A father and kid duo from Leicester scammed chauffeur out of more than ₤ 60,000 by offering worthless car insurance policies that left dozens uninsured.
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Ilyas Rauf charged unsuspecting customers approximately ₤ 300 for void policies, which left drivers dealing with possible fines and vehicle seizures, while secretly sharing countless pounds with his boy Amer Ilyas.

In the rip-off, fake insurance coverage middlemen will declare they can get you car or home insurance coverage as a discount rate.

They might either turn over a fake policy or a genuine one, which they subsequently cancel to keep the refund for themselves.

Alternatively, they get a real policy with inaccurate details to bring the premium down - which would likely leave it void ought to you try to make a claim.

Rauf, 51, made ₤ 61,763 from August 2016 to January 2020 by offering forged work letters to secure affordable premiums for his victims.

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

The father and son were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for scams offences

The National Crime Agency previously shared a series of mocked-up Instagram ads using '100% legit insurance coverage ensured to beat any cost' to reveal drivers what to watch out for

An examination discovered he used letters from a company called Eastern Catering to fraudulently acquire no claims discount rates.

He falsely declared his customers had actually worked for the business for multiple years without crashes or insurance coverage claims.

It was later discovered that the address Eastern Catering was signed up to was the very same utilized by Rauf to offer the phony policies.

Police found that his child had actually also messaged 31 contacts about insurance on his phone between October 2015 to March 2021, often telling consumers that his daddy would supply quotes for them the next day.

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

Rauf was connected to 52 fraudulent motor insurance coverage throughout 4 different insurance providers.

Ilyas Rauf's sibling Ziaed was caught on CCTV removing two computer systems from the workplace while authorities raided his nephew's home.

Four call had actually been made in between the siblings before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to block a CCTV camera and ran away.

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

Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully tried to obstruct a CCTV cam and got away

How to avoid falling victim to 'ghost brokers'

Karl Parr, from AXA UK, stated consumers can protect themselves by following the below suggestions:

• Steer clear of acquiring insurance coverage promoted through social media platforms and instantaneous messaging apps.

• Beware of insurance brokers who market their services in private community online forums or through advertisements in public places like bars, coffee shops or newsagents.

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

• Avoid insurance brokers who use personal email addresses or smart phone numbers to offer policies.

• If you're stressed over a policy you have actually bought or the information don't look right, get in touch with the insurance coverage supplier straight - don't utilize the details supplied by the broker.

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

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Their fraud was uncovered when financial investigators discovered that he e claimed to have made ₤ 27,366 from 2016 to 2020 in spite of filching more than ₤ 61,000 from the scams alone.

When questioned by authorities, his boy told officers he could not keep in mind being offered cash by his daddy and declared he did not understand what it was for.

The three men appeared at Leicester Crown Court on Friday, June 6.

Ilyas Rauf, 51, of Normanton Road, Highfields, Leicester, pleaded guilty to scams by false representation, breaching the Financial Services and Markets Act and transferring criminal residential or commercial property and was imprisoned 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 likewise ordered to finish 100 hours of overdue work.

Ziaed Rauf, 47, of Thurnview Road, Evington, Leicester, was given 18 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months, and was purchased to finish 120 hours of overdue work after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice.

The most recent figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) reveal the price of the typical automobile insurance policy 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 ago, with the average policy ₤ 478 in January to March 2023 - 23 per cent less than the very first quarter of 2025.

It follows a significant increase 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 with 22,530 in 2023.

Hacking techniques consist of fraudsters gaining control of an account and impersonating the owner to convince others to expose authentication codes.

The rip-offs, understood as 'ghost broking' are frequently advertised on social media, appealing cheap quotes for an automobile insurance coverage policy.

Car insurance policies have actually dropped over the last year, however are still remain traditionally high

The automobile insurance quotes that ARE too excellent to be true: Warning over rise in 'ghost brokers'

Many victims think they are being messaged by a friend.

The most common intentions for social media hacking were financial investment scams, ticket scams or theft, Action Fraud said.

Fraudsters can also get account details by means of phishing rip-offs or information breaches.

People frequently utilize the very same password across accounts, so when one is leaked a number of accounts are left vulnerable.

Action Fraud has introduced a project, supported by Meta, to encourage individuals to take additional online protection by enabling two-step verification.

Victims frequently don't realise they have been scammed till they attempt to claim on their policy or if they take place to be come by authorities and asked to show their insurance documents.

Karl Parr, Claims Technical Director, AXA UK, told MailOnline: 'Ghost brokers generally offer premium prices far less expensive than clients can discover somewhere else.

'Remember, if something sounds too good to be real, it likely is.'

Young driver Wayne Simpson bought an inexpensive car insurance plan on social media before understanding it was fake after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500.

Young motorist Wayne Simpson purchased a low-cost vehicle 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 contacted Aviva and they informed me there wasn't a policy secured in my name and that the number we had actually provided them was not a number they would utilize,' he informed Sky News.

'That's when the dust settles, and you understand it's been a fraud.'

Mr Simpson stated the insurance coverage files looked so real that they handled to trick a law enforcement officer at the scene of the crash.

'She stated," Your cars and truck's not popping up as guaranteed". Quickly I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance documents, showed her the files and she checked out it and said," That's totally fine",' he said.