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At Dial Direct we are committed to preventing fraud. We take every step we can against people trying to commit fraud. Fraudulent activity can lead to everyone else having to pay higher premiums whilst the fraudsters benefit.
Our customers come first which is why it’s essential that we work together to stop fraud and to make sure the fraudsters aren’t profiting from the system at everyone’s expense.
We have outlined some of the various types of fraud, together with how we are doing our best to prevent this, along with some general information on what you can do to help.
Please click on the links below to find out more about:
To make our fraud prevention measures as effective as possible we get data from a wide range of industry-wide sources. These include other businesses, police forces and other law enforcement bodies. Once we have this, we use state-of-the-art technology to cross-reference it with our internal databases and other external data sources, and by liaising with insurers to check information that might look suspicious.
You may recognise some of the fraud prevention steps we take from when you last purchased insurance. When you provided personal details, your no claims discount and information about any previous claims you’ve had, these all go through a checking process to help us identify you as one of our valued customers and not a fraudster.
Fraud is something that might have a negative effect on our customers, so we’re committed to fighting against it. We are always working hard to improve our security measures, protect our customers and their personal data. It’s as simple as that.
Should you deliberately withhold accurate information about yourself and your circumstances you could invalidate your insurance. It is essential that you honestly disclose all relevant information. Remember we, and the insurers, do make checks on the information disclosed and can identify fraudulent behaviour.
No Claims Discount documents are an integral part of purchasing insurance. Documents provided to prove No Claims Discounts are all verified, and any fraudulent or fake documents will invalidate a policy.
Our claims checking procedures help to stamp out fraud so you’re not paying the price for the actions of a small minority. In addition to this we review every claim in detail so that the few people who try to place a fraudulent claim don’t benefit and you don’t have to pay the price as a result.
We can carry out claims checks at any point in the policy purchasing process, and even after payment has been made.
You need to tell us if you or anyone else named on your insurance policy have made a claim for damage, loss or liability in the last five years. We also need to know if you decided not to make a claim for the loss – for example if your vehicle or property was damaged but you chose not to make a claim.
We have these checks in place to help stop fraudulent activity but also to try and make sure you won’t be disappointed if you make a claim. Not disclosing a past claim could mean your insurance isn’t valid and result in its cost increasing or being cancelled.
It may not be something you’ve thought about before and we know that insurance fraud can seem complicated and confusing. So, what is insurance fraud?
In simple terms this is when you withhold information from your insurer. This could be anything from your occupation and correct age to motoring convictions or your No Claims Discount entitlement. Whether this information was withheld accidentally or on purpose it could mean your policy isn’t valid. The outcome would be that if you make a claim, your insurance company may not pay. It could also ultimately result in prosecution and/or being fined. Car insurance fraud is an increasing area of concern. Below are some of the different ways in which car insurance fraud is committed:
Your insurance premium is calculated on a wide range of factors, such as your home address, your age, where your car is parked overnight, your occupation, whether you use your vehicle for business or commuting among others. If any of your circumstances change, it’s important that you let us know. This will make sure that you have the correct level of cover in place.
This is where someone is included on a policy as a named driver but is in fact, the main driver. For example, instead of a young driver taking out their own policy, their parent includes them on one in their name. The main reason for doing this is to gain a lower premium, however this is illegal.
If you either purchase a car which has modifications, or you make them yourself you must let us know. Some types of modification, such as additional security features, could reduce your premium. However, if performance enhancing modifications are made, this could increase the cost.
If a car is abandoned, set on fire, or disposed of in any way this is considered a type of fraud if the owner then tries to make a claim against it.
Inevitably there will be some people who fall victim to the professional fraudsters. Below are some examples of this:
These are insurance brokers who sell fake policies to motorists. These policies may appear to be genuine. In some cases they are actual policies which have been purchased from legitimate insurers and then altered before being passed on. The unsuspecting customer would not know that they were buying a policy that’s not real.
Other instances of ghost broking can include the fraudsters buying a policy and then cancelling it almost immediately. This would enable to them to claim the refund as well as keeping hold of the customer’s money.
You may be aware of this type of fraud, as it has been covered in the news. The three key ways in which they do this are:
In addition to our fraud prevention measures there are some things you can do to help protect yourself as well. We’ve listed some of these below to help you:
The points below are relevant to all devices you use to access the internet, including computers, laptops, mobiles and tablets
Sometimes companies may need to access your computer remotely (for example, IT companies for repair purposes). Unfortunately, fraudsters can also use this to gain access to your devices. It is always best to remove any software which you don’t need.
It’s always best to only buy goods online from reputable companies. However, there are still a number of things to look out for to help spot a fraudulent website:
If you would like more information about how to help protect yourself against financial and cyber crime we have included links to some external websites for you to visit:
https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/individual-protection
https://takefive-stopfraud.org.uk/about/take-five