Man jailed for false £55k kerb trip claim

A FRAUDSTER who claimed he tripped over a damaged kerb has been jailed after making a bogus £55,000 injury report to Walsall Council.

Mohammed Yaqub Kabil of Old Park Road, Wednesbury, was given six-month jail after admitting to falsifying the personal injury claim at Birmingham High Court.

In 2015, Kabil, 53, claimed in April 2015 that he had fallen due to a defect on a dropped kerb near his house, suffering an injury to his left knee.

But Walsall Council rejected Kabil’s personal injury claim on the grounds that the defect he alleged caused his accident was not dangerous and was below the authority’s repair threshold.

Evidence presented at a court hearing in 2019 contained a number of inconsistencies in his story – including delays in seeking hospital treatment, inconsistent dates and a claim for loss of earnings whilst he was unemployed.

Kabil’s claim was dismissed and he was ordered to pay Walsall Council’s prosecution costs.

But despite overwhelming evidence, Kabil maintained that he had suffered the injury because of the ‘defective’ kerb until the day of the sentencing.

Judge Shetty said: “The contempt in this case, and the seriousness of it, is a deliberate and dishonest attempt by the defendant to interfere with the administration of justice in order to obtain damages from the claimant. This is not an embellished or exaggerated claim. It’s entirely fictitious.”

Cllr Mike Bird, leader of Walsall Council said: “This is a very satisfying outcome for us and proves just how seriously Walsall Council and the High Court takes this type of personal injury fraud.

“We will always scrutinise any suspicious claims.

“The judgment proves that anybody trying claim money from Walsall taxpayers by giving a dishonest and exaggerated account of injuries will not only see their day in Court, they may well lose their liberty for it too.”