Brother in law is causing upset. Update, help needed please.

turnitround

My brother in law is really upsetting my sister by making a bogus claim.
He had an accident at work. He did sustain an injury and need a knee operation but before the accident he had problems with the knee which he has not disclosed and as he never sought medical help there is nothing on his records to show he had the problem.

 Not only that but he has lied to his solicitor regarding the after effects of the accident. He has claimed that he can no longer do his job and has had to leave the trade he was in and take a different job. Not true as he was desperate to leave the trade before the accident and had already been offered the job he is in now, it is lower paid but better hours and shorter distance to travel..

He has claimed that he could not drive for over 12 months, untrue.

 Claimed he cannot even do household chores. He has just put a new bathroom in and done everything from the plumbing to the flooring and tiling.

Claims he has no chance of ever being able to return to the trade he loves so is not going to be able to find work in his chosen field.

Claims he cannot even lift or play with his children or carry the youngest (He can however take them off road motorbiking and take the youngest boy to the swings and happily push him on them).

His hobby is renovating old cycles and motorbikes and he cannot any longer do any of this on paper but in reality it is different.

There are so many things he has claimed and his solicitor has gone to town with his claim based on what he has been told. My sister has read the statement the solicitor has sent and she has gone mad as a lot of it is complete fraud in her eyes. She is terrified that he being so stupid but he has this 'There is money in this' attitude as the other side have admitted responsibility. He thinks he is set to get a fortune, my sister just thinks he is set for a prison sentence!

Its causing so much upset, she is a born worrier anyway and he seems oblivious to her feelings.

I know I should just keep out of it but she is constantly on the phone to me and is getting more and more bothered by what he is doing. I dont know how to help her as really there is nothing I can do to change things. I think I just needed a bit of a rant really.

Annisele

It sounds as though your sister has her head screwed on straight, but you already know that. Insurers are wise to this kind of fraud, and it sounds as though his story will fall apart as soon as his employer's insurer even starts to investigate. For example, the insurer might ask the new employer when he applied for / was offered the new job - and either the new employer will choose to be complicit in his fraud, or the new employer's answers will make the insurer look harder at everything else.

This is the kind of thing that might get a suspended sentence for a first offence, but prison is a genuine possiblity.

However, I don't see that you can reasonably do anything except keep out of it - although you might want to make clear to BiL that if you're asked about this, you won't lie for him. There is of course the option of dobbing him in, but I suspect his scheme will fall apart all on its own without you blowing up any of your relationships.

turnitround

Thanks for the reply. I did think that he would probably just get rumbled but as the other side have admitted liability and this happened quite quickly, his solicitor has now served court papers I thought it seemed a bit like they had just rolled over.

Another thing I dont understand is that they have done these court papers and yet he has not yet had an offer.  I thought it only progressed to court if an acceptable offer was not acceptable. Its at the end of the timescale now, apparently they have to make an offer by July as that is when the 3 years are up so time is tight if the other side are going to start checking his story. 

The job he is in now is more physical than the job he was in before. Honestly you could not make it up. He claimed for new glasses saying he broke his in the accident, again untrue. He is claiming a fortune for loss of earning ability saying he can no longer do his job but even though his new job is lower paid it is less hours so he has more time off and is doing bathroom fitting working with another guy so earning a lot more now than he did in the original job which he so called had to give up.

I think his solicitor (one of those ambulance chaser types with bad reviews) is as dodgy. He is talking about 'Getting a caravan or new car out of this'.
|My sister is a bag of nerves about it and just wants him to drop the claim which of course he wont do. She has even considered speaking to his solicitor or previous employer but it would end badly for her. I will do what I can to support her but I'm not willing to get involved in that way.

TBagpuss

Its very difficult - your SIL is right, this is fraud, it's dishonest and if he is found out it could have serious consequences - at best he could face having to repay the difference between whatever settlement he gets, and what he would have been entitled to based on the genuine effect of the accident, with interest and court costs on top. At worst he could wind up with a criminal record.
He would also have his details provided to the Insurance Fraud Register which would make it difficult for him to get any kind of insurance in the future, and i's likely that he would have to pay his own lawyers as well as any costs award to the defendant  (most conditional fee agreements will include provisions about this.

You, or his wife, could chose to provide some of this information anonymously to his own lawyer or the defendants 

I'd also suggest that you suggest your SIL may want to try to safeguard her own position - for instance, make sure that she has her own bank accounts and keeps savings separate, if the y own a house, make sure her name is on the needs. In a worst case scenario, make sure she has some protection and assets of her own

Maybe show him these news stories 
https://resolution.nhs.uk/2021/11/02/5k-nhs-compensation-fraud-lands-claimant-with-7-month-custodial-sentence/
https://www.h-f.co.uk/news-insights/outstanding-contempt-of-court-case-win-sends-yorkshire-couple-to-prison-for-fundamental-dishonesty/

In the Smith case, they would up having to pay over £100,000 in costs as well as having to pay back the interim payments they had received in compensation, and their own legal costs, as well as both being sent to prison. 

turnitround

Thank you TBagpuss.  I will show her this thread and the links. I know she has thought about reporting it to his ex employer but she is afraid of being found out. Obviously the information she could give them may trace back to her as she knows the details and apart from her, me and his brother (who is of the same mind set as him!) I dont think he has told anyone else.
He doesnt know that she has told me so she is worried she may take the flack if it goes wrong. I cant see how she can report anything to either the solicitor or former company without getting herself into trouble. If she did it anonymously would they take her seriously and even if she did report it the details are only known to her so he would know it was her that reported him. 
 
