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A daddy and boy duo from Leicester scammed chauffeur out of more than ₤ 60,000 by offering worthless vehicle insurance policies that left lots uninsured.
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Ilyas Rauf charged unwary consumers up to ₤ 300 for invalid policies, which left chauffeurs dealing with possible fines and car seizures, while covertly sharing countless pounds with his son Amer Ilyas.

In the scam, fake insurance intermediaries will claim they can get you car or home insurance as a discount rate.

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

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

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

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

The dad and boy were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court for scams offences

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

An investigation discovered he utilized letters from a company called Eastern Catering to fraudulently obtain no claims discount rates.

He incorrectly declared his customers had actually worked for the company for numerous years without crashes or insurance claims.

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

Police found that his kid had also messaged 31 contacts about insurance on his phone between October 2015 to March 2021, often informing clients that his father would provide quotes for them the next day.

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

Rauf was linked to 52 deceitful motor insurance policies across four different insurers.

Ilyas Rauf's bro Ziaed was caught on CCTV eliminating 2 computer systems from the office while police robbed his nephew's home.

Four phone calls had been made in between the brothers before Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully attempted to block a CCTV electronic camera and fled.

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

Ziaed Rauf unsuccessfully tried to obstruct a CCTV camera and fled

How to prevent coming down with 'ghost brokers'

Karl Parr, from AXA UK, said customers can protect themselves by following the below suggestions:

• Stay away from acquiring insurance coverage promoted through social networks platforms and instantaneous messaging apps.

• Be cautious of insurance brokers who market their services in private community forums or through ads in public places like clubs, cafes or newsagents.

• Don't engage with insurance brokers who ask for payment in money or through bank transfers. Reputable brokers will use payment options via an online website.

• Avoid insurance coverage brokers who utilize individual e-mail addresses or smart phone numbers to offer policies.

• If you're fretted about a policy you've purchased or the information don't look right, call the insurance coverage supplier directly - do not use the details supplied by the broker.

• To ensure you're handling an authorised insurance coverage broker, check the Financial Conduct Authority's site or the British Insurance Brokers' Association websit.

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Their rip-off was revealed when financial investigators found that he e claimed to have actually earned ₤ 27,366 from 2016 to 2020 regardless of stealing more than ₤ 61,000 from the insurance coverage fraud alone.

When questioned by cops, his son told officers he could not remember being provided money by his dad and claimed he did not know 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 imprisoned for 21 months.

Amer Ilyas, 28, likewise of Normanton Road, pleaded guilty to cash laundering offenses and was provided 16 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months. He was likewise purchased to finish 100 hours of unpaid work.

Ziaed Rauf, 47, of Thurnview Road, Evington, Leicester, was offered 18 weeks jail time, suspended for 12 months, and was purchased to complete 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 rate of the average vehicle insurance coverage policy in January to March 2025 was ₤ 589, a 6 percent drop from the year before.

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

It follows a remarkable increase in social networks and email hacking reports last year, according to Action Fraud.

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

Hacking techniques include fraudsters acquiring control of an account and impersonating the owner to encourage others to reveal authentication codes.

The rip-offs, known as 'ghost broking' are often promoted on social media, promising inexpensive quotes for a car insurance coverage policy.

Car insurance coverage policies have actually dropped over the in 2015, but are still remain historically high

The automobile insurance estimates that ARE too great to be real: Warning over rise in 'ghost brokers'

Many victims think they are being messaged by a pal.

The most typical motives for social media hacking were investment scams, ticket fraud or theft, Action Fraud stated.

Fraudsters can likewise get account information via phishing frauds or information breaches.

People often the exact same password throughout accounts, so when one is leaked a number of accounts are left susceptible.

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

Victims often do not realise they have actually been scammed up until they try to declare on their policy or if they happen to be stopped by authorities and asked to reveal their insurance coverage files.

Karl Parr, Claims Technical Director, AXA UK, told MailOnline: 'Ghost brokers normally offer premium rates far cheaper than customers can find elsewhere.

'Remember, if something sounds too excellent to be real, it probably is.'

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

Young chauffeur Wayne Simpson bought a low-cost vehicle insurance coverage on social networks before realising it was fake after he was unable to claim following a crash, landing him with a loss of ₤ 500

'We called Aviva and they informed me there wasn't a policy taken out in my name which the number we had offered them was not a number they would utilize,' he informed Sky News.

'That's when the dust settles, and you realise it's been a scam.'

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

'She said," Your car's not appearing as guaranteed". Immediately I went to my glove box, pulled the insurance files, revealed her the documents and she reviewed it and said," That's absolutely fine",' he stated.
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