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

Ilyas Rauf charged unsuspecting consumers up to ₤ 300 for void policies, which left drivers facing possible fines and lorry seizures, while secretly sharing countless pounds with his son Amer Ilyas.

In the rip-off, bogus insurance coverage intermediaries will declare they can get you car or home insurance as a discount rate.

They might either turn over a fake policy or a genuine one, which they subsequently cancel to keep the refund for themselves.

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

Rauf, 51, made ₤ 61,763 from August 2016 to January 2020 by providing created work 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 son, who was offered the job of recruiting victims through social networks.

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

The National Crime Agency previously shared a series of mocked-up Instagram ads using '100% legitimate insurance ensured to beat any price' to reveal drivers what to watch out for

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

He wrongly declared his clients had worked for the business for multiple years without crashes or insurance coverage claims.

It was later on discovered that the address Eastern Catering was signed up to was the very same utilized by Rauf to offer the phony policies.

Police discovered that his boy had likewise messaged 31 contacts about insurance coverage on his phone in between October 2015 to March 2021, frequently telling consumers that his father would offer quotes for them the next day.
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Amer Ilyas would then inform victims to go to the office or send out photos of bank cards for processing of payment.

Rauf was linked to 52 fraudulent motor insurance plan across 4 various insurance companies.

Ilyas Rauf's bro Ziaed was captured on CCTV eliminating two computer systems from the office while police raided his nephew's home.

Four telephone call had been made in between the siblings before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to obstruct a CCTV video camera and left.

Ziaed was captured on CCTV removing two computers from the workplace while cops robbed his nephew's home.

Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to block a CCTV electronic camera and ran away

How to avoid falling victim to 'ghost brokers'

Karl Parr, from AXA UK, stated consumers can protect themselves by following the below recommendations:

• Steer clear of buying insurance policies 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 places like pubs, coffee shops or newsagents.

• Don't engage with insurance coverage brokers who request payment in cash or through bank transfers. Reputable brokers will offer payment alternatives through an online portal.

• Avoid insurance coverage brokers who utilize personal e-mail addresses or mobile phone numbers to offer policies.

• If you're worried about a policy you've purchased or the information do not look right, get in touch with the insurance coverage supplier straight - do not utilize the details offered by the broker.

• To guarantee you're handling an authorised insurance coverage broker, examine the Financial Conduct Authority's website or the British Insurance Brokers' Association websit.

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

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

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

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

Amer Ilyas, 28, also of Normanton Road, pleaded guilty to cash laundering offenses and was offered 16 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months. He was likewise bought to finish 100 hours of unsettled work.

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

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

However, premiums remain more pricey today than two years back, with the typical policy ₤ 478 in January to March 2023 - 23 per cent less than the very first quarter of 2025.

It follows a significant rise in social media and email hacking reports last year, according to Action Fraud.

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

Hacking methods include scammers gaining control of an account and impersonating the owner to encourage others to expose authentication codes.

The rip-offs, referred to as 'ghost broking' are often promoted on social media, appealing inexpensive quotes for a vehicle insurance coverage.

Car insurance plan have dropped over the in 2015, however are still remain traditionally high

The vehicle insurance prices estimate that ARE too great to be true: Warning over rise in 'ghost brokers'

Many victims think they are being by a buddy.

The most common motives for social networks hacking were investment fraud, ticket scams or theft, Action Fraud said.

Fraudsters can also acquire account details via phishing frauds or information breaches.

People often utilize the exact same password across accounts, so when one is leaked a number of accounts are left susceptible.

Action Fraud has actually released a campaign, supported by Meta, to encourage individuals to take extra online security by allowing two-step verification.

Victims often do not understand they have actually been scammed up until they try to claim on their policy or if they happen to be visited cops and asked to show their insurance coverage files.

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

'Remember, if something sounds too great to be true, it probably is.'

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

Young driver Wayne Simpson purchased an inexpensive automobile insurance coverage on social networks before understanding it was phony after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500

'We called up Aviva and they informed me there wasn't a policy secured in my name and that the number we had 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 scam.'

Mr Simpson stated the insurance coverage documents looked so genuine that they handled to deceive a cops officer at the scene of the crash.

'She stated," Your automobile's not turning up as insured". Straight away I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance coverage documents, showed her the documents and she reviewed it and stated," That's totally fine",' he said.