Kempston crash victim caught driving on holiday fined for contempt

Aleksandar Kovacic was fined £10,000 by a High Court judge and told to pay the fine within a year

A man who claimed a crash left him barely able to walk but was caught carrying heavy items and driving on holiday to Skegness has been ordered to pay a £10,000 fine or go to jail.

Aleksandar Kovacic tried to claim £1m from insurers after a crash in 2010.

But Aviva filmed the 43-year-old social worker, of Kempston, Bedfordshire, walking with ease, carrying shopping and taking his children to school.

The High Court gave him a three-month suspended term for contempt of court.

The action was taken against Kovacic, of Hastings Road, by Aviva after he was badly injured in a head-on crash on the A422 near Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, in March 2010.

It claimed the life of 68-year-old Norma Wroe, who was found to be at fault.

Injuries 'exaggerated'

After suffering fractures to both legs, his right arm, a rib and his back, Kovacic claimed more than £1m in compensation.

However, he received just £95,114 in 2015 after a judge said he "deliberately exaggerated" his disabilities.

The court heard the insurance company became suspicious and he was placed under surveillance in 2013.

Videos showed him taking his family to Skegness, where he drove 180 miles (290km) and was seen lying on the beach.

They also showed him walking without a stick, taking his children to school, carrying heavy items and getting in and out of his car without difficulty.

Mr Justice Spencer said: "You had a perfectly good claim for damages and liability was never in dispute.

"Yet, as time went on, you deliberately and dishonestly exaggerated the level of your disability in an attempt to increase the amount of damages you might recover."

He said Kovacic must pay the £10,000 fine from that claim within a year or face going to jail.

The court heard he had previously turned down a £350,000 pre-trial offer to settle his claim.