A woman involved in a multigenerational insurance claim fraud has been handed a suspended prison sentence.
Eileen Lawrence (52), her husband Patrick (54), and sons Tom (24) and John (26), who were children at the time, made personal injury claims for road traffic incidents and falls using false names on dates between 2010 and 2016. The family all have addresses at Moyglas Glade, Lucan, in Dublin.
The family instructed solicitors, attended doctors and swore affidavits using the false identities in order to pursue the claims. Most of the claims were unsuccessful, but a number were paid out. The offending came to light after an insurance company hired a private investigator.
Another member of the family, grandmother Winnifred Lawrence (74), was jailed last year for three and a half years with the final 18 months suspended for making similar claims between 2012 and 2014. She had fraudulently received €23,150 after legal expenses for her claims.
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Patrick Lawrence pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to deception and attempted deception on dates between 2013 and 2018. Eileen Lawrence pleaded guilty to deception and attempted deception on dates between 2010 and 2016. Tom Lawrence pleaded guilty to one count of attempted deception in 2016, while his brother John Lawrence pleaded guilty to deception and attempted deception on dates between 2014 and 2016.
Last Friday, Judge Martin Nolan imposed a sentence of two years on Patrick Lawrence, and one-year suspended sentences on Tom and John Lawrence.
Judge Nolan said there was no doubt Eileen Lawrence was involved in a serious way in the offending, and thought she deserved to go to prison. He said the only thing stopping him from such sentencing was the effect her imprisonment would have on third parties.
The court had heard she was “the glue that holds the family together”, and had a caring role for family members with additional needs. He said he would reflect last weekend on her case and impose sentence today.
Judge Nolan said the Lawrence family was “very industrious in the manufacture of fraudulent claims“. He said it is “very serious” to defraud or attempt to defraud insurance companies. He added the court could not ignore the prospective impact on third parties. He imposed a three-year prison sentence on Eileen Lawrence, suspended in full, on strict conditions.
Last Friday, Judge Nolan said Patrick Lawrence had his difficulties, but he was satisfied that he knew right from wrong. He acknowledged his medical and mental health issues but said this was serious wrongdoing, and imposed two years' imprisonment.
He noted that Tom and John Lawrence were children at the time and there was some evidence they were used as “conduits”, under pressure to some degree to commit the crimes. The judge said they were now getting on well and it would be unjust to imprison them. He imposed one year suspended sentences on both men.
Det Garda Ivor Scully of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau told David Perry BL, prosecuting, that the family had submitted the personal injury claims under false names to disguise the fact that they had all made previous claims. He outlined that some of the claims were paid out, but the majority were not successful.
He said one insurance company engaged a private investigator to look into certain claims and the investigator took photos of the family attending medical appointments under their false names. Gardaí were alerted and the investigation unearthed correspondence from the false identities at the accused persons' address and claim money paid into a bank account of one member of the family.
The family were arrested and interviewed in 2019. Patrick Lawrence made four false claims under two false names for road traffic incidents and falls, with just one claim successfully resulting in a payout of €9,370. He has six previous convictions for theft and road traffic offences.
Eileen Lawrence made five claims under two false identities. Only one claim was successful, with €15,000 being paid out to her in 2014. Another claim was withdrawn after she was identified in court by gardaí. Eileen Lawrence has no previous convictions.
Tom Lawrence made an unsuccessful claim for a trip and fall in 2016 under a false name. He was 16 years old at the time. He has convictions for road traffic offences and theft.
John Lawrence made four claims under false names, with one being successful and netting a pay out of €6,155 in 2015. John was also under 18 at the time of the offending. He has convictions for theft and road traffic offences.
Roderick O’Hanlon SC, defending Patrick Lawrence, said his client had a number of medical and mental health issues. He handed in medical reports and said he was vulnerable to severe deterioration in his mental health.
He said his client regrets the offending and has not offended since. He asked the court to take into account his guilty plea, which avoided a potentially difficult trial.
John Berry SC, defending Eileen Lawrence, said his client was the “glue that holds the family together” and was the primary carer for a son with additional needs.
Hugh Hartnett SC, defending Tom Lawrence, asked the court to take into account that he was 16 years old at the time. He is now married and a father himself. Counsel handed in medical references. The garda agreed with Mr Hartnett that his client would not have had the guile or intelligence to set up the fraud himself. He was interviewed and made admissions.
Maurice Coffey SC, for John Lawrence, submitted his client was also a minor at the time. He said his client was “not the brains of the operation” and followed instructions. He said his client has also married and settled down.
