Ten worst places for "crash for cash" scam

The “Crash for Cash” scam has been around for a while now, but recent research from Direct Line has come up with a list of the top ten places where this type of incident is most likely to occur.

This insurance fraud is carried out by criminals who cause an accident to happen by slamming on their brakes, at a roundabout or slip road for instance, making the driver behind crash into them; they then claim for repairs, and often fictitious injuries, from the other driver’s insurance company.

Not only does this put innocent lives at risk but it also costs the insurance industry huge sums of money each year (in the region of £350 million), the costs of which are passed on indirectly to law abiding motorists. In addition, if you are unlucky enough to have a genuine accident at a known hotspot you will find that insurance companies, perhaps understandably, have their suspicions aroused and launch an enquiry, meaning a delay in settling the claim.

The top ten hotspots are:

• Centenary Way, Trafford Park, Manchester
• The Haslingden roundabout at Junction 5 of the M65
• The Scotland Road roundabout at Junction 13 of the M65
• The Gannow Top roundabout on Cavalry Way in Burnley
• The Eden Point roundabout on the A34 in Stockport
• The Denham roundabout on the M40
• Jarman Park on the A414 in Hemel Hempstead
• Parkway Uxbridge Road connecting the A312 to the A4020
• Port Way / Strand Road junction in Preston
• The Junction 24 roundabout of the M25

Kate Lotts of Direct Line says that the top ten list is just a small proportion of the data shared within the insurance industry and stresses that, with increasingly sophisticated technology available, the fraudsters have cause to worry. She added that Direct Line believes in taking the harshest possible approach in seeking penalties in order to protect the honest motorist.