‘Unscrupulous’ ads could leave road traffic accident victims thousands worse off

People involved in motor collisions are being warned they could be left thousands of pounds worse off by unwittingly signing up to the services of a firm whose online adverts closely resemble those of their insurer.

The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) said that people trying to call their insurance firm to make a claim can end up inadvertently contacting a third party firm while believing they are dealing with their insurer – only to rack up thousands of pounds in fees which otherwise could have been covered by their policy.

The IFB said unscrupulous firms may pay for ads which are similar in style to those created by insurers.

They may appear in mobile phone searches, encouraging people to call through quickly.

During calls, the firm may use general terminology to sound like the insurer or to imply that they are affiliated with them, the IFB said.

The caller is asked for their personal details to receive “support services” such as a replacement vehicle, and potentially make a claim.

While this could potentially happen to any insurance customer, those who have been in a road traffic collision are particularly at risk as they may be shaken after an accident and not thinking as clearly as usual, the IFB said.

People may also believe their motor insurance covers everything, but as they do not realise they are not talking to their insurer, they can sign up to several services and it may be weeks until they discover the charges, it warned.

Who pays the fees varies.

If the other driver is at fault, the firm could claim against their insurer to recover the costs of its services.

Or, if the other insurer does not believe all the charges are justified, then the person who has contacted the firm may still face some costs.

However, if the other driver is not at fault of the collision, the onus is placed on the person who inadvertently contacted the firm for support to cover the costs, the IFB said.

It said in one case, someone was pursued to cover more than £50,000 in unsolicited fees.

Jon Radford, head of intelligence, investigations and data services at the IFB, said: “Unscrupulous firms will deliberately pay for search engine ad results that misrepresent genuine insurers.

“Having just experienced a road traffic collision, their victims are often in a shaken state, and when they call who they think is their insurer for support they end up trapping themselves in legal agreements that may cost them everything.

“We’re working with insurers and the police to raise awareness and the message is simple – save your insurer’s contact details so you have it to hand if needed and report any signs of paid-ad spoofing scams to our confidential CheatLine.”

Pete Ward, head of claims counter fraud at Aviva, said: “We suggest that drivers save their insurer’s claims number in their phones or keep it handy in their vehicles.

“When customers mistakenly respond to misleading online ads, we take immediate action to identify and investigate, sharing intelligence with the IFB and relevant regulators.”

He said proactive monitoring by the insurer has led to successful takedowns of misleading ads and associated web domains.

Mr Ward added: “We’ve seen too many instances where customers contact us about a claim, only to find they never made a claim with Aviva.

“Imagine the concern when customers realise they don’t know who they are dealing with, what they have agreed to, or the implications of these agreements.

“This confusion puts customers at risk of extreme financial harm: they enter agreements for services like recovery, storage, repair, and hire, believing these costs are covered by their insurance.

“However, if these costs aren’t recovered from the other party’s insurer, the customer may be liable.”

Here are some tips from the IFB, a not-for-profit organisation which acts as a central intelligence hub for its industry members, to help insurance customers to avoid misleading ads:

1. Keep your insurer’s contact details written down or saved on your phone.

2. Download your insurer’s app as this usually has customer service support functionality.

3. If searching for your insurer online, go on the insurer’s website to obtain contact details.

4. If you are viewing a sponsored ad result, check the URL and phone number before sharing any personal information and agreeing to claims services.

5. If anyone has concerns relating to paid-ad spoofing, they should tell their insurer and contact the IFB’s confidential CheatLine online or via 0800 422 0421.