Cash-for-crash fraudsters sentenced after cunning give-way trick

Three men were sentenced yesterday (22 November 2018) at Manchester Crown Court (Minshull Street) for conspiring to deliberately cause a crash in order to claim for injuries and vehicle damage.

Zahir Ali, 23, of Albion Road, Rochdale, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, and given 100 hours community service. Ahsan Ali, 24, of Durham Road, Bradford and Hussnain Ali, 30, of Violet Street, Halifax, were both sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, and given 70 hours community service. All three men were also ordered to pay £250 each in court costs. 

The City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) was contacted on 19 June 2017 by insurers Hastings Direct about suspicions involving a crash that happened in November 2016.

The crash occurred when Zahir Ali was driving in Rochdale and he gestured to allow a woman to pull out of a junction in front of him. As she moved onto the road in front of him, he deliberately drove his vehicle into the victim’s car at low speed.

The damage caused was minimal and witnesses confirmed that Zahir Ali was the only person in his car at the time. He left the scene of the crash alone.

Following the crash, Zahir Ali contacted a vehicle recovery company and a solicitors firm was also contacted.  He showed photographs of the damage to his car to the owner of the recovery company. The owner decided the car was not roadworthy and arranged for it to be recovered to an industrial unit. An assessment of the damage by a representative of the Institute of Motoring Industry found that Zahir Ali’s car had sustained damage after the collision on 16 November 2016 which had caused it to become immobile.

Zahir Ali submitted injury claims to the solicitors firm for himself, as well as Ahsan Ali and Hussnain Ali on their behalf.

At a medical appointment on 7 January 2017, Zahir Ali and Ahsan Ali each claimed to be suffering from back pain. Hussnain Ali attended a medical examination on 22 February 2017 and claimed to be suffering from shoulder and neck pain. The doctor felt that these injuries were all consistent with a car crash. He recommended further examination by an orthopaedic surgeon as well as six sessions of physiotherapy each.

Zahir Ali, Ahsan Ali and Hussnain Ali were interviewed voluntarily on 15 August 2017.

Detective Constable Kevin Hughes of the City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) said: “Zahir Ali took a kind gesture and used it to create a crash that only served his own greed and that of Ahsan and Hussnain Ali. 

“Insurance fraud is not a victimless crime. When people commit insurance fraud, it drives up insurance premiums for all consumers as fraud costs the insurance industry money.”

Paul Priestley, Director of Counter-Fraud at Hastings Direct, said: “We are committed to protecting honest customers and we are therefore very happy with the decision of the court. Fraudsters should see this as a clear message that we will take all appropriate action to pursue and deter their actions.”