Vehicle fraud, including car cloning, is one of the UK’s fastest-growing acts of crime. It imposes huge obstacles to law-abiding drivers. As more jurisdictions rely on camera enforcement, criminals have an even stronger incentive to clone—a quick and easy option for evading the law. Edmund King, the Acid president of the shocked Automobile Association (AA), takes on the growth of traffic cameras. He explains that this increase has turned car cloning into the lowest-hanging fruit for criminals determined to sidestep the law.
The consequences of this crime for blameless vehicle owners are crippling. An 88-year-old woman was hit by a jaw-dropping spike in her car insurance renewal. They doubled as her Ford Fiesta was wrongly linked to a fatal crash on the M25. The reality is that the truck she was accused of operating was in fact a cloned vehicle, putting her in a position to incur undue financial costs.
Bouchaib Moussaid met a brutal truth. Bailiffs confiscated his £8,000 Kia Sportage to auction it due to cloning problems. Unscrupulous drivers are more frequently cloning number plates to avoid paying high insurance premiums. This trend allows them to sidestep former Mayor of London Boris Johnson’s daily charges to drive older, polluting vehicles in London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez).
Victims often receive alarming notifications about their vehicles committing traffic violations. That Sam learned their car had been captured on camera supposedly speeding 88 miles an hour. This occurred in an area where the speed limit was 40 mph. Even with providing a mountain of evidence to show their innocence, their appeal was denied by the council.
Simon Oliver’s experience drives home how seriously this problem needs to be addressed. After getting slapped with a slew of fine notices for various violations in London, he had a real awakening. His Ford Ka had technically been cloned years before. He was incredulous at what was going on, asking how this “ludicrous” set of circumstances could happen.
Data collected by TfL, and obtained through a freedom of information request, describe the shocking extent of this practice. In 2022 alone, thus far over 12,762 Ulez charges have been revoked because of cloning odometer crimes. This is a huge jump compared to 2021. At the time, 2,779 charges were dropped. For comparison, in 2020 that figure was even lower, with only 1,298 cancellations.
Paul Barker, Carwow’s managing editor, said that cloned cars are becoming more common on UK roads. He stated, “It is becoming a real worry for those caught up in it and can have severe consequences for both buyers and legitimate vehicle owners.” If unaware, potential buyers have a very real risk of financial loss when they unknowingly buy a cloned vehicle. Such vehicles are not only easily stolen, but can result in significant legal challenges, like repossession.
Barker provided tangible steps vehicle owners can take to protect themselves should they find that they have become an unintended victim of cloning fraud. He called for immediate action to notify law enforcement and stop any additional criminal acts linked to the cloned vehicle. In the latter case, he made sure it was known that unique plate designs were non-negotiable. A badge with a country flag or a decorative edge can easily establish ownership when seen in high-resolution photos.
“One solution we advocate is to have more traffic police or ‘cops in cars and on cycles’ on the streets, as often they are able to spot the ringers,” – Edmund King.
With car cloning on the rise, King is calling for more police to be a determined deterrent against cloning crime. In its own evidence, the Home Office has previously admitted that serious motoring offenders are likely to commit other crimes. Stopping car cloning would be a key step in lowering national crime rates.