Telematics disproves personal injury claims
Data from a telematics device has drawn a bold line through an insurance claim of more than £300,000.
Three members of the same family and some of their associates had lodged personal compensation claims to the tune of £315,000 following an accident in April 2011.
However, an Insure The Box telematics device in the car of the other driver proved that the incident took place on a different road to the one claimants told insurers, that it occurred on a straight road rather than a roundabout, and that no attempt had been made to avoid the collision.
As a result of this information, six personal injury claims were discontinued before the trial and the remaining claimants discontinued their claims on the morning of the trial. A further £24,000 claim for car hire charges over four months were also discontinued. Instead, the claimants have been ordered to pay costs of £60,000.
Adrian Steele, group claims director of Insure The Box, said, ‘From the outset, we have been determined to use box technology not only to support safer driving, but to identify and pursue those who attempt to defraud.
‘Our telematics counter-fraud capability is maturing as we enter our sixth year in business. In this case, our software was able to alert us to the ways the claimants’ version of the crash was likely to be false. That then led to scrutiny of their previous claims history.
‘The outcome will hopefully serve as a deterrent to them and their associates in the future and a warning to other potential fraudsters that we have the expertise to uncover staged accidents such as this.’
Jamie Taylor, DWF counter fraud director, added, ‘This is yet another example of the benefits of telematics to motor insurers and illustrates the power of car telematics, together with expert analysis of telematics data, when applied in the claims environment.’
