With the advent of car insurance scams, dash cams have become a popular buy. In New York, a dash cam owner learns just how important a purchase it was when a would-be insurance fraudster attempts to cause a car crash. When he fails, he reverses his vehicle into his victim’s car to create the intended collision damage. And it was all caught on video.
Lately, dash cams have become a need-to-have versus a nice-to-have in-car item. Market research firm Mordor Intelligence says the dashboard camera market is a $4.5-billion business—and growing. Although cool for capturing the occasional drifiting Amish buggy, hovering UAP, or hot-stepping Bigfoot, dash cams mostly record vehicle crashes.
The term dash cam is a misnomer nowadays, too, since vehicle cameras are not only placed on the dashboard but on the windshield and even the rear window. This was the case with Ashpia Natasha, who has installed a front and rear camera in her Acura crossover. Both cameras were recording at the time of the crash, which occurred on the Belt Parkway in Queens, New York. After watching what was captured in both videos, she learns just how elaborate the attempted scam was.
According to Complex, Natasha was traveling on the three-lane parkway through Queens when a silver Honda Civic cut over from the middle lane. Its driver immediately brake checks, but Natasha avoided the crash. Plan B, thinks the Civic driver. He pulls forward as if to leave the scene, but doesn’t. Instead, he slams on the throttle and backs straight into Natasha’s Acura.
The entire thing was a set-up from the beginning. For instance, four occupants (two males, two females) exited the Honda, but none from the driver’s seat. In performances deserving of a Razzie, three of them acted as if suffering from headaches or some sort of feverish temperature.
The last person to exit the vehicle was a male, who is seen moving from the driver’s seat to the front passenger one. Natasha’s post shows him exiting the Civic at the 0:45 mark. However, unlike the other Honda occupants, the driver’s face never appears on camera. He might not have even turned around toward Natasha. But he does methodically walk toward a red Kia Sportage that had pulled over and parked in front of the Civic. After he gets in, the Kia drives off.
While this was occurring, the other three persons of interest kept busy by taking photos of the damaged vehicles, talking amongst themselves, and continuing to feign pained foreheads or toothaches. Eventually, though, the remaining male notices Natasha’s front dash cam, is stunned at the realization, and turns away as if he’s seen the boogeyman. And maybe he has.
Natasha has posted several TikToks about the incident, including the clear and crisp HD dash cam footage. The failed insurance scam happened only a couple of days ago, so Natasha is still waiting on her auto insurer’s response to the police paperwork. She said that, according to the NYPD, she cannot press charges until she hears back from the insurance company. Natasha and her husband plan to report insurance fraud as well as press charges for the hit-and-run and vehicular assault.
Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.