California Sees Increase in Automobile Insurance Fraud
October 26, 2009 – Statistics compiled by the California Department of Insurance suggest that the year 2008 showed a 25 percent increase in vehicle arson fraud compared with the year before.
Commissioner Steve Poizner of the Department of Insurance suggested this increase might be due to economic hardships. People facing financial challenges may see fraud as a potential way out, allowing them to get cash-in-hand to pay off bills. But Poizner warns California citizens, “you will only compound your problems if you break the law and commit fraud in search of a quick fix,” adding that his department’s enforcement experts are “cracking down on anyone attempting to cheat the law for personal gain.”
The statistics: 2007 saw 344 referred cases of suspected arson, as reported by local law enforcement, insurance companies, or consumers, while in 2008 there were 451 such referrals. According to the Department of Insurance, they have seen almost 300 more vehicle theft and arson cases in 2008 than in 2007, and about 200 more suspected vehicle theft fraud case referrals in that same time period. However, the total number of fraud case referrals remained roughly constant, which suggests that the spread of fraud is skewing from inflated damages and vandalism cases toward arson and theft.
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