NSW Police say they are stamping out an insurance-fraud syndicate cheating taxpayers and have issued a blunt warning for any past and potential fraudsters.
Detectives working at part of Strike Force Ravens, established last August, have executed a number of operations to crack down on the scheme, which involves reporting minor or fake crashes to insurance companies or police.
In Sydney's south-west, police divers dragged a car believed to have been used in a scam from a river. Raids also took place on several offices in the western Sydney suburbs of Auburn and Bankstown.
Watch: NSW Police crack down on insurance fraud syndicate
NSW Police detective superintendent Arthur Katsogiannis said police have uncovered documents and electronic-storage devices that will be forensically examined.
"Through our investigation, we've identified a very sophisticated, organised criminal syndicate who are involved in defrauding the CTP (Compulsory Third Party) scheme, the taxpayers of New South Wales and the NSW Government,” Mr Katsogiannis told reporters outside Gladesville Police Station.
“It costs the economy millions of dollars every year."
Claims often include post-traumatic stress disorder, soft-tissue damage, and injuries to young children.
Costly rort
Police say it is a 400 million dollar a year scheme. NSW Finance Minister Victor Dominello added that costs people $75 for every premium they pay.
"The way that the scheme has been in place for over 16 years means that the scheme design favoured the fraudsters because they could get away with it,” he said during the joint press conference.
NSW has a unique system where drivers go through a private insurance company for their compulsory third party insurance. Mr Dominello said the new state government wants to change the system.
"This reform is seriously one of the biggest reforms to green slips that you've seen in probably two decades. And you will see a reduction in the premiums by the end of the year as a result of the reforms passed by the Berejiklian government,” he said.
“The reform that the government brought into place in the last few weeks will bring an end to insurer super profits. We have now provided the regulator with far more powers to essentially claw back insurer super profits."
Who are involved?
Dodgy doctors and lawyers have been blamed for being complicit. But Detective Superintendent Katsogiannis refused to confirm reports asylum seekers were involved.
"We don't discriminate against any ethnic backgrounds. We are guided purely by what the evidence tells us,” he said.
“It doesn't matter what the ethnicity (is). We're not targeting ethnic backgrounds. We're targeting individuals and criminal syndicates ripping off the CTP scheme. That's our priority."
Police have also insisted insurance companies be more diligent when claims are made. Many arrests in the coming weeks are expected.
