Cyber Crime & Fraud are the UK's Most Common Offences, How to Make Sure Your Claim is Accepted, Plus More

Welcome to the February newsletter! This month, we report on the rise of cyber crime and fraud, we offer some top tips on how to save money for car insurance and how to make sure your claim is accepted. We've also have five things you do whilst driving that you didn't realise were illegal.

Until next time, 

West Craven Insurance

Cyber Crime & Fraud are Now the UK's Most Common Offences

 

Cyber-crime and cyber fraud are now the most common crimes in the country with 1 in 10 people in the UK falling victim to an online scam last year.

Figures released by the police revealed that 3.6 million cases of fraud were reported last year, however, experts believe that the actual number of cases is closer to 5.5 million. This number accounts for nearly half the crimes in the entire country. The police believe that the reason the numbers are so much higher, is because many are unwilling or too embarrassed to come forward and report the crime.

The figures were revealed in the annual Crime Survey of England and Wales (CSEW) which seeks to assess and track the number of offences by interviewing people about their personal experiences with crime.

Victims of online fraud are targeted by criminals based both at home and overseas. They use a variety of sophisticated techniques and tricks to gain access to their victim’s bank account, personal details and credit card details.

Many of those targeted by the fraudsters are elderly or vulnerable people who are taken advantage of through the usage of phishing scams.

Lucy Hastings, Director at the independent charity Victim Support, said: “We know that cybercrime and fraud can have a devastating impact, both financially and emotionally, on victims’ lives.

"Many victims blame themselves or feel too embarrassed to come forward and get help but this shouldn’t be the case.

"We want to encourage people to seek the help they may need and get the justice they deserve."

The rise of online fraud is reaching almost epidemic level proportions, with anyone who uses computers to bank and shop or even use email is at risk.

Whilst the traditional common place crimes like car theft are on the decline, almost 10% of the adult population have reported themselves as being a victim of cyber-crime. This has led to the overall crime statistics for the year doubling.

John Flatley of the ONS said: "In the past, burglary and theft of vehicles were the high-volume crimes driving trends but their numbers have fallen substantially since then.

"When the CSEW started, fraud was not considered a significant threat and the internet had yet to be invented.

"Today's figures demonstrate how crime has changed, with fraud now the most commonly experienced offence."

Another section of society being targeted by fraudster’s is businesses. CEO fraud is an increasingly common type of offence, in which members of an organisation will receive a request for a monetary transfer, disguised as a request from the CEO or management. Those eager to please will leap at the chance to assist their employer, and will in the process, send a small fortune to fraudsters.

According to Action Fraud, out of the &32 million reported to be lost by businesses to CEO fraud only &1 million has been able to be recovered by the victims.

Money Saving Tips for Car Insurance

 

Most UK car owners are overspending by &350 a year when it comes to their car insurance. There are some practical and easy steps that you can take, to not only lower the cost of your car insurance, but also make your car more secure.

Get a telematics black box
If you’re a newly qualified driver you’ve probably already found that insurance can be pricey. Some insurance companies will offer you a black box, which monitors your driving habits. Good driving is rewarded with lower premiums - but only if you don’t drive at night and don’t clock up too many miles.

Take an advanced driving course
Following your successful driving test, it is possible to take advanced driving courses, such as Pass Plus or RoadSmart. The completion of one of these courses could earn you a third off your policy.

Drive carefully
Points on your license equal higher premiums. Try to keep your license as clean as possible and should you be caught speeding, ensure you take the speed awareness course to avoid any points.

Keep your car secure
If your home has a driveway or garage, inform your insurer! Secure storage for your vehicle can help keep your premiums at a lower rate. If your car doesn’t have an immobiliser or alarm, it might be worth considering getting one installed.

Set your excess accordingly
When setting up a policy, you can sometimes choose the amount of excess you’d like to pay, should you need to make a claim. If you can afford to pay a large excess, you’ll bring the price of your policy down.

