Latest Fraud Headlines

All the headlines from our Fraud Topic Page, ordered by recency.

8 Floridians Get Rewards for Reporting Insurance Fraud

Jan 28 2011 // Eight Floridians who provided information that led to arrests and convictions in five major insurance fraud cases have been given rewards totaling $50,500. These citizens helped uncover more than $2 million in fraudulent...

Iowa Employment Agency Owner Pleads Not Guilty to Fraud Indictment

Jan 27 2011 // The owner of a Des Moines, Iowa, employment agency has pleaded not guilty to federal fraud charges. Dinesh “Dan” Sethi is accused of scheming to defraud insurance companies out of workers’ compensation...

Iowa Employment Agency Charged with Workers’ Compensation Premium Fraud

Jan 26 2011 // The owner of a Des Moines employment agency has been indicted on federal fraud charges, accused of scheming to defraud insurance companies out of workers’ compensation premiums. Dan Sethi, of Ankeny, owns DES...

Investors Accuse Bank of America’s Countrywide of Massive Fraud

Jan 25 2011 // Bank of America Corp.’s Countrywide mortgage unit has been sued by investors claiming they were victimized in a ‘massive fraud” when they bought mortgage-backed securities. The lawsuit was filed on Monday...

Oklahoma Insurance Department to Cut 6 Fraud Investigators

Jan 25 2011 // Oklahoma’s new insurance commissioner plans to lay off six of the office’s nine fraud investigators. Commissioner John Doak says the cuts will save $323,000 per year and will enable the office to focus on fraud...

Ohio Uninsured Motorist Litigation Tied to Money for Charities

Jan 24 2011 // An Ohio insurance company in late 2010 successfully challenged a class action lawsuit involving uninsured motorist/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage in a case that played prominently in a campaign to change the way...

Massachusetts Agent Pleads Guilty to Stealing $43K in Premiums

Jan 24 2011 // A Massachusetts insurance agent has pleaded guilty to pocketing $43,000 in premiums. Richard Coscia Jr., of Winthrop, an employee of Coscia Insurance Agency, pleaded guilty to over two dozen charges, including insurance...

New York Drops Last Marsh Bid-Rigging Criminal Cases

Jan 24 2011 // New York dropped the last two criminal cases tied to a 2004 bid-rigging scandal involving Marsh & McLennan Cos. after failing to win convictions of any of the eight insurance executives indicted. The state attorney...

Auditors Successful in Defending Against Investor Lawsuits

Jan 24 2011 // Investors looking to pin blame on auditors for failing to flag risks ahead of the credit crisis are having a hard time getting their cases to stick. All of the “Big Four” auditors have been sued by investors...

Washington Fraud-Fighting Program Collects $137 Million

Jan 20 2011 // Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries’ Fraud Prevention and Compliance Program brought in $137.4 million in 2010 for its fraud fighting efforts. The total, detailed in L&I’s annual report...

Ohio Uninsured Motorist Litigation Tied to Money for Charities

Jan 19 2011 // An Ohio insurance company in late 2010 successfully challenged a class action lawsuit involving unin­sured motorist/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage in a case that played prominently in a campaign to change the way...

New York Drops Last Marsh Bid-Rigging Criminal Cases

Jan 18 2011 // New York dropped the last two criminal cases tied to a 2004 bid-rigging scandal involving Marsh & McLennan Cos after failing to win convictions of any of the eight insurance executives indicted. The state attorney...

North Dakota Brothers Sentenced in Insurance Fraud Scheme

Jan 14 2011 // Two brothers accused of causing more than three dozen car crashes in Fargo, N.D., over two years in an insurance fraud scheme will be jailed for 30 days. The Forum newspaper reports that 44-year-old Sead Mustafic and...

The 2010 Insurance Fraud Hall of Shame

Jan 12 2011 // Barbara Morris died in a house fire set by an insurance arsonist. Bob Harper bought a fake health policy after urgently needing a pacemaker. A homeless man received a pittance after being rammed by a motorist who bought...

The 2010 Insurance Fraud Hall of Shame

Jan 12 2011 // Barbara Morris died in a house fire set by an insurance arsonist. Bob Harper bought a fake health policy after urgently needing a pacemaker. A homeless man received a pittance after being rammed by a motorist who bought...

Fen-Phen Lawyer Indicted for Insurance Fraud in Kentucky

Jan 12 2011 // An attorney who was disbarred after representing clients in a multimillion-dollar diet drug settlement has been indicted on a fraudulent insurance acts charge. The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that a Fayette County...

Ex-Airport Director Pleads Guilty in Katrina Insurance Fraud Case

Jan 6 2011 // The former director of aviation at New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International Airport pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice for his role in a Hurricane Katrina insurance fraud case. Sean Hunter and his wife,...

Study Says No-Fault Fraud A Major Problem in New York City

Jan 6 2011 // Nearly one out of every five no-fault auto insurance claims closed in the New York City area in 2010 appears to have elements of fraud, according to a new study from the Insurance Research Council (IRC). And as many as one...

Calif. Commissioner Poizner: Insurance Agent Advice Critical

Dec 30 2010 // As California’s third elected insurance commissioner, Steve Poizner has had a wealth of accomplishments. Among other things, he: reduced the Department of Insurance’s operating budget by 13 percent, which...

UK Homeowners Insurance is Biggest Fraud Target; $3.55 Million a Day

Dec 30 2010 // Home insurance is now the number one target for insurance fraudsters according