Prison sentence and hefty fine for whiplash fraudster

A whiplash fraudster who deliberately caused a car accident by slamming on his brakes has been sentenced and ordered to pay £14,000 costs.

Shahid Hussain claimed whiplash injuries and vehicle hire and repair costs after alleging that a Churchill policyholder had driven into him as he drove down a slip road near Stoke-on-Trent in 2013.

Three apparent passengers of Hussain also claimed for whiplash injuries.

In his evidence, the defendant driver stated there had been no reason for Hussain to brake suddenly in front of him, as there had been no traffic preventing him from merging safely onto the A500 from the slip road.

At the hearing, Hussain asked to withdraw his claim, as his evidence was so contradictory and unsatisfactory.

The judge allowed him to do so only on the basis he should pay all the costs of the claim, as he had been fundamentally dishonest.

He received an immediate two-month prison sentence and was ordered to pay £14,000 in costs by the courts.

The judge acknowledged that he would have given Hussain 12 months had he contested the allegations against him and been found guilty.

His sentence was reduced, as he pleaded guilty to eight of the 16 false statements made to the court.

Counter fraud partner at DAC Beachcroft, Jemma Lewis said: “Although the sentence was short, the judge felt the fraud was sufficiently serious that Mr Hussain went straight to prison, sending a clear message that there are serious consequences for those who commit fraud.

“This was a deliberate ‘slam-on’ accident by a claimant, who had then hoped to claim damages, fraudulently.”

Mark Chiappino, counter-fraud manager at Churchill Insurance commented: “Once again, people attempting to defraud Churchill Insurance should know that we will use the full weight of the law against them in our fight to protect our innocent customers.

“The fraudster’s claim was valued in excess of £30,000 and insurance fraud is estimated to add at least £50 to the average household insurance bill, so we will continue to fight the fraudsters with our experienced counter fraud teams.”