Birmingham tops 'crash for cash' postcodes hotspots

Birmingham has topped the UK's "crash for cash" postcode league for the second time in a year.

'crash for cash' scams are run by fraudsters who manufacture collisions with other road users with a  view to profit from insurance claims.

The league table is compiled by the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), Birmingham had 10 of the top 30 postcodes for the crime.

Top crash for cash locations in 2017

1. Birmingham
2. Bradford
3. Manchester
4. London
5. Oldham
6. Liverpool
7. Bolton
8. Sheffield
9. Wakefield

Out of Birmingham's 10 postcodes on the list. Washwood Heath, Aston and Small Heath were the three worst postcodes for the crime in the UK.

In Bradford, Frizinghall and Manningham came joint fourth for the numbers of fraudulent claims, while in Manchester the M8 postcode, which includes Cheetham Hill, was ranked sixth.

The data applies to the past 12 months. In total, there were 55,573 personal injury claims linked to scams in the UK, the IFB said, costing the insurance industry a total of £340m a year.

For more information on this story see this BBC.

Driver caught on dashcam throwing Rolo wrapper from car window given £80 fine

A driver has had an £80 fine handed out to them after being caught throwing a Rolo wrapper out of their car window in Somerset.

Another motorist reported the litterer after the incident was captured on their dashcam.  The driver handed the film footage to South Somerset District Council, the offender was then found using the offending car's number plate.

After being invited in for an interview under caution, the offender admitted to throwing litter from their car and has now been issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice of £80 for the offence.

Councillor Carol Goodall, portfolio holder for environmental health said: "This is a great example of how modern technology is helping local authorities tackle issues such as littering and that if you are willing to commit an offence in public, you'll ultimately pay the price.

"If you see others throwing litter from a car, let the district council know and if possible tell us where it was thrown from and how many people were in the vehicle."

Under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, it is an offence to drop or leave litter on the floor, and this includes cigarette butts.

Dropping litter can result in a Fixed Penalty Notice being issued.

Dashcam footage helps to catch burglars

Two burglars in Mansfield have been sentenced for a combined total of more than eight years after dashcam footage helped secure the conviction.

37 year old Sefton Brown, formerly of David Street in Kirkby-in-Ashfield and 36 year old John Shaw from Mansfield Road in Sutton-in-Ashfield, burgled an elderly couple’s house in Chesterfield Road South on 27 July 2016.

Shaw, who was found guilty of burglary by the jury, was jailed for four years and six months. Brown, who pleaded guilty to burglary, was jailed for three years and eight months.

Leicester Crown Court heard how the victims had their front door open because of the heat. A short time later they noticed a wallet had been taken from their hallway.

They realised they had been burgled after a passing motorist stopped at their home to tell them she had seen two men acting suspiciously and entering their front garden – which she had recorded on her dashcam.

The lady told the court how she had continued to record the men walking down the road and looking through the stolen wallet before they threw items into a bin. When she checked the bin she found photos from the victim’s wallet.

Speaking after Shaw and Brown were sentenced, Detective Constable Luke Todd, of Nottinghamshire Police, said:

"These were vulnerable victims who should have felt safe and secure in their own home. I’m pleased with the sentences given which go to show that we will pursue those who commit burglary."

The judge also commended the actions of the witnesses in securing the evidence which helped massively with proving the case.

 

 

Car Left For MOT was Caught Speeding in Dashcam Footage

Vertu Motors has apologised after a staff member was caught speeding by the dashcam in a customers car.

Aguri DX10 - Popular Dash Cam

Andrew Siggens complained when his Nissan Juke’s camera showed a Bristol Street Motors’ staff member allegedly travelling at 54mph on a 40mph road.


“I was disgusted when I saw it - it certainly was a shock to see,” he told Gazette Live.
He left the car at the Darlington dealership on November 15 for its MoT.


“I am aspiring to become a police officer in the very near future,” said Siggens.
“Had I not had a dashcam and been landed with points on my driving licence due to a speed camera picking this up, I’d have been seriously prejudiced for my hopes of joining the police force.”


A spokeswoman for Vertu Motors told Gazette Live an investigation had been carried out.
She said: “We regret the incident at our dealership in Darlington and have conducted a thorough internal investigation in line with our company policy and procedures.


