A daddy and son duo from Leicester scammed chauffeur out of more than ₤ 60,000 by selling useless cars and truck insurance coverage that left lots uninsured.
Ilyas Rauf charged unwary clients as much as ₤ 300 for void policies, which left chauffeurs dealing with possible fines and car seizures, while covertly sharing thousands of pounds with his son Amer Ilyas.
In the fraud, phony insurance middlemen will declare they can get you car or home insurance coverage as a discount.
They might either turn over a phony policy or a real one, which they consequently cancel to keep the refund for themselves.
Alternatively, they secure a real policy with inaccurate details to bring the premium down - which would likely leave it void need to you try to make a claim.
Rauf, 51, made ₤ 61,763 from August 2016 to January 2020 by offering forged work letters to secure affordable premiums for his victims.
Between September 2019 and June 2020, he shared more than ₤ 11,000 of his profits with his 28-year-old son, who was given the job of hiring victims through social media.
The father and kid were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for scams offences
The National Crime Agency formerly shared a series of mocked-up Instagram advertisements offering '100% legitimate insurance coverage ensured to beat any price' to reveal motorists what to look out for
An examination found he used letters from a company called Eastern Catering to fraudulently obtain no claims discounts.
He incorrectly claimed his customers had worked for the business for numerous years without crashes or insurance claims.
It was later on found that the address Eastern Catering was signed up to was the same utilized by Rauf to sell the phony policies.
Police discovered that his kid had also messaged 31 contacts about insurance on his phone between October 2015 to March 2021, often telling consumers that his dad would supply quotes for them the next day.
Amer Ilyas would then inform victims to visit the office or send out pictures of bank cards for processing of payment.
Rauf was connected to 52 deceitful motor insurance coverage across four various insurance companies.
Ilyas Rauf's brother Ziaed was captured on CCTV removing two computer systems from the workplace while authorities robbed his nephew's home.
Four phone calls had actually been made between the brothers before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to block a CCTV cam and got away.
Ziaed was caught on CCTV removing two computer systems from the office while authorities robbed his nephew's home.
Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to obstruct a CCTV cam and ran away
How to avoid succumbing to 'ghost brokers'
Karl Parr, from AXA UK, stated customers can safeguard themselves by following the below advice:
• Avoid buying insurance coverage promoted through social networks platforms and immediate messaging apps.
<E2><80><A2> Beware of insurance coverage brokers who market their services in personal community online forums or through advertisements in public locations like pubs, coffee shops or newsagents.
• Don't engage with insurance coverage brokers who request payment in cash or through bank transfers. Reputable brokers will provide payment alternatives through an online portal.
• Avoid insurance coverage brokers who utilize personal email addresses or cellphone numbers to offer policies.
• If you're stressed over a policy you've acquired or the details don't look right, contact the insurance coverage supplier straight - don't utilize the information supplied by the broker.
• To ensure you're handling an authorised insurance coverage broker, examine the Financial Conduct Authority's site or the British Insurance Brokers' Association websit.
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Their rip-off was uncovered when monetary private investigators found that he e claimed to have earned ₤ 27,366 from 2016 to 2020 in spite of swiping more than ₤ 61,000 from the insurance scams alone.
When questioned by authorities, his kid told officers he could not keep in mind being given money by his father and declared he did not understand what it was for.
The three men appeared at Leicester Crown Court on Friday, June 6.
Ilyas Rauf, 51, of Normanton Road, Highfields, Leicester, pleaded guilty to fraud by incorrect representation, breaching the Financial Services and Markets Act and transferring criminal residential or commercial property and was jailed for 21 months.
Amer Ilyas, 28, also of Normanton Road, pleaded guilty to money laundering offences and was offered 16 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months. He was likewise bought to complete 100 hours of unsettled work.
Ziaed Rauf, 47, of Thurnview Road, Evington, Leicester, was given 18 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months, and was bought to finish 120 hours of overdue work after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice.
The most current figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show the rate of the average cars and truck insurance plan in January to March 2025 was ₤ 589, a 6 percent drop from the year before.
However, premiums remain more expensive today than two years ago, with the average policy ₤ 478 in January to March 2023 - 23 per cent less than the very first quarter of 2025.
It follows a significant rise in social networks and email hacking reports in 2015, according to Action Fraud.
An overall of 35,434 reports were made to the fraud and cyber criminal offense reporting service in 2024, compared to 22,530 in 2023.
Hacking techniques include fraudsters gaining control of an account and impersonating the owner to persuade others to reveal authentication codes.
The rip-offs, called 'ghost broking' are often promoted on social networks, appealing cheap quotes for an automobile insurance plan.
Car insurance coverage have actually dropped over the in 2015, but are still stay historically high
The vehicle insurance prices estimate that ARE too great to be real: Warning over rise in 'ghost brokers'
Many victims believe they are being messaged by a good friend.
The most common intentions for social networks hacking were fraud, ticket scams or theft, Action Fraud stated.
Fraudsters can likewise gain account details via phishing rip-offs or information breaches.
People typically utilize the very same password across accounts, so when one is leaked numerous accounts are left susceptible.
Action Fraud has actually launched a campaign, supported by Meta, to motivate individuals to take additional online security by enabling two-step verification.
Victims frequently don't understand they have actually been scammed until they attempt to claim on their policy or if they take place to be dropped in cops and asked to reveal their insurance coverage documents.
Karl Parr, Claims Technical Director, AXA UK, told MailOnline: 'Ghost brokers normally provide premium costs far more affordable than customers can find in other places.
'Remember, if something sounds too excellent to be true, it likely is.'
Young chauffeur Wayne Simpson purchased a low-cost automobile insurance policy on social networks before realising it was phony after he was not able to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500.
Young chauffeur Wayne Simpson bought an inexpensive automobile insurance plan on social networks before understanding it was fake after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500
'We contacted Aviva and they informed me there wasn't a policy taken out in my name which the number we had actually provided was not a number they would use,' he informed Sky News.
'That's when the dust settles, and you understand it's been a fraud.'
briefingwire.com
Mr Simpson stated the insurance coverage files looked so genuine that they managed to trick a law enforcement officer at the scene of the crash.
'She said," Your cars and truck's not popping up as insured". Straight away I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance files, revealed her the documents and she reviewed it and said," That's totally fine",' he stated.