The man claimed compensation 13 times, using false invoices and photographs to support each claim
– The City of London Police investigated the case with Royal Mail
– One of the man’s claims led to a driver resigning after criticism from their manager

Yesterday (11 December 2017) a man was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court after he attempted to claim compensation on 13 separate occasions for alleged damage caused to his car by heavy goods vehicles, leading to one of the drivers resigning from their place of work.

Following a joint investigation by the City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) and Royal Mail, Neil Oldfield, 40, of Firstone Grove, Liverpool, pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud by false representation and was sentenced to eight months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and 20 days at an attendance centre. Eight offences were taken into consideration.

False documents used to support claims

Between 14 April 2016 and 20 January 2017, Oldfield made 13 false insurance claims across multiple companies, including Royal Mail and insurance company NFU Mutual. On each occasion, he would claim that damage had been caused to the wing mirror of his car when being overtaken by a heavy goods vehicle, which then failed to stop.

To support each claim, Oldfield submitted a false invoice for repairs which hadn’t taken place and a photograph of the alleged damage caused to his vehicle. It was also discovered that as well as using fake names on four occasions, in five of the claims he even created a false witness, completed a witness statement and forged a signature of that witness.

Once Oldfield had submitted a false claim, he would then put pressure on the insurer to settle it and on some occasions he criticized the claims handler and went on to log a complaint.

One driver resigns

Oldfield’s false claims had an impact on one driver in particular, who was deemed a careless driver after he failed to stop following the alleged accident. The driver resigned from work after receiving criticism from his manager.

On 14 March 2017, Oldfield was arrested and following a search warrant of the property, Royal Mail investigators and Merseyside Police found and seized a number of documents linking Oldfield to the frauds against Royal Mail and the other insurance companies. The total value of fraudulent claims by Oldfield amounted to £5,976.

City of London Police Detective Constable Kevin Hughes, who led the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department’s investigation, said:

“Oldfield not only attempted to con insurance companies out of thousands of pounds through his multiple false claims, but his criminal actions also put innocent people’s careers at risk and sadly resulted in one man resigning from his job.

“IFED and Royal Mail have ensured that justice has been served to Oldfield. We hope this acts as a warning to any others who are thinking of making false insurance claims that they will be found out and suitably punished.”

Michael Munn, the Prosecutor for Royal Mail said:

“Crimes like this have a real impact on individuals as well as organisations like Royal Mail. We want it known that Royal Mail is not a soft touch for fraudsters and will protect our drivers and ourselves from the effects of false accident claims. We worked with City of London Police to prosecute frauds on others by Mr Oldfield to prevent more innocent victims being affected by his crimes.”

Charlotte Brown, Counter-Fraud Consultant at NFU Mutual, said:

“NFU Mutual takes a firm stance against anyone attempting to commit fraud against our policyholders, and in appropriate cases will not hesitate to prosecute. This sentence sends a clear message that insurance fraud is not acceptable and that offenders will be severely punished.”

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