“Action has been taken with the colleague concerned and additional training has been completed by the team to ensure there is no repeat of this event.”

Woman drives along casually with a tree embedded in her bonnet

I was sure that this one was going to be some kind of a joke, It had to be a picture of a car crashed in to a 15ft tree - stationary and not going anywhere, especially this size.  Well i've watched the video and I can confirm that this woman did indeed manage to drive along as if nothing was wrong - until she was stopped by the police!

She was drunk OBVIOUSLY!

Police in Illinois released the unusual dashcam footage of the vehicle motoring along a road with the branches of the tree spiking out far above it.

Upon approaching the car, the officer found airbags had deployed following the collision with the tree.

The driver, who has been named in reports as 54-year-old Maryann Christy, was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Roselle Illinois Police Department released photos and video on its Facebook page, confirming the bizarre incident occurred a few weeks ago. The department added the warning: "Yet another reason why you should not drink and drive!"

Dangerous driver is first to be jailed by dashcam footage after motorist video of his reckless overtaking

James Stocks, 24, of Cheshire has become the first person in the UK to be jailed by dashcam footage after a video showing his reckless overtaking move that forced a Ford Transit van off the road was posted online.

Mr Stocks was handed an eight-month sentence after he pulled off two heart-stopping overtakes on the A495 in Shropshire back in April.

The out-of-control driver's black Volkswagen Golf nipped past a silver Ford Ka on a blind bend, causing the Transit van to take emergency action and swerve on to a verge.

The landmark case is believed to be the first time that a dangerous driver has been convicted using dashcam footage posted by a member of the public.

Matt Stockdale, chairman of PoliceWitness, said: 'I formed PoliceWitness after I was almost killed by a reckless HGV driver.

'Frustrated that there were no police to witness what had occurred, I decided to empower the public to assist the police, in order to hold those who flout the law to account.

'To date, nearly 1,000 motorists up and down the country have faced positive formal police action following the submission of dashcam footage by those who call themselves PoliceWitnesses.

'Being banned from driving, or even losing your job following a moment of madness, has often been described as the ultimate price to pay having been caught on video by a dash cam.

'But this case has resulted in a driver losing their liberty and freedom - and in my view rightly so.' 

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk

Collision at Junction DashCam 13 Sep 2015

Ouch that had to hurt! at least with the footage provided by the dash cam he didnt have to worry about the other driver making any false claims.It doesn't mention in Umar Raja's post much about the incident  - what junction etc but this is a fairly standard accident that happens all the time

New Variant of 'Crash-For-Cash' Scam On Britain's Roads

Insurers are warning about a new variation of so-called 'crash-for-cash' motor scam.

Crash-for-cash is a relatively well-known scam, in which a fraudster will slam on their brakes unexpectedly, causing the car behind to collide into them. (some will even remove or disable their brake lights so that other drivers have no warning or chance to react). They'll then make an insurance claim that exaggerates the damage caused to their vehicle so that they can get more money.

The new variation on the original scam sees fraudsters demanding cash on the spot from the other driver following the crash. Generally they will ask for a sum between £50 and £200.

Tom Gardiner, head of fraud at Aviva, told the Daily Mail: “Although it is early days, we are seeing anecdotal evidence of fraudsters deliberately causing an accident and then pressuring the target – or ‘at fault’ party – into paying them money in exchange for not making an insurance claim.

“We are concerned that fraudsters could end up targeting the most vulnerable motorists – the elderly, young drivers and women who are travelling alone or with young children.”

Mr Gardiner described the new trend of demanding on-the-spot payments as “bringing back the days of ‘highway robbery’”. Motorists were being intimidated, he said, and felt like they had no choice but to comply.

One reported incident even involved the scammer offering a motorist a lift to a cash machine so that they could withdraw cash.

Scammers are likely to make their fraudulent claim regardless of any cash exchanged at the scene. So if you pay up on the spot, you’re only increasing their profits. You may also be encouraging the scammer to repeat the tactic elsewhere, putting more drivers in harm’s way.

What to do if you’re involved in a car crash

 

If you’re involved in a car crash, alarm bells should start ringing if

• The other driver seems unusually calm 
• The other driver has their insurance details already written down for you to take.

What you should do...

• Keep a cool head.
• Don’t hand over any money
• don’t admit fault
• Take photographs if possible, from as many angles as you can.
• write down as much personal information as possible (if they’ll give you the information)
• Their name
• address
• contact telephone number  

• Don’t forget to also write down  the following details about their car
• the make
• model 
• registration number 
• number of people in their vehicle (photograph for proof)

The number of people in the vehicle is important as some scammers may later claim for injuries to passengers who weren’t actually present at the time.


As a matter of precaution, you might also want to install a dashcam in your vehicle. Some insurers are now accepting dashcam footage as evidence, and this may provide proof that an accident was caused deliberately by the car in front.

What to do after a suspected scam crash

 

If you think you’ve been targeted by a crash-for-cash scam, call the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) Cheatline on 0800 422 0421. This is a free and confidential way to report suspected insurance fraud, and your information could help the IFB build cases against organised criminal enterprises.
You should also call the police to report your suspicions.

Source http://home.bt.com

Bad Drivers of Newcastle #24

Another entertaining collection of clips from BadDrivers OfNewcastle

The video consists of random dash cam caught clips - mostly in Newcastle & surrounding areas.
BadDrivers OfNewcastle says that they do not claim to be a perfect driver themselves and that If honking offends you dont watch the video

Also please note that the wide-angle lens can distort the distance in which objects appear, and can often make it look like we are travelling faster than we really are. (I totally agree with this from footage taken on my wide angle camera)

Madness on UK Roads Dashcam March 2015 UK

Great video from Gary Mc Crashes, smashes, bumps and near misses. I think that the first one is great of the overtaking. Anyone else ever had this happen to them when they have gone to overtake? looks like this one was quite a near miss!

Bad Drivers of Newcastle Caught on Dash Cam

Some great examples here from a video by BadDrivers OfNewcastle that are filmed from his dash cam of taxi drivers that could do with retaking their driving tests.  Also "clueless pedestrians" that dont seem to take any responsibility for their own lives whatsoever.

Caught on dash cam - compilation

One of the things that I noticed on these clips that I was a little shocked about is that on clip number 3, (the one where the car stops to let the people cross the road and then gets back-ended by the person behind him (really hard)) is that the people that the car driver had stopped to let across dont stop to help him or check that he is ok they just walk off!! am I the only one that is shocked at this?!

Drunk Pedestrian Dash Cam Footage

Thank goodness that both of these drivers were on the ball and did not collide with this inebriated pedestrian.  

 

Just think if this man in his drunken state had somehow stumbled in to the path of one of these vehicles then at least they would have been able to prove that it was entirely the drunken mans fault.

Wrong lane collision with van

Dash cam footage captures the moment a driver drifts into the path of a van. Location - Farlington roundabout Eastern Rd Portsmouth.
Give the facebook page a like,  http://facebook.com/dashcamnetwork

UK Crash & Close Calls Compilation

Great compilation from WelshDrive, I particularly like the one that shows the use of a 2 camera system such as the Road Angel Halo.  Dash cams are worth their weight in gold when it comes to apportioning blame

Some great examples of why you should get a dash cam

Some great examples of why you should get a dash cam on here. Footage is from UK dash cameras including insurance scam attempts and a runaway lorry.

Dash cam saves the day providing evidence of blame in caravan crash

Another instance where a dash cam saves the day providing evidence of blame. Here a caravan driver tries to push in the front of a long queue of traffic and causes a collision. Footage owner is Mark Hazell.

Some of these near misses caught on dash cam are unbelievable!

BAD LANGUAGE WARNING! although im sure if some of you had these near misses that you would be using some of these "choice" words too ;)

Bad driving in the UK compilation

Captured from Welshdrive's Dash Cam. Quite a large selection of examples of bad driving that you find on the average road including an example of the ultimate lane hog ion the motorway. Those people are so frustrating and they hold everyone up

What happens to you in a head on with a truck?....this

This just shows how you really get thrown about all over the place! Dont worry he walks away without  a scratch! how I will never know!

Just as a side note I love this 2 camera set up, it is especially good for taxi drivers. Its a normal 2 camera dash cam kit such as the road angel halo but the camera that you would normally face out of the rear of the car you hang on the front windscreen pointing inwards.