Telematics data has been used in the UK to clear a driver’s record and identify a cloning case
A driver in the UK has recently avoided having to pay a one-hundred-pound penalty and losing three points on his driver’s licence after the analysis of telematics data incontrovertibly proved that he was not on the premises of the detected infraction, nor was his car.
In fact, the telematics data examined by theAsset Protection Unit (APU), an accident investigation and asset protection company based in the United Kingdom, not only proved that the driver’s car was nowhere near the speed camera that photographed what is now understood to be another speeding vehicle, but also revealed that the car’s registration number and vehicle identification number had been stolen and cloned.
Other than being stopped by the police, telematics data provides one of the few means to detecting automotive cloning, a crime which involves the theft of a vehicle’s registration number and vehicle identification number. These details can be used on other vehicles, which are then sold for profit and used in a wide range of criminal activities.
Neil Thomas, APU Director of Investigative Services, declared: “It’s very satisfying to help out innocent motorists, of course, but the real worry here is that it’s almost certain the vehicle in question has been cloned… It’s hard to stamp out because the clone is registered to the innocent owner’s address… who shoulders the blame.”
The driver in this case, who has chosen to remain anonymous, explained that he couldn’t believe his eyes when he received a fine for speeding in a city he hadn’t been to in years. Luckily, the car was equipped with a telematics device that allowed the APU to retrieve and provide the police with incontrovertible data and clear the driver.
And that’s just one more great reason to seriously start considering a telematics insurance package.
For further information:
- Octo – What We Do
- Vehicle Insurance in the Era of Autonomous Vehicles