In the UK, there are a growing number of reported cases concerning traffic accident scams. As a result, road users are growing more concerned each day. The insurance sector is spending approximately $200 million annually due to these scams, and has even lead to the superfluous increase in auto insurance premiums. The safety of motorists is also placed at risk due to these scams!

Criminals plan traffic scams in advance so as to make sure that clueless motorists become involved in collisions. When these happen, those responsible for the staging of the crime will make personal injury claims in order to take advantage of innocent people and to benefit from exorbitant payout sums. Many of these scammers will create an instance which leads to a road traffic accident, making victims out of defenseless motorists.

The most usual type of road traffic accident scam is one which involves being in a usual flow of road traffic, with the driver behind you making hand signals which indicate you can now enter the lane. Once you have entered his lane however, he will begin to accelerate and will bump the back of your vehicle. As the police are questioning the people involved in the accident, the driver will deny having given you the permission to enter the lane. Due to this, you will be perceived as a careless driver, or one who does not wait for signals from other drivers before entering another lane. Thus, the driver will claim for the damage done to his vehicle, and to make a personal injury claim as well.

This example is simply one of the many traffic accident scams which are prevalent nowadays, so if you want to safeguard yourself and your loved ones, you should be more careful. In an article published online by BBC, 2,418 drivers were asked to participate by YouGov, and out of these participants, 41% are clueless about the crime, and 40% are unaware whether or not they have been in a staged accident in the past. This survey was done in behalf of insurance agencies Royal and Sun Alliance. It may impossible to keep these scams from happening; however, you need to take the right precautions, to avoid falling into this trap.

One of the ways that you can avoid being a victim of these traffic scams is to avoid tailgating and to be a responsible driver at all times. You also need to remember that keeping a safe distance with the vehicle ahead of you is extremely important. Be especially careful with vehicles which suddenly pull out at T-junctions, and to always drive carefully. Nonetheless, you can still do something when you become the victim of an accident scam. You should get the necessary details and if possible photograph the scene of the traffic accident. These will help you confirm if the accident was merely a scam. While getting a witness can be difficult, you should notify your insurance agency ahead of time, and to report any suspicions to the police authorities.