{
  "id": 11795981,
  "title": "Motor insurance fraud on the rise [WATCH]",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/motor-insurance-fraud-on-the-rise-watch",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-03T23:10:27.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/news/nst-special/2026/10/1547056/motor-insurance-fraud-rise-watch"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Motor insurance fraud cases in Malaysia have seen a significant increase over the past three years, driven by sophisticated tactics and the misuse of digital tools. According to the General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) CEO, Chua Kim Soon, the industry is currently operating at a loss as premiums collected are falling short of insurance costs. This financial strain is exacerbated by fraudulent activity, with 10% of motor insurance claims potentially fraudulent or manipulated, resulting in hundreds of millions of ringgit in losses. The number of reported fraudulent cases has risen from 68 in 2023 to 924 in 2024, with total claims payouts and operational expenditure consistently exceeding total premiums collected. Fraudulent scenarios range from opportunistic acts by individual vehicle owners to highly organized criminal schemes involving staged collisions and fake total-loss payouts. While insurers have legal grounds to reject certain claims, cases involving policyholders who file false police reports are classified as criminal fraud. Industry data also reveals regional disparities in claims behavior between Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah and Sarawak, with higher claim frequencies and costlier own-damage claims in the latter region. Insurers are employing various measures, such as cross-checking through the Fraud Intelligence System and using engine and chassis numbers, to combat fraud.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}