Choose a lower insurance group
The type of car you choose will fall into a different insurance group. The amount you pay for insurance will depend on the amount of safety features the vehicle carries (i.e. parking sensors, automatic breaking).

Use a broker
Struggling to find a policy for a price you can afford, or can’t find a policy with adequate cover? We can assist you in finding the perfect policy to suit your needs and budget.

How to Make Sure Your Claim is Accepted

 

Making a claim on your insurance is understandably a stressful time and when those unfortunate scenarios do arise, it may be easy to lose track of things and feel unorganised. Sadly, claims are rejected more times than you may think, however, there are a few steps you can take before an incident occurs that can help.

Find the right policy for YOU
One of the best ways to make sure a claim is accepted is by choosing a policy that actually covers your needs. There are plenty of comparison sites out there and in today’s world, it can be incredibly tempting to simply just look for the cheapest policy you can find and call it a day. However, the cheaper policy is usually cheaper for a reason, so while it’s important to also not to overpay, you need to focus on finding the policy that is right for you, so that you have peace of mind knowing you’re covered for all eventualities.

Read through all the details carefully
Following on from this, if you think you’ve found the right policy, before making a purchase you must remember to not just glance over the finer details of the policy. There are plenty of claims that get rejected due to policyholders not reading the small print. Don’t get caught out, take some extra time to go over any documents in detail, it may take more time up front, but could save you a lot of hassle in the long run.

Be honest about everything
As clichéd as it may sound, when it comes to taking out an insurance policy, honesty really is the best policy. Don’t be economical with the truth because you think it will save you cash up front. This rule applies to everything from car insurance and notifying insurers about modifications to your car, to health insurance and disclosing information on any previous medical conditions you may have suffered from. If you don’t provide an insurer with all the information, then the process of making a claim becomes much more complicated.

Keep everything up to date
Providing insurers with all the information is a great habit to have as you really should continue to do this even after you’ve taken out a policy. If there are any changes to your lifestyle that could affect your claim such as a new job requiring you to be on the road, your car insurance policy may not cover you for business purposes, so make sure you keep your policy up to date.

Document as much as you can
One of the final steps to take that can help any potential claims is collecting evidence. This tip is especially true for policies such as contents insurance. If you have to make a claim, the more you can prove, the more credible your claim will be. If you’ve made any considerable purchases, it’s good practice to keep hold of receipts and any documentation that shows proof of purchase. It can also be beneficial to take photos of your belongings as not only does it prove you own it, but also shows the condition of the item if something were to happen to it.

If you want to make sure that your claim is accepted, the key is to be honest and organised. These steps we’ve listed may take some time out of your day, but they can offer real peace of mind and potentially save a large amount of money if the worst were to happen. 

Five Things You Do Whilst Driving That You Didn't Realise Were Illegal

 

We all know the major rules of the road and do our best to avoid collecting points on our license. However, there are some rules that you may be unaware of so we thought we fill you in on some of the lesser known ‘don’ts’ of the road.

Driving through Puddles
We’ve all been the outraged pedestrian who got coated in an unwelcome sheet of ice cold puddle water. It is actually illegal to splash pedestrians by driving through puddles at speed, so make sure you reduce your speed and drive around it!

Tooting your horn in anger
We all learned, during the course of our driving lessons that your car horn is supposed to be used to alert other drivers of your presence. It’s also illegal to use your horn between the hours of 11:30pm and 7am unless it is an emergency situation.

Taking your pet out of the car
Should you break down on the motorway, all occupants are supposed to exit the vehicle and move to a safe distance away from the vehicle. However, this rule excludes pets. This is due to the risk they pose to motorway traffic.

Eating
You may remember there was a debate about drinking/eating whilst driving a few years ago. Eating whilst driving a vehicle is a distraction which can cause a serious accident. If you really can’t wait to eat your fast food, find somewhere safe to pull over.

Getting out on a single yellow line
Everyone knows they can’t park on double yellow lines, however you probably didn’t realise it's illegal for the driver to exit the vehicle on a single yellow line. Fortunately, dropping off passengers is legal.

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