Insurance worker used specialist knowledge to defraud firms

Rachel Shoer, 42, from Century Way, Halesowen, used fake names to set-up false insurance policies and made 13 fraudulent claims over seven years, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.

Investigators from the City of London Police discovered that Shoer followed a pattern of taking out a policy with a different insurer every year under a different name.

She admitted that because of her terrible claims history under her real name she was unable to take out home insurance and used false details to ensure she could receive insurance cover.

Between 2009 and 2016, Shoer’s fraudulent claims included multiple times where she used original pictures from her own wedding and 40th Birthday to make false claims on an engagement ring.

She held a range of positions working in the insurance industry, and worked as an underwriter for an insurer during the time she was making the claims.

This meant she had extensive knowledge of the industry insurance and would have been aware of the crime she was committing by making false claims.

The fraud came to light on December 10, 2015, when Shoer attempted to take out two insurance policies with one company. They started an internal investigation, and using their own database, saw that several policies had been taken out with the same address, but under different names.

The case was referred the case to the City of London Police's Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department to begin a formal investigation.

They found a number of policies had been taken out over the years with the same address but each under a different name.

She was given a 15-month suspended prison sentence and given a 20- hour community order after she pleaded guilty to making numerous false insurance claims.

City of London Police’s Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, who led the investigation, said: “Rachel Shoer has been persistently deceitful and given her experience as an underwriter, it’s clear that she was keenly aware of the multiple offences of fraud she was committing.

“Our Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department’s hard work in uncovering the full extent of her actions, with the help from two insurance companies, has ensured that she has been dealt a punishment that matches the severity of her crimes.”