FRAUDS WE FEAR.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 March 1924, Page 4

FRAUDS WE FEAR.

(1 nsiirauee Alan in “Daily Mail. ) Everyone knows about the financially embarrassed smal tradesman who pours a quart of paraffin over a neap of shavings, applies a match, and leave.-, the rest to providence—ill ill,, shape of the insurance company. This variety of insurance fraud is, however, crude and invites detection, trim fraud that succeeds is a much more subtle affair, and, moreover, it; can only be brought off once—which is, perhaps, fortunate. Au almest necessary adjunc t to successful fraud is the innocence of one of the principals; as, for instance, in the ca-e of an ingenious racing coup I remember.

Two racoiioises, one a “class” animal and the other a “selling plater, were shipped, in. care of a groom, to a foreign country. During the voyage 0110 of lliu animals died, and His groom reported that it was the more valuable burse. The undent 1-iters paid the loss to the owner on this information.

The surviving animal arrived safely and, being entered in various minor events, proceeded to win them with monotonous regula rily. Only the chance recognition of an English racing man, who knew belli ber.-e-.. rev...iled that the alleged “plater” was the horse that was supposed to have died 011 the voyage. It appears that the groom bad wilfidlv reimricd the wrong animal mis bavin:; died, and. then, by backing the survivor 111 races in which lie met vr-ii,- inferior animals, bad “picked up a imi'ccl,” as they say in racing circle-;. It is to the credit of the owner, however, that when ho learnt of the fraud of which he had been the innocent instrument be rclunded the amount overpaid on the insurance and surrendered the slakes which bis horse had wen under false pretences. Another ingenious fraud was atieinnred in ceniieetion with a cargo loaded ill a vessel which was never meant to reach its destination. I e e.irn 0.-c-s wore plaectl on this cargo for ••»> large an amount that an underwriter with a calculating brain (li-covmed dial the hulk of cargo re-pre.-eiued by the insured value could net posciblv be loaded even in a steamer much larger than the one by which it was insured. Even then, investigations seemed to prove that all was in order, for the

■ ■ tally s' ’ showed that the amount of cargo insured had actually been carried on board the vessel. It was not until someone gave Ihe game awnv that it was discovered that the cargo, loaded openly bv day. was secret I v unloaded by night and reloaded again the next day as a new delivery, so that had the vessel been lost, her papers would have shown not the amount of cargo on board, but the amount of cargo loaded, in all good faith, by the stevedores.