What many Americans don't know is that insurance fraud increases insurance rates for consumers nationwide. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), insurance fraud costs each American household $200 to $300 per year—a loss totaling at least $30 billion a year.
About Insurance Fraud
Insurance fraud is defined as an intentional misrepresentation of facts and circumstances to an insurance company to illegally obtain funds. Insurance fraud is a very common white-collar crime, right up there with tax evasion.
Insurance fraud can be committed at different points in the insurance transaction, by applicants, policyholders, third-party claimants or professionals such as physicians or chiropractors who provide services to the claimants. Insurance fraud may also be committed by insurance agents by misrepresenting themselves to a client, resulting in the consumer paying for coverage he or she may not actually have.
Hard vs. Soft
"Hard" insurance fraud occurs when there is a deliberate attempt to stage or invent an accident, injury, theft or other incident that would be covered by insurance.
In the world of auto insurance fraud, "crash test dummies" are known as drivers and passengers used in staged auto accidents. “Crash test dummies" will typically approach people and convince them to participate in the scam, saying that legal, medical and all other paperwork will be taken care of. Generally, the two motorists will then crash their cars into each other and report the accident to authorities. In addition, the driver and any passengers in the car will falsely claim they were injured in the accident.
The result for consumers? Auto insurance fraud increases premiums for everyone—criminals and law-abiding alike.
In Florida, a new trend in hard auto insurance fraud is called "ditching" or "owner-give up." "Ditching" typically occurs when the owner can no longer afford the vehicle or is otherwise unhappy with it. The vehicle is then dumped somewhere or burned, after which the claimant reports that his or her car has been stolen or victim of arson.
On the other end of the fraud spectrum, "soft" insurance fraud occurs when the policy holder exaggerates a legitimate claim. Soft insurance fraud also occurs when people provide false information their insurance agent to favorably affect the underwriting of their policy. Soft insurance fraud includes fudging facts, like the number of miles driven and where a car is garaged, or providing an inaccurate medical history when applying for health insurance.
Both hard and soft fraud contribute to all forms of insurance fraud—auto, health, home and life—and takes money out of the pockets of consumers across the country.
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