Ghost brokers targeting young drivers on social media
Ghost brokers are using social media to target young drivers with fake insurance policies, according to research carried out by Aviva.
Its survey of 2,000 17-25 year-olds found that 30% have purchased car insurance from someone on social media who is selling invalid or fake car insurance.
It warns that those who purchased cover via social media almost certainly dealt with a ghost broker, which puts them at risk of having their car seized, facing an unlimited fine and receiving a driving ban.
Of those who purchased car insurance via social media, 89% subsequently had serious problems with their policy.
Nearly half (49%) said their details were misrepresented on the policy, 22% said they made a claim which was declined because they weren’t properly insured, 21% said the seller didn’t help them when they raised concerns, and 17% said the police stopped them and impounded their vehicle or issued a fine for driving without adequate insurance.
Ghost brokers
Katriona Cunningham, policy application fraud lead at Aviva, said, “Young drivers aged 17–25 are the first generation to grow up with social media being an integral part of their daily lives. It is understandable, then, that when looking for car insurance, 30% of young drivers said they turn to social media.
“However, ghost brokers are actively targeting young drivers on social media platforms, offering cheap-but-worthless car insurance that puts the young driver at risk of being uninsured. I would say to all young drivers: if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.”
Aviva has detected 340,000 policy applications with fraud concerns so far this year – and has stopped or removed a further 17,000 policies due to fraud. It has also linked 7,000 cases this year to open investigations into known ghost broking cases.
