Matthew James Hughes, 29, pleaded guilty in May to an attempt to dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception in the form of a $32,950 claim to NRMA insurance.

Hughes also pleaded guilty to making a false statement to police.

At a sentencing hearing at Wagga Local Court on Monday, Hughes' solicitor Stephen Groch said his client's offending was "not sophisticated" and destined to fail due to the evidence he left behind.

According to an agreed statement of facts from the police, Hughes committed the offences in Coffs Harbour late last year.

Hughes was formerly the owner of a white 2015 Mazda BT-50 utility vehicle that was insured through NRMA.

At 12:20am December 11, police were called to Joyce Street in Coffs Harbour in relation to a motor vehicle collision.

Police attended and saw that a red Holden Captiva SUV had been involved in a collision and had been forced up onto the footpath.

Officers followed the trail of damage and located Hughes' vehicle a short distance away.

"The vehicle had suffered significant damage consistent with being in a collision with the red Holden Captiva," the statement said.

"Police spoke to the owner of the Captiva but could not locate (Hughes)."

On December 17, police were making inquiries about Hughes' ute when they found he had reported the vehicle stolen.

Officers then obtained a written statement from Hughes and filmed him on a body camera while obtaining the statement.

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Hughes was also filmed while officers explained the endorsement at the start of the statement declaring that knowingly giving false information would leave him liable for prosecution.

Hughes told police he had parked his ute at the Greenhouse Tavern in Coffs Harbour on December 10 between 8pm and 9pm and that was the last time he had driven the vehicle before it had been stolen.

Hughes stated he was wearing the same clothes, including a high visibility shirt, khaki shorts and work boots, when he went to the tavern and when he was speaking with police.

Police obtained security camera footage from the tavern that showed Hughes parking at the time he said he did but also that he departed the tavern at midnight on December 11, which was 20 minutes before police were called to the crash.

The footage showed Hughes approach his ute and the headlights turn on and indicators flash consistent with the vehicle being unlocked remotely.

Hughes entered the ute and sat in the driver's seat with other passengers getting in before the vehicle was driven from car park with Hughes still in driver's seat.

Police seized the ute as a stolen vehicle and towed it away for forensic analysis.

In Wagga Local Court on Monday, Mr Groch said Hughes had made a bad decision and his attempt was bound to come undone given his own statements to police about his clothes and the "prevalence of CCTV in the community".

Mr Groch also said Hughes had spoken with insurance investigators and settled the issue with the NRMA.

Magistrate Philip Stewart said Hughes was of "good character" and his offending had been "unusual".

"He took these steps to avoid liability for the collision," Magistrate Stewart said.

Magistrate Stewart fined Hughes $750 for making a false statement to police and sentenced him to a 12-month community corrections order for the charge of attempting to dishonestly obtain financial advantage.

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