HARRISBURG, Pa., Jan. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2007 Top 13 Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Case list, released today by the Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority (IFPA), reminds Pennsylvanians that anyone is capable of engaging in insurance fraud -- even your local sheriff or your friendly neighborhood firefighter.
While this year's "Top 13" list may not include the largest insurance fraud cases from across the state, it recaps the most memorable and outrageous cases investigated or closed by the IFPA's 16 law enforcement agencies in 2007. Between mid-1996 and 2006, IFPA-funded law enforcement units have been responsible for more than 3,773 arrests and more than 2,272 convictions. In 2006 alone, the units arrested and convicted 441 individuals for insurance fraud. While statistics for 2007 will not be ready until mid-January 2008, 2007 looks like another banner year for the IFPA with even higher numbers of arrests.
"There are many different types of insurance fraud and a variety of people involved in these kinds of scams," said Ralph Burnham, the new executive director of the IFPA. "Some individuals know what they are doing is wrong, but there are others who don't realize when they are padding claims or filing false workers compensation forms that they could end up in jail. We released the Top 13 list to remind people that insurance fraud is a felony crime that is costing the insurance industry, as well as innocent consumers, billions of dollars."
In recent years, insurance fraud has grown more costly and invasive to consumers. According to some estimates, insurance fraud adds $300 each year to the average Pennsylvania family's annual insurance bill.
But, consumers can help fight back. If Pennsylvanians suspect a potential case of insurance fraud, they can visit http://www.helpstopfraud.org/ to locate a law enforcement agency near them or call the IFPA's fraud tip line at 1-888-565-IFPA.
Following are brief summaries of 2007's Top 13 cases. For the complete list, and additional information on insurance fraud, visit http://www.helpstopfraud.org/ or contact Sarah Groff at 717-232-5554 ext. 171 or sgroff@neimangroup.com.
1. HUSBAND AND WIFE IDENTITY THEFT TEAM -- A husband-wife team from
Allegheny County stole other peoples' identities to file false
auto insurance claims.
2. AG'S OFFICE BREAKS BROKER'S FRAUD STREAK -- A former Bucks County
insurance broker pocketed more than $1 million in payments
intended for insurance premium finance companies and the
Commonwealth's Bureau of Unemployment Compensation.
3. PRISON TIME IS BITTER PILL TO SWALLOW -- Seven Allegheny County
defendants worked a multi-level prescription-fraud scam, filling
an excess of $70,000 worth of fraudulent Oxycontin and Oxycodone
prescriptions.
4. ELEVEN COULD GET 'BUS'TED IN STAGED CRASH -- A group of passengers
on a charter bus in filed multiple insurance claims for injuries
sustained from an accident with an uninsured vehicle in
Philadelphia, which they allegedly orchestrated!
5. PIZZA SHOP OWNER TAKES A PIECE OF THE PIE -- A Delaware County
boss instructed his employees to stage burglaries so he could pay
them with illegal insurance money.
6. DRUNKEN HARLEY OWNER SLIDES INTO STICKY SITUATION -- An Erie
resident filed an uninsured motorist claim, stating a mini-van
swerved into his path and caused him to crash into three parked
cars. In reality, he was drunk and lost control of his
motorcycle.
7. CHIROPRACTOR RELIEVES TENSION BY LINING HIS WALLET -- A
chiropractor in Lackawanna County billed 78 patients for
procedures that never happened and received more than $440,000 in
illegal payments.
8. DUNCECAP DEPUTY SHERIFF TORCHES CAR UNDER GAS MAIN -- In order to
get out of his car payments, a Lehigh County Deputy Sheriff and a
friend set his car on fire, and then falsely reported it stolen.
9. FIREFIGHTERS AREN'T SUPPOSED TO PLAY WITH MATCHES -- A volunteer
firefighter from Monroe County was responsible for thirteen
separate fires since 2002.
10. THE PHONY ATTORNEY SCAM -- A Philadelphia man posed as an
attorney and set up phony businesses to steal goods and services
worth more than $439,000 from 38 victims.
11. 'CHECK' THIS OUT -- An attorney from Philadelphia ran a large-
scale insurance fraud operation out of his office, using 100
"runners" to recruit claimants and feign injuries.
12. THE PHANTOM -- A Philadelphia man tried to out-smart seven
different insurance companies by obtaining bogus automobile
insurance policies, filing damage claims and then posing as
various professionals (including a police officer, an accountant
and a bounty hunter) to expedite the claims.
13. DIM-WITTED CRIMINAL COULDN'T FOOL METLIFE -- A York County woman
falsely claimed someone burglarized her home and stole $13,500
worth of various electronics, jewelry and clothing. She then
altered receipts to make it look like she had purchased the items
so she could cash in on the insurance.
** A person charged with a crime is presumed innocent until
proven guilty **
About the Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority (IFPA)
The IFPA was created by the General Assembly (Act 166 of 1994) to encourage anti-insurance-fraud initiatives in Pennsylvania. The IFPA uses no tax dollars. Its funds, raised through annual assessments of insurance companies doing business in Pennsylvania, provide grant support to 16 law enforcement agencies and for public awareness initiatives.
CONTACT: Sarah Groff
717-232-5554, ext. 171
sgroff@neimangroup.com
Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority
