British Transport Police (BTP) specialist officers are targeting people who deliberately report their gadgets as stolen, to claim hundreds of pounds in insurance scams.
In the past year, detectives have fined 16 people in London for wasting police time after they maliciously reported the theft of their mobile or tablet, when they either still had the device or had sold it privately.
Many more have been prosecuted for fraud, BTP add. An east London woman was recently convicted after she claimed her phone had been stolen when, in fact, she’d sold it.
Officers are warning the public not to be tempted to commit fraud in the hope of pocketing quick cash or upgrading to a newer handset. Detective Constable Martin Wilson said: “While the vast majority of people who report stolen phones and tablets to the police do so in good faith, a small proportion do so dishonestly in a deliberate attempt to make money by selling these gadgets and then claiming further cash via fraudulent insurance claims”.
“This swindle is not a victimless crime. It wastes hours of valuable police time spent investigating bogus offences and skews the crime figures for railway stations and Tube lines, meaning officers could be targeting stations based on inaccurate intelligence, giving the real thieves more space in which to operate.”
Insurance fraud also impacts everyone who pays monthly premiums, the authorities point out. Mark Allan, Manager, Fraud and Financial Crime, at the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said: “It is a myth that insurance fraud is a victimless crime. The ABI estimates that fraud adds, on average, an extra £50 a year to the insurance bill for every UK household. Some people may think they can get a quick payout by faking the theft of their mobile phone, but they will pay in the long run, facing a criminal record, higher premiums and difficulty getting insurance and other financial products in the future.”
On Thursday, August 28, a 27-year-old woman was given a 12-month conditional discharge and fined £190 at Westminster Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to wasting police time and fraud by false representation.