My sister is an honest person and she has told him she does not want any part of his ill gotten gains even if he gets away with it. 
I think the marriage is on its last legs now. 

BungalowBel

I think all the OP can do is be a listening ear to her sister-in-law, tell her that they support her in this and if the b-i-l ever mentions anything to the OP, that they won't lie for him.  I think she is right not to want any part of it, including any cash he may get.

turnitround

Thank you for reading this, sorry its a it long.

Well, things have moved on quite rapidly. The solicitor has now sent a letter saying that court proceedings have begun and brother in law has signed and returned the paperwork. 

Sis has seen more of the paperwork and found out now that in addition to the lies she knew about he has also claimed that the accident left him impotent and that his mental health is suffering because of it. He has actually been to see the doctor and said he is impotent which is another complete lie but he said to sis that it is important that he has it on his medical records as proof. The amount he is claiming is astronomical and is to much for fast track so is being done at the next level (I cant remember what she told me it was called) however she did say it incurred higher court charges.

In addition to this he has also transferred a sum of money to his brother from his account to deplete his (their) savings as he is claiming he cannot afford to pay the court fees and so is applying for help with those. He also has an ISA and Bonds but is not declaring he has these. Sis has an ISA and he is supposed to declare that as well but wont do.

According to the paperwork he may well have to appear at the court and is clearly happy to lie through his teeth but my sister is now at her wits end as she is scared she will get in trouble by being complicit if she lets him do this therefore she is strongly considering reporting the truth to someone. He will not listen to reason and has told her that if she even dreams of contacting his solicitor he will leave and take the kids.

He says it is a 'slam dunk' as the other party have admitted liability. But  they have not made an offer and it seems odd to me that they will risk court

So after having a good chat with her this afternoon I have some questions if anyone can help.

As the other side have admitted liability is it possible that they are not going to look into the claim and just pluck as offer out of the air just before the court stage accepting what he says as the truth? The solicitor says the other side have 28 days to file their defence but I dont understand  why would they be defending if liability is admitted? 

If my sister decides she has no option but to speak up then how would she do it? If she contacts his solicitor her husband would know she was responsible as only her has all all the details. 

Does she speak to someone at his former company (the defendant) and tell them to let their solicitors know the situation?

Would they be able to keep her name out of it and yet still take action if she refused to be a witness against him in court. She wants to do the right thing but is scared stiff of him finding out ?

If she did tell them what he was doing how would they be able to disprove what he was saying without naming her, how could they act on the information if she reported it anonymously?

Or does she write directly to the court with the information as surely it would be too late to disprove anything at that stage.

She has seen on the paperwork that if he is found to be misrepresenting  his losses etc then the case could be thrown out and he would be liable for both sides charges. She is terrified that her house could be at risk if that happens. Quite honestly at this stage she couldnt care less if  he just moved out but he is putting the house at risk and she could end up homeless.

 She seems to think that if she can stop him before the court stage that he will not be in any trouble but his solicitor is still going to want paying for the work they have done and as he has been lying to them it cant end well. At this point he is going to be liable for a lot anyway so I cant see a way out for her. 

Its all such a bloody mess, he is such a stupid greedy man and its making my sister ill. He on the other hand is setting his sights on that caravan. 

Any suggestions on the best way for her to pass on the info without getting herself into trouble please?

Thank you for reading.

Sea_Shell

Blunt question, Does she want to stay married to this man?

Even if he gets away with it, can she trust him to act honestly in the future if this is what he's capable of.

Is she financially independent of him (house aside)?

Sea_Shell

Also, If they own the house as Joint Tenants, could she sever that and become tenants in common?   

She needs to protect herself here.

turnitround

Sea_Shell said:

Blunt question, Does she want to stay married to this man?

Even if he gets away with it, can she trust him to act honestly in the future if this is what he's capable of.

Is she financially independent of him (house aside)?

I think the answer to that is a massive NO.  I will tell her about the the house as I dont know how they own it. Financially she has a decent job but they have 3 children so it wont be an easy split. 
The problem is that if she does not report it then he is going to drag her down with him, she is even asking how she will tell the kids he is in jail if it happens.

Her head and heart are telling her to report it but its knowing the best way to do it without him finding out.

Annisele

turnitround said:

He says it is a 'slam dunk' as the other party have admitted liability. But  they have not made an offer and it seems odd to me that they will risk court

Liability and quantum are not the same. It's very very common for a defendant to admit liablity (and agree that they were at fault) but dispute quantum (the amount of monetary damages that should be paid). If the defendant admits liability but is still pushing this to court, that must mean that the defendant doesn't agree that it should be paying as much as BiL wants.

The other side is not just going to pick an offer out of thin air. It's possible to make an offer on the steps of the courtroom, but if the other side was going to fall over on all of BiL's points it would likely have done that already.

I can't see how your sister would possibly be in trouble in court by "letting him" tell lies in court. Except in extremely unusal circumstances people aren't responsible for what other adults do - and it's not a criminal offence to be married to an idiot! If your sister were to give evidence herself and lie under oath she could absolutely be in trouble for that, but there isn't an offence of failing to prevent your husband from perjuring himself.

If she's sure the marriage is over, then I think she should be getting her own legal advice about bringing it to an end. Her own lawyer can also give advice on how to protect her own and her children's finances from any blowback. I agree she should at least be investigating whether she wants to sever any joint tenancy, but I think she needs somebody to be acting in her interests right now.