The Accident Group
Encyclopedia
The Accident Group was a Manchester
based personal injury
claims management company
that went into administration in May 2003. The firm gained notoriety for informing its 2,400 workers of their redundancy by text message, which, according to BBC
reports, led to the firm's offices being emptied of computer equipment by disgruntled staff.
. However, after failing to qualify he started Motorlaw before launching The Accident Group in 1999, and placed Gary Hoddes as Managing Director. Hoddes then went on to place members of his own family in Director positions, including Phil Hoddes (brother) [Sales Director], Jackie Brennan (sister) [Operations], Mike Boxen, Paul Boxen and Maria Berry.
Secondly, the number of false claims filed by claimants began to cause concern to investors. A BBC One
program, The Man That Made Accidents Happen, interviewed the former Accident Group special investigator Paul Stott. Mr Stott focused on the practice of multiple claims - the practice in which a single claimant would sometimes make claims for many different accidents. He also found that some salespeople also made many multiple claims for themselves. Stott claimed that one couple who both worked for the company and had made 33 claims for themselves, of which nine were accepted by the company, and made a further 40 claims for people living in their street, and another 68 claims on two addresses nearby where their friends lived: of the total, 24 were accepted by the Accident Group. Stott said that many claims went through, defeating the checking procedures the company had put into place, saying: "Working on the figures that I had to hand at the time, of the totally ridiculous claims, 30 per cent went through."
After administrators were called in, notoriously most of the firm's 2,400 employees were dismissed via SMS
text message sent by Langford which read:
Parent group Amulet Group, which was also put into administration in May 2003, said its subsidiary The Accident Group had to cease trading because it could not sustain its "continual battles with the insurance industry" and after "the sudden failure of a banking partner to support the company". The administrators Price Waterhouse Coopers, later blamed Accident Group's "lower than expected claims success rate" for the financial difficulties, which they say "resulted in increased insurance premiums on new business and retrospective claims from the underwriters.".
Staff, who were not allowed to join a union, and who didn't receive their final salaries or a follow-up email (as promised in the famous text message), ransacked the Liverpool office and carried off computers and other equipment.
close to Old Trafford football stadium in November 1998. Langford had to be cut free from the wreckage of the convertible, and sustained a broken thumb and finger. He was, however, found not guilty of causing death by dangerous driving
, despite only having his license back for six months from a previous drunk driving ban.
Langford fled to Spain after the company's collapse. Although having an estimated fortune of between £40M and £75M, Langford had previously been served with a High Court
bankruptcy
writ aboard his £1.5million 80 ft yacht Mermaid’s Whisper in Puerto Banus
. Langford had adjourned the hearing until 1 May 2007 after claiming he was suffering from “severe mental illness leading to manic depression." In his absence he was being sought by HM Customs and Excise for £4.1 million in unpaid taxes, and the Department of Trade and Industry was seeking to disqualify him as a company director.
Langford died in an accident when his Opel Corsa
left the road in an accident
in Marbella
, Spain
on 9 April 2007. He and his wife were said to be separated at the time of his death at the wheel of the rented Opel Corsa, which he drove as he had had his assets frozen (including luxury and sports cars) by liquidators; and had sold both his Marbella home, yacht; and had his North Rode, Cheshire
home on the market for £3.5M.
To this day [When?], millions remain unaccounted for, and investigations continue.
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
based personal injury
Personal injury
Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. The term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit alleging that the plaintiff's injury has been caused by the negligence of another, but also arises in defamation...
claims management company
Claims management company
In England and Wales, a claims management company is a business that offers claims management services to the public. Claims management services consist of advice or services in respect of claims for compensation, restitution, repayment or any other remedy for loss or damage, or in respect of some...
that went into administration in May 2003. The firm gained notoriety for informing its 2,400 workers of their redundancy by text message, which, according to BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
reports, led to the firm's offices being emptied of computer equipment by disgruntled staff.
Formation, business model
Mark Langford (29 May 1964 - 9 April 2007) trained to become a solicitorSolicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
. However, after failing to qualify he started Motorlaw before launching The Accident Group in 1999, and placed Gary Hoddes as Managing Director. Hoddes then went on to place members of his own family in Director positions, including Phil Hoddes (brother) [Sales Director], Jackie Brennan (sister) [Operations], Mike Boxen, Paul Boxen and Maria Berry.
