The Motor Insurers & # 39; Bureau of Ireland has claimed that the new & # 39; Fighting Fraud & Strategy has contributed to a decline in the number of car insurance claims by 8%.
From January to July of this year, MIBI received 1,572 claims, a decrease of 144 compared to the same period in 2017. Last year it introduced what it described as an extensive plan to make it as difficult as possible for fraudulent claims to succeed.
"This included measures to put the full weight of MIBI's internal and external resources behind the investigation of suspicious claims, hand in hand with the guardian to investigate these cases, as well as legally combating such claims and bringing them to court. to be examined by the regulator, full power of the courts, "it said.
In the first seven months of 2018, MIBI received fewer claims from 18 of the 26 provinces.
It said that the biggest drop came from Louth with 34 fewer claims received by the end of July. That was followed by Dublin (down 33) and Kildare (down).
Of the eight provinces that recorded an increase in claims, the largest in Laois, which registered eight additional claims compared to 2017.
David Fitzgerald, chief executive of the MIBI, said it was positive to see the number of claims decreasing.
"Admittedly, these figures represent only a snapshot and some county figures are too small to draw significant conclusions from them," said Mr. Fitzgerald.
"However, given that these statistics include more than half a year of data, they are a useful barometer for the overall MIBI claim environment, and this shows a remarkable reduction in the total number of claims."
Mr Fitzgerald said that a more detailed overview of the claims received led MIBI to believe that a significant part of the decline was due to the increased supervision it made for fraudulent claims.
"According to our handlers, since our approval of our" Fighting Fraud "strategy, where there is a zero-tolerance approach, there has been a noticeable decrease in the number of claims where the evidence does not support the case. which is made, "he said.
"Fraudsters start to get the message that if they want to make a fictitious claim to the MIBI, then they must be willing to have that claim examined microscopically.
"They will be thoroughly investigated by the MIBI in collaboration with the guards and if the evidence is still not correct, they will be brought to justice.
"The days of easy settlements for nonsense claims are definitely over."
Mr. Fitzgerald said that MIBI wanted to make it clear to the public that those who have a real claim have nothing to fear.
"MIBI has always been a pro-victim organization and when the claim is genuine and justified, we support the claimant," he said.
"However, protecting victims also means that fraud is limited as much as possible.
"We want to make sure that malicious people who make the roads more dangerous by setting up fake accidents are getting harder and harder to succeed.
"That is in the interests of everyone who uses the Irish roads and it is a strategy that we want to maintain in the coming months and years."
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