Barnsley woman handed suspended sentence over injury claim fraud
The case was referred to the City of London Police in 2021
A woman who made nearly £500,000 by exaggerating her injuries before appearing to walk unaided on The Jeremy Kyle Show stage has been handed a suspended prison sentence.
Patricia Rogers, 25, was awarded damages after being involved in a road traffic collision in 2014, which she claimed had left her unable to walk without a stick or crutches, City of London Police said.
But footage later gathered as evidence, including from appearances on the ITV chat show, showed Rogers was able to walk unaided for an extensive period of time.
Rogers made the successful claim worth £492,141 after she was a passenger in a car involved in a collision with a vehicle driven by a policyholder from insurance company NFU Mutual, the force said.
She claimed that the collision had caused a back condition that severely disrupted her everyday life.
NFU Mutual gathered surveillance footage of Rogers on April 26 2021 after it noted inconsistencies in medical reports she used to support her claim.
Rogers attended a medical assessment the same day, and footage showed that she travelled to the appointment in a taxi and walked with a walking stick.
However, more footage from earlier that day showed Rogers leaving her residence and walking her two dogs unaided for around 40 minutes, including holding one of their leads, with no obvious discomfort.
She also appeared as a guest on The Jeremy Kyle Show in 2017 and 2018, where she walked, stood and ran across the stage unaided, police said.
The case was referred to the City of London Police'sInsurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED) by NFU Mutual in August 2021.
During an interview on November 17 2021, Rogers was shown the footage and told officers that she could not use a walking stick because she was holding the lead.
She added she had been able to walk around on The Jeremy Kyle Show unaided because she felt angry, which distracted her from the pain.
Rogers, of Hoyland Road, Barnsley, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation at Sheffield Crown Court on February 2, City of London Police said.
She was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to pay £500 in compensation at the same court on Tuesday.
Detective Constable Carley Parodi from the City of London Police's IFED said: "Rogers took advantage of a genuine car accident and, for almost a decade, kept up the pretence that it had a substantial effect on her life.
"There was a huge difference between Rogers' ability to carry out her day-to-day activities in the surveillance footage and the serious impact of the accident as she described during her medical appointments.
"It was astounding that she told medical professionals she could not walk unaided, but then appeared on national television doing just that."
Richard Turnell, claims specialist at NFU Mutual, said: "By exaggerating and inflating the extent of her injuries and losses, Patricia Rogers sought to fraudulently claim money in the sum of up to at least half a million pounds at the expense of NFU Mutual's members.
"Over a period of almost a decade, Rogers attempted to mislead medical experts and investigators and even purchased props to support her deception - but she was observed on several occasions walking and running unaided."