Administration
In light of a change in the law, the model on which the Accident Group operated began to fail. Legal costs undertaken by the claimant were moved from claimable against the other party, to payable by the claimant. This meant that the amount of money paid to claimants dramatically fell, whilst the money payable to solicitors undertaking the claims were too high.Secondly, the number of false claims filed by claimants began to cause concern to investors. A BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
program, The Man That Made Accidents Happen, interviewed the former Accident Group special investigator Paul Stott. Mr Stott focused on the practice of multiple claims - the practice in which a single claimant would sometimes make claims for many different accidents. He also found that some salespeople also made many multiple claims for themselves. Stott claimed that one couple who both worked for the company and had made 33 claims for themselves, of which nine were accepted by the company, and made a further 40 claims for people living in their street, and another 68 claims on two addresses nearby where their friends lived: of the total, 24 were accepted by the Accident Group. Stott said that many claims went through, defeating the checking procedures the company had put into place, saying: "Working on the figures that I had to hand at the time, of the totally ridiculous claims, 30 per cent went through."
After administrators were called in, notoriously most of the firm's 2,400 employees were dismissed via SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...
text message sent by Langford which read:
Parent group Amulet Group, which was also put into administration in May 2003, said its subsidiary The Accident Group had to cease trading because it could not sustain its "continual battles with the insurance industry" and after "the sudden failure of a banking partner to support the company". The administrators Price Waterhouse Coopers, later blamed Accident Group's "lower than expected claims success rate" for the financial difficulties, which they say "resulted in increased insurance premiums on new business and retrospective claims from the underwriters.".
Staff, who were not allowed to join a union, and who didn't receive their final salaries or a follow-up email (as promised in the famous text message), ransacked the Liverpool office and carried off computers and other equipment.
Death of Mark Langford
In June 2000, Langford was convicted of careless driving after a 73 year old pensioner, William Thornley, was knocked down and killed by Langford's Ferrari 355 F1 SpiderFerrari F355
The Ferrari F355 is a sports car built by Ferrari from May 1994 to 1999. It is an evolution of the Ferrari 348 and was replaced by the Ferrari 360. It is a mid-engined, rear wheel drive V8-powered 2-seat coupe...
close to Old Trafford football stadium in November 1998. Langford had to be cut free from the wreckage of the convertible, and sustained a broken thumb and finger. He was, however, found not guilty of causing death by dangerous driving
Death by dangerous driving
Causing death by dangerous driving is a statutory offence in England and Wales and Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is an aggravated form of dangerous driving...
, despite only having his license back for six months from a previous drunk driving ban.
Langford fled to Spain after the company's collapse. Although having an estimated fortune of between £40M and £75M, Langford had previously been served with a High Court
High Court of Justice
The High Court of Justice is, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, one of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
writ aboard his £1.5million 80 ft yacht Mermaid’s Whisper in Puerto Banus
Puerto Banús
Puerto José Banús, more commonly known as Puerto Banús is a marina located in the area of Nueva Andalucía, to the southwest of Marbella, Spain on the Costa del Sol. It was built in May 1970 by José Banús, a local property developer, as a luxury marina and shopping complex for the rich and famous...
. Langford had adjourned the hearing until 1 May 2007 after claiming he was suffering from “severe mental illness leading to manic depression." In his absence he was being sought by HM Customs and Excise for £4.1 million in unpaid taxes, and the Department of Trade and Industry was seeking to disqualify him as a company director.
Langford died in an accident when his Opel Corsa
Opel Corsa
The front-wheel drive Opel Corsa was first launched in September 1982 to replace the Opel Kadett C City, and to fill the gap vacated as the Kadett grew in size and price. Built in Zaragoza, Spain, the first Corsas were three-door hatchback and two-door saloon models, with four-door and five-door...
left the road in an accident
Car accident
A traffic collision, also known as a traffic accident, motor vehicle collision, motor vehicle accident, car accident, automobile accident, Road Traffic Collision or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other stationary obstruction,...
in Marbella
Marbella
Marbella is a town in Andalusia, Spain. It is situated on the Mediterranean Sea, in the province of Málaga, beneath the La Concha mountain. In 2000 the city had 98,823 inhabitants, in 2004, 116,234, in 2010 approximately 135,000....
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on 9 April 2007. He and his wife were said to be separated at the time of his death at the wheel of the rented Opel Corsa, which he drove as he had had his assets frozen (including luxury and sports cars) by liquidators; and had sold both his Marbella home, yacht; and had his North Rode, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
home on the market for £3.5M.
To this day [When?], millions remain unaccounted for, and investigations continue.