Driving Test fraud on the increase!
on February 26th, 2011 at 9:10 pmThe number of people paying fraudsters to take their driving test for them has more than quadrupled in just seven years. The Daily Mail can reveal details of the huge increase which allows thousands of unqualified and potentially lethal motorists on the road with genuine licences. In 2004, a total of 168 cases of impersonation were reported to the fraud and inquiry team at the Driving Standards Agency. But since last April, more than 700 such cases have already been reported – and investigators expect the final annual figure to exceed 800. Sources at the DSA warned that the figures were ‘the tip of the iceberg’ and thousands of drivers could have gained licences by cheating. The vast majority of offenders are foreign nationals, with Asians, Africans and Eastern Europeans among the most prolific. The scam works when the fraudsters pass themselves off as the person in the photo on the provisional licence which candidates must show at their test. Impersonators are charging £1,000 to sit theory tests and another £1,000 for practical tests. More
