Key figure in ₹30 cr insurance scam taken into police custody

NEW DELHI: The Economic Offences Wing of the Delhi Police has arrested Dinesh Bansal, the prime accused in a massive insurance fraud case involving the illegal siphoning of approximately Rs 30 crore from Tata AIG General Insurance Company.

The police were informed about the incident through a complaint registered at the Economic Offense Wing.

According to the police, the investigation was initiated after a complaint filed on June 13, 2022, by Virender Pal Singh, Head of the Fraud Control Unit at Tata AIG.

The complaint alleged that six garages across Delhi NCR, in collaboration with four former employees of Tata AIG, three IRDAI-licensed external surveyors, and several policyholders, submitted fake car repair invoices for accidents that never occurred.

The fraudulent claims were used to illegally extract funds from the insurance company.

Preliminary inquiry revealed multiple irregularities, including repeated high-value claims for the same vehicles under different policy numbers and owners, similar photos used across different claims, mismatched accident details provided by drivers and owners, and fake registration numbers linked to the same chassis. The cumulative loss to the company was estimated at Rs 30 crore. The investigation uncovered a well-planned operation led by Bansal, who controlled four workshops.

He orchestrated staged accidents and submitted inflated or fabricated claims with the help of insiders.

Over 500 fraudulent claims were filed between February 2019 and August 2021, often involving luxury vehicles like Mercedes, Audi, and Volvo. A 15 per cent commission was allegedly paid to Tata AIG insiders who facilitated the fraud. The proceeds were routed through eight shell companies, aided by a Chartered Accountant who received a 10 per cent cut for laundering the funds.

Two Tata AIG officials, Pradeep Rana, Chief Manager, and Deepak Sharma, Examiner, were arrested on April 14, for their involvement. Another accused, Raju Singh, has been in judicial custody since August 2024. Bansal, a Class 10 pass-out from Haryana, began with a used car business before expanding into workshops used for fraudulent claims.

Authorities have urged the public to stay vigilant and warned insurance employees against unethical practices involving fake claims.