partial solution is installing an effective dashcam system.  These systems are not a legal requirement, but industry associations, such as the Road Haulage Association and the Fleet Transport Association, encourage their members to fit them.  Through research from top insurance companies and road associations it is clear why.

AVIVA claim more than a third (36%) of drivers feel safer on the road when using a dashcam.  While 32% of dashcam drivers involved in an accident have been successful in proving they were not to blame.  

New research by the AA (which involved 1,800 respondents in Scotland and 21,341 in total across the UK) found only around 2% of UK drivers said their primary reason for installing the technology in their vehicles was to record evidence of bad driving – 60% said they bought dashcams for insurance purposes.

The facts speak for themselves.  Dashcam systems not only give drivers peace of mind but allow a true version of events to be recorded in real time.  How accurately this is done depends on your choice of system.

If you have any further questions around the use of dashcam systems, please do not hesitate to contact us at VIRTUS FLEET.