Semi-pro footballer caught claiming fraudulently on Twitter receives suspended jail term

A semi-pro footballer has received a suspended jail term after he was found to have made a fraudulent RTA claim on Twitter.

Wigan Today has reported that Gary Burnett, who plays for Northwich Victoria, boasted about scoring a goal in an FA Trophy game after a car accident at a McDonald’s drive-through that had supposedly left him unable to play football.

The 25-year-old window cleaner suffered a minor shunt in 2013. But after making his claim insurance investigators working for Aviva discovered his Twitter posts, which revealed that he was playing competitively shortly after the accident.

Mr Justice Jay at the High Court said he had only very narrowly decided to suspend Burnett’s sentence.

A judge at Wigan County Court last year ruled his claim was fundamentally dishonest and ordered he pay the insurer’s £11,000 costs at a rate of £63 a month.

Mark Dugdale