New campaign targets organized crime and auto insurance fraud

Canada’s insurance crime and fraud prevention organization, Équité Association, has launched a new campaign to raise awareness about organized insurance crimes.

“Fraud Never Takes a Vacation” is designed to educate and empower Canadians to spot and stop insurance fraud before it strikes, helping to ensure safer roads and more secure communities for everyone.

Launched Aug. 13, the campaign’s website includes tips and tools for the public to protect themselves from emerging threats, including:

Re-VIN fraud

Every manufactured vehicle is provided a unique vehicle identification number (VIN), which stays with the vehicle throughout its lifetime. The number can track recalls, insurance registration, and the history of the vehicle. Re-VINing is when criminals alter the original VIN to conceal the vehicle’s identity so they can sell stolen vehicles to unsuspecting customers.

To avoid purchasing a re-VINed vehicle, Équité Association recommends the following steps:

• Check the manufacturers’ recall site. If the VIN is fictitious, there will be an invalid VIN response
• Purchase a used vehicle from a registered dealership.
• Order a CARFAX report, which will include important information, including if the vehicle has been reported stolen
• Ask the seller for a Used Vehicle Information Package from the Ministry of Transportation
• Google the VIN
• Remember if the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is
• Due diligence: Do you know the seller? Are they asking for cash? Is the meeting spot for the purchase unusual?

Équité Association is advocating for an “effective national VIN database which would connect all the provinces to detect and prevent re-VIN fraud.”

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Staged collisions

A staged collision is a type of insurance fraud in which criminals purposefully damage their vehicle by arranging a crash to file inflated claims related to vehicle damage (unnecessary body shop work) or medical expenses (exaggerated personal injury claims), Équité explains.

Some types of staged collisions include:

• Swoop & Squat: In a “swoop & squat” collision, a driver cuts off an accomplice in a second car who slams on the brakes in front of the victim, forcing a rear-end collision
• Drive Down: While an unsuspecting driver is backing out of a parking spot, the criminal in an oncoming car waves at them to continue, as though they are waiting for the spot. As the victim continues to back out, the fraudster then accelerates, colliding with the victim’s car
• Bullet Left Turn: As a victim is waiting to make a left-hand turn, a criminal waves at them to continue through the intersection. As the victim begins to turn, the criminal accelerates, hitting the victim’s car.

“In all of the above schemes, the criminal will claim the accident was the victim’s fault,” Équité warns.

There are also “fraud party” staged collisions, in which other people pose as extra passengers in the vehicle. They may submit false claims for vehicle damage; injury assessment, treatment, rehabilitation and/or assistive devices; and loss of income and other services.

Vehicle rental theft

To help prevent rental car theft, Équité recommends a number of precautions, including:

• Asking the rental agency about additional security features such as alarm systems, immobilizers and GPS tracking devices
• Bring your own security devices, such as a steering wheel lock. These devices make the rental car more difficult to steal and can deter thieves
• Park in well-lit and secure areas. Look for designated parking lots or garages with surveillance cameras, bright lights or security personnel. In unfamiliar locations, check with hotel concierge or rental host for parking advice
• Look like a local vehicle — keeping a local newspaper on a passenger seat can give the illusion you’re a resident. If possible, remove any rental car company stickers or tags, and avoid leaving guidebooks or maps in view.

Équité’s recent First Half of 2025: Auto Theft Trend Report found auto theft involving private passenger vehicles in Canada decreased 19.1% in 2025 H1 compared to the same period in 2024.

However, the report also found about 44% of vehicles stolen this year remain unrecovered.

Jason Contant

Jason has been an award-winning journalist with Canadian Underwriter for more than a decade, including the past three years as associate editor and, before that, as digital editor for seven years.