A seemingly routine claim has become an important fraud victory for Keoghs and AXA Insurance. The win at trial has validated a clear strategy for handling the increasing problem of fake driver’s licences, while ultimately preventing a payout of nearly £30,000.
The case, defended on behalf of AXA by Keoghs case handler Kate O’Hara, alongside Alec Pemberton, involved a collision between a scooter and a car, where liability was admitted early. The claimant then presented claims for personal injury and vehicle damage, along with significant credit hire, recovery and storage costs.
While the overall value approached £30,000, the bulk of the claim (over £25,000) related to credit hire charges accrued over an 86-day period.
The claimant, a food delivery rider, maintained that his vehicle had been written off and that he was financially unable to mitigate his losses, relying on a claim of impecuniosity to justify the extended hire period. Central to his case was a Portuguese driver’s licence submitted as evidence of his entitlement to drive.
Recognising early indicators of risk, Keoghs and AXA carried out a detailed investigation into the claimant’s evidence, paying particular attention to the authenticity of the driver’s licence submitted.
Irregularities were quickly identified, prompting the defence to challenge the document’s validity and invite the claimant to verify it using official Portuguese Government channels or otherwise admit the illegitimacy of the licence. Despite being given every opportunity to do so, no supporting evidence was provided by the claimant and no admission was made.
The defence was then successfully amended, pleading illegality, particularly under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981. This was supported by witness evidence from an identity validation analyst, which provided compelling evidence that the licence was not genuine.
Faced with this, the claimant conceded that he had relied on third parties to obtain both the licence and insurance upon arriving in the UK, accepting that the document was likely fraudulent.
There was even a late attempt by the claimant to replace the credit hire costs with an alternative loss of use claim. When this was successfully opposed and dismissed, they then tried to discontinue.
The case was heard in the Central London County Court, with a decisive outcome in AXA’s favour.
The court granted permission to discontinue the claim, but at significant cost to the claimant. This included being ordered to pay the defendant’s costs, starting with a payment in the sum of £21,000, and also repay interest on the interim payment.
Keoghs Lead Lawyer for Credit Hire Fraud, Matthew Wheeler, said:
“With a stark increase in the identification of illegitimate driving licences in motorcycle claims, this outcome shows the commitment by Keoghs and AXA in identifying and successfully defending these claims.
“The claimant was given every opportunity to take steps to validate their licence in respect to the defendant’s evidence but ultimately, sought to discontinue their claim where the Civil Procedure Rules did not permit, resulting in considerable financial consequences.
“AXA can now look to the hire company involved for recovery of outstanding costs following the decision on Tescher v DAML/AXA v Spectra Drive and it should serve as a learning point for credit hire organisations to be more vigilant in validating prospective hirers before providing them with a replacement vehicle”
Gemma Butcher, Counter Fraud & Proactive Detection Insights Team Leader at AXA Insurance UK said:
“Tackling claims fraud is a key priority for AXA UK. We’re witnessing an increasing number of claims involving fake driving documentation and this case reinforces the importance of careful scrutiny, especially when a case appears routine at first glance.
“Paying out on fraudulent claims ultimately impacts all our customers through increased insurance premiums so we continue to invest in the tools, expertise and partnerships to help us detect and challenge fraud.”
Matthew Wheeler, Lead Lawyer for Credit Hire Fraud
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