A father and kid duo from Leicester scammed motorist out of more than ₤ 60,000 by selling useless vehicle insurance coverage that left lots uninsured.

Ilyas Rauf charged unwary customers up to ₤ 300 for void policies, which left chauffeurs dealing with possible fines and automobile seizures, while secretly sharing thousands of pounds with his child Amer Ilyas.

In the fraud, bogus insurance intermediaries will claim they can get you vehicle or home insurance as a discount.

They might either hand over a phony policy or a real 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 must you attempt to make a claim.

Rauf, 51, made ₤ 61,763 from August 2016 to January 2020 by offering created employment letters to protect reduced premiums for his victims.

Between September 2019 and June 2020, he shared more than ₤ 11,000 of his profits with his 28-year-old boy, who was given the job of hiring victims through social media.

The daddy and child were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for scams offenses

The National Crime Agency previously shared a series of mocked-up Instagram advertisements using '100% legit insurance coverage guaranteed to beat any price' to show motorists what to look out for

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

He wrongly claimed his customers had worked for the business for numerous years without crashes or insurance coverage claims.

It was later on found that the address Eastern Catering was signed up to was the exact same used by Rauf to offer the phony policies.

Police found that his kid had actually likewise messaged 31 contacts about insurance on his phone in between October 2015 to March 2021, typically telling clients that his dad would offer quotes for them the next day.

Amer Ilyas would then inform victims to check out the office or send out photos of bank cards for processing of payment.

Rauf was connected to 52 fraudulent motor insurance plan throughout 4 various insurance companies.

Ilyas Rauf's brother Ziaed was captured on CCTV eliminating 2 computers from the workplace while cops raided his nephew's home.

Four call had been made between the bros before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to block a CCTV camera and got away.

Ziaed was captured on CCTV removing 2 computers from the office while cops robbed his nephew's home.

Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to obstruct a CCTV camera and ran away

How to avoid succumbing to 'ghost brokers'

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

• Stay away from buying insurance policies promoted through social networks platforms and immediate messaging apps.

• Beware of insurance brokers who market their services in personal neighborhood online forums or through ads in public places like pubs, coffee shops or newsagents.

• Don't engage with insurance coverage brokers who request payment in money or through bank transfers. Reputable brokers will use payment alternatives by means of an online website.

• Avoid insurance coverage brokers who utilize individual email addresses or cellphone numbers to offer policies.

• If you're stressed over a policy you've purchased or the information don't look right, contact the insurance supplier straight - do not use the information supplied by the broker.

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

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Their scam was uncovered when monetary private investigators discovered that he e claimed to have actually made ₤ 27,366 from 2016 to 2020 despite stealing more than ₤ 61,000 from the insurance fraud alone.

When questioned by cops, his son told officers he could not keep in mind being offered cash by his father and claimed he did not understand 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 scams by incorrect representation, breaching the Financial Services and Markets Act and moving 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 offered 16 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months. He was also bought to complete 100 hours of overdue work.

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

The most recent figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show the price of the average car insurance coverage in January to March 2025 was ₤ 589, a 6 per cent drop from the year before.

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

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

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

Hacking approaches include scammers getting control of an account and impersonating the owner to encourage others to reveal authentication codes.

The scams, known as 'ghost broking' are often advertised on social media, appealing cheap quotes for a car insurance coverage.

Car insurance plan have dropped over the in 2015, but are still stay traditionally high

The cars and truck insurance quotes that ARE too great to be true: Warning over surge in 'ghost brokers'

Many victims think they are being messaged by a friend.

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

Fraudsters can also gain account information through phishing rip-offs or information breaches.

People frequently utilize the exact same password across accounts, so when one is leaked numerous accounts are left susceptible.

Action Fraud has released a project, supported by Meta, to motivate individuals to take extra online protection by enabling two-step confirmation.

Victims often do not understand they have been scammed till they attempt to declare on their policy or if they take place to be stopped by police and asked to reveal their insurance files.

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

'Remember, if something sounds too great to be real, it almost definitely is.'

Young chauffeur Wayne Simpson purchased a low-cost car insurance plan on social media before realising it was fake after he was not able to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500.

Young driver Wayne Simpson bought a cheap 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 phoned Aviva and they told me there wasn't a policy secured in my name which the number we had actually provided was not a number they would use,' he informed Sky News.

'That's when the dust settles, and you realise it's been a rip-off.'

Mr Simpson said the insurance files looked so genuine that they managed to deceive a law enforcement officer at the scene of the crash.

'She stated," Your car's not popping up as guaranteed". Straight away I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance coverage files, revealed her the files and she reviewed it and stated," That's completely fine",' he stated.