My family are idiots *boring money thread!*

[PipLongStockings]

Sister is an almost 30 yr old drama llama. Called this morning and woke me up barely able to breathe as she was sobbing so much. Eventually found out someone has broke the lock on her car and rifled through her car. Said not to worry ring 101 and log it and call insurance company, really not much else you can do.
2 hours later called in to check how things were going, my mother has gone to see her and they are both very impressed with themselves as they've decided she can profit from this by telling insurance comp that loads of stuff was in the car and got robbed.
Cue me saying what a fucking idiotic plan, they will want pictures/receipts etc and at the first sign of fraud she will have no insurance. The phone was promptly hung up.
So AIBU, is this what people do if faced with claiming on insurance- genuine question?

I scuffed someone's bumper, my fault totally, they wouldn't go to the garage I use and got a huge quote for repairs elsewhere(the marks just wiped off of my bumper..), so had to go down insurance route as I couldn't afford it upfront.

Now, he was stationary and I was travelling at around 1mph.

Got a letter today informing me he was claiming for injury... So I've sent my dashcam footage in..

Why do people think it's OK to defraud insurance companies?

YANBU

We were burgled years ago and I was horrified at the number of people who suggested we commit insurance fraud. I find it utterly bizarre!

Used to work in insurance fraud, you wouldn't believe what people think they can get away with.
With a theft, they will have to provide receipts, transaction statements or photos that prove they owned/bought the goods. Depending on the insurer though they might just give him them back a set amount of money rather than replace the items.

Glad you're clearly very much smarter than your mum and DS, OP. Unfortunately they're not kids, just silly women who are old enough to know better. You've said your piece, now leave them to mess up and get in trouble, if that's what they've decided to do.

There is NOT a lie detector on phone calls to insurance companies! They record calls but that doesn't mean the same thing at all.

thecatsthecats Once I was stuck in a traffic jam on the M6 going home for Christmas, moving really slowly, and the car behind me bumped into us, like must have been doing about 3mph if that, no damage and my car was an ancient wreck anyway. Driver gets out, he's wearing army uniform and he looks about 19. He was like "oh Christ no, I've run into your car, wait, I'll get my insurance details" and it was like the nicest feeling in the world to be able to go "don't worry about it, have a nice Christmas" and just get back in the car.

Haha, good luck with that one. Do they seriously think this is some brilliant new scam that the insurance companies don't hear every single day? Hysterically dim. Let them get on with it -if they fuck up the ability to insure anything in the future, along with a potential criminal record for a few hundred quid then more fool them.

Daff, my younger daughter was bashed into in stationery traffic and took pictures. The insurer just paid out even though it was definitely the other person's fault as it was more expensive for them even to bother looking at the photos! I have lost most faith in insurance and like someone else above only other that car insurance which is compulsory and house buildings and contents in case the whole house burns down.

Let them crack on and get caught. They'll then find it almost impossible to get insurance in future (and not just car insurance) as they’ll have to declare their fraud every time they try to arrange a policy. And if they lie to get insurance, they’ll get found out when they make a claim and the insurers do their checks. Dimwits!!

The only time my car was broken into I managed to get a holiday out of the incident.

They took my purse.
Only pennies in the purse I cancelled credit cards which were in the wallet. But also had a Tesco points card in there as well.

Started using another Tesco card and forgot about it.

Then I started to get extra points sent through.

It took them years before someone realised that they weren't getting the points.

We had a lovely holiday paid for totally by the thieves

I got hit on a roundabout when I had to stop suddenly as a lorry went on to it just in front of me. Unfortunately the car behind sliced his car like a tin-opener on my tow bar, wrecking the grill, radiator, bonnet, wing etc etc.
All witnessed by the police motorcyclist behind the lorry who couldn't believe what happened.
No damage whatsoever to my car. Not a mark, towbar effectively worked like a can opener and sliced the front of the other car as it passed.
Got hassled for years afterwards by BOTH insurance companies because they want to do a knock for knock as to why I had not made a claim for anything. Didn't even bother to claim for car seat as the car behind went along the back of the car, my car didn't move as I was already stationary, no chance of even whiplash.

Other one was a speeding car clipped my mirror as I was coming off a narrow bridge. Took photos of hid damage including a pristine view of the drivers door with a complete reflection of the other side of the road in it, you could see not a mark on it. Only needed new glass so didn't claim but he claimed for all sorts including new door skin - so sent in the photos and never heard a word since

Years ago I had a bracelet and lost it. So I claimed on the insurance and got a replacement.

Wore it once...and lost it again. Yes really - first day of new job. As you can imagine I was horrified. I didn't even try to claim a second time, there is no way the insurance company would have believed me. I bought a replacement and wear it about once a year! I actually wore the original all the time but lost confidence in my ability not to lose it.

I'd never try anything on with an insurance company (even though they try it on with consumers, though to a lesser extent since the Insurance Act 2016 came into being).

This is quite common, we met a couple on holiday once who quite blatantly told us they would be claiming her engagement ring was lost when swimming, as such, thr claim would pay for their vacation and their holiday was free.

It's quite shocking what people do.

Old article but insurers used to use voice risk analysis. I’m sure I listened to a r4 programme on it saying it was used to see if they needed to investigate further. No idea if it’s still used.
www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/insurance/2884402/Insurers-turn-to-technology-to-beat-cheats.html

I was in a car accident with my then-partner about fifteen years ago. Car was a bit buggered - passenger side-door stoved-in and headlight gone - but we were both uninjured. I was honestly shocked at the number of people at work who told me "Oh, you should claim for whiplash! Everyone does it!"

They seemed unfazed by a)it being fraud or b)me pointing out that whiplash is an actual verifiable injury and not just "your neck being a bit sore."

Mind you, this was the same place where people cheerfully informed me that yes, they would certainly hand in a purse or a wallet, but if they found a laptop or a phone they'd regard it as finders-keepers. I was proper fucking stunned at that one.

Contents of my boot right now: one very, very old cardigan (for emergencies), a first aid kit, a tool with a yellow handle (no idea!), 2 containers of Halford's Screen Wash - both nearly empty, 11 bags for life (one full of old carrier bags) and a small fire extinguisher (came with car).
Nothing in the car itself except a couple of phone cables and half a bottle of Listerine.
I suspect that this is reality for most people.......

This attitude regarding whiplash really annoys me.
Genuine whiplash injury is very painful and long lasting and can be life changing. People with genuine whiplash have a really difficult time trying to get their claim processed because of cheats and fraudsters.

Contents of my boot.

A couple of large throws, a king size and single duvet wrapping a 19th century fruit bowl and several other pieces of old porcelain.

God knows what the insurance company would make of that.

Porcelain is only in the car because I don't have anywhere to put it in the house.

Oh well.... Fraud...

Someone I knew was prosecuted for same... Claimed for thousands of pounds of stuff he didn't have in a small house fire... (all contained within a small area of the kitchen...). You always use your laptop and expensive jewellery within 1 metre of a stove.

Anyway he was prosecuted. He then found it impossible to get a job because of fraud conviction--he got a community order.... Employers usually don't want to employ frauds.

My handbag is bigger than my boot so there is not much in mine

I reversed into someone’s car in the supermarket (proper dick end thing to do. I was distracted by screaming child) and apologised and immediately got my insurers details up.

The bloke said because I immediately and genuinely apologised and it wasn’t bad at all we’d just forget if I bought a bottle of wine for myself for the evening to relax with.

There are good people out there :)