A daddy and son duo from Leicester scammed driver out of more than ₤ 60,000 by selling useless car insurance coverage policies that left lots uninsured.

Ilyas Rauf charged unwary consumers approximately ₤ 300 for void policies, which left drivers facing possible fines and car seizures, while covertly sharing thousands of pounds with his kid Amer Ilyas.

In the rip-off, bogus insurance coverage intermediaries will claim they can get you cars and truck or home insurance as a discount rate.

They might either hand over a phony policy or an authentic one, which they consequently cancel to keep the refund on their own.

Alternatively, they secure a genuine policy with incorrect details to bring the premium down - which would likely leave it void need to you attempt to make a claim.

Rauf, 51, made ₤ 61,763 from August 2016 to January 2020 by supplying forged employment letters to secure affordable premiums for his victims.

Between September 2019 and June 2020, he shared more than ₤ 11,000 of his earnings with his 28-year-old child, who was provided the task of hiring victims through social media.

The father and boy were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for scams offenses

The National Crime Agency formerly shared a series of mocked-up Instagram advertisements using '100% legitimate insurance coverage guaranteed to beat any cost' to reveal drivers what to watch out for

An investigation found he used letters from a company called Eastern Catering to fraudulently obtain no claims discount rates.

He falsely claimed his customers had actually worked for the business for several years without crashes or insurance coverage claims.

It was later on found that the address Eastern Catering was signed up to was the same utilized by Rauf to sell the fake policies.

Police discovered that his son had likewise messaged 31 contacts about insurance on his phone in between October 2015 to March 2021, typically informing clients that his father would offer quotes for them the next day.

Amer Ilyas would then tell victims to visit the office or send out pictures of bank cards for processing of payment.

Rauf was connected to 52 deceptive motor insurance policies across four various insurers.

Ilyas Rauf's sibling Ziaed was captured on CCTV eliminating two computer systems from the workplace while cops robbed his nephew's home.

Four phone calls had actually been made in between the bros before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully tried to obstruct a CCTV electronic camera and left.

Ziaed was captured on CCTV eliminating 2 computers from the workplace while police raided his nephew's home.

Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to obstruct a CCTV electronic camera and fled

How to avoid coming down with 'ghost brokers'

Karl Parr, from AXA UK, said customers can safeguard themselves by following the below guidance:

• Avoid buying insurance plan promoted through social media platforms and instant messaging apps.

• Be careful of insurance coverage brokers who market their services in personal neighborhood forums or through advertisements in public locations like bars, coffee shops or newsagents.

• Don't engage with insurance brokers who ask for payment in money or through bank transfers. Reputable brokers will offer payment options through an online website.

• Avoid who utilize personal e-mail addresses or smart phone numbers to sell policies.

• If you're stressed over a policy you have actually purchased or the details do not look right, call the insurance coverage provider straight - don't utilize the details provided by the broker.

• To ensure you're dealing with an authorised insurance coverage broker, check the Financial Conduct Authority's website or the British Insurance Brokers' Association websit.

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Their rip-off was discovered when monetary detectives found that he e declared to have actually earned ₤ 27,366 from 2016 to 2020 despite filching more than ₤ 61,000 from the insurance coverage fraud alone.

When questioned by authorities, his kid told officers he might not keep in mind being offered cash by his father and claimed he did not know what it was for.

The 3 males appeared at Leicester Crown Court on Friday, June 6.

Ilyas Rauf, 51, of Normanton Road, Highfields, Leicester, pleaded guilty to scams by false representation, breaching the Financial Services and Markets Act and transferring criminal residential or commercial property and was jailed for 21 months.

Amer Ilyas, 28, likewise of Normanton Road, pleaded guilty to money laundering offences and was given 16 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months. He was likewise purchased to complete 100 hours of overdue work.

Ziaed Rauf, 47, of Thurnview Road, Evington, Leicester, was offered 18 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months, and was bought to finish 120 hours of unpaid work after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice.

The most recent figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show the rate of the average vehicle insurance policy in January to March 2025 was ₤ 589, a 6 percent drop from the year before.

However, premiums stay more costly today than two years earlier, with the average policy ₤ 478 in January to March 2023 - 23 percent less than the first quarter of 2025.

It follows a dramatic rise in social networks and email hacking reports in 2015, according to Action Fraud.

An overall of 35,434 reports were made to the scams and cyber criminal activity reporting service in 2024, compared to 22,530 in 2023.

Hacking techniques consist of scammers acquiring control of an account and impersonating the owner to convince others to expose authentication codes.

The frauds, referred to as 'ghost broking' are frequently advertised on social networks, promising inexpensive quotes for a cars and truck insurance coverage.

Car insurance policies have actually dropped over the last year, but are still remain historically high

The cars and truck insurance prices estimate that ARE too excellent to be real: Warning over rise in 'ghost brokers'

Many victims believe they are being messaged by a friend.

The most typical intentions for social media hacking were financial investment scams, ticket fraud or theft, Action Fraud stated.

Fraudsters can also gain account details by means of phishing scams or data breaches.

People frequently use the very same password throughout accounts, so when one is dripped a number of accounts are left susceptible.

Action Fraud has released a project, supported by Meta, to encourage people to take additional online protection by enabling two-step confirmation.

Victims frequently don't understand they have been scammed till they attempt to declare on their policy or if they take place to be visited authorities and asked to reveal their insurance coverage documents.

Karl Parr, Claims Technical Director, AXA UK, informed MailOnline: 'Ghost brokers generally offer premium costs far more affordable than clients can find somewhere else.

'Remember, if something sounds too good to be real, it probably is.'

Young motorist Wayne Simpson bought a low-cost automobile insurance plan on social media before realising it was fake after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500.

Young driver Wayne Simpson bought an inexpensive cars and truck insurance coverage on social networks before understanding it was fake after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500

'We called up Aviva and they told me there wasn't a policy secured in my name and that the number we had actually provided was not a number they would utilize,' he informed Sky News.

'That's when the dust settles, and you understand it's been a fraud.'
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Mr Simpson said the insurance files looked so genuine that they managed to fool a law enforcement officer at the scene of the crash.

'She stated," Your car's not appearing as guaranteed". Quickly I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance coverage documents, showed her the documents and she read through it and stated," That's completely fine",' he stated.