A “remorseful” 50-year-old woman who has admitted to defrauding an insurance company faces detention and a hefty bill for the offense.

Melissa Lowe has been sentenced by the Palmerston North District Court to two months of community detention and has been ordered to pay the defrauded Youi Insurance a reparation bill of $6,100, Fairfax Media reported.

According to Judge Stephanie Edwards, Lowe took out a policy with Youi in September 2015 for her Toyota vehicle.

A year after, between July and August, Lowe and her daughter connived with each other through text messages to have the car “stolen.”

The daughter contacted another person to do the “job,” saying the car would have no license plate, but would come with a key.

After the plan was executed, Lowe reported the “theft” to the police in July 2016 and lodged a claim with Youi, which secured her a financial benefit of $6,100, the report said.

In her judgment, Edwards said Lowe had no previous convictions, and was “clearly remorseful” of her actions.

“You have suffered the loss of your good reputation through this conviction,” she said.


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