A commercial truck driver claims he was targeted by a false insurance claim. He says his attention to detail may have just protected him and his company from being the victim of fraud. TikTok user Ryan Smith (@mongoose2495) explained what went down in a clip that garnered over 16,000 views as of this writing. Smith says he was targeted by a woman trying to commit insurance fraud. During one night of driving, the trucker says he remembered driving past a fellow lone car on the highway. Since there weren’t any other cars on this long stretch of road, the vehicle stuck out in his mind. Its lights were on, and it had “front end damage.” Well after passing the vehicle and taking an exit into Indiana, he got pulled over. Smith obliged, thinking it was just a routine check. He wasn’t worried because all of his paperwork was up to date. However, when the officer approached, Smith learned that he was being accused of causing an accident. Initially, the truck driver was puzzled as he never switched his lane, and his commute was smooth sailing. What Caused the Accident? To ensure he was following the correct protocol, Smith decided to call his employer. He was informed he needed pictures of the purported damage. So he ended up riding along with the officer to the scene of the accident. Sure enough, the owner of the car he had passed on the highway earlier was the person making the claim. Immediately after exiting the cruiser, the woman sitting in the wrecked car began hurling condemnations at Smith, insisting that his poor driving culminated in her accident. Smith became even more suspicious after checking out the damage to the woman’s vehicle. According to him, it looked like she had hit a pole or a tree. Which was strange because there didn’t seem to be anything in the immediate area that would cause that type of damage. The only poles in the area, Smith said, were in the opposite lane. Which he found curious because there weren’t any signs of the driver steering her car outside of the lane she was pulled off to the side of. Smith says the officer concurred that a tree or pole collision appeared to be what caused damage to her car. The truck driver then took photos of the cross latch holding the damaged car’s hood to its body. Sure enough, that cross latch was bent, further suggesting that a head-on impact caused the damage. The officer informed him that the matter was between him and his truck’s insurance provider. Then he drove Smith back to his truck. Smith had further cause to be unconcerned. His rig is outfitted with a front-facing dash camera. He says the dash cam footage on his truck clearly showed him passing her parked on the side of the road. It also shows the pre-existing damage to her car, thus proving that Smith wasn’t the one who caused the accident. A few days later, he learned the woman who accused him was driving without insurance. He now believes the woman was caught in an attempt to commit insurance fraud. The dashcam may have saved him a lot of hassle and possibly an insurance rate hike. Towards the end of his clip, Smith says that while he isn’t a fan of inward facing cameras, the exterior one “saved” him. He adds that he shared his story as a means of educating folks about the “stupid stuff” truck drivers have to deal with on a “daily” basis. Insurance Fraud by the Numbers Smith’s story isn’t all that uncommon. The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud reports that the criminal practice “steals at least $308.6 billion every year from American consumers.” And when it comes to auto insurance, Legal Jobs reports that $29 billion alone is dishonestly acquired annually from bad actors. These false claims, the website contends, are consistent with increasing insurance costs. This suggests that these recurring incidents of fraud are contributing to surges in insurance costs. Auto Insurance echoes these concerns, stating that this phenomena is “costing insurers billions each year and ultimately raising premiums for honest drivers.” Motor1 has reached out to Smith via TikTok direct message for further information. This article will be updated if he responds. We want your opinion! What would you like to see on Motor1.com? Take our 3 minute survey. - The Motor1.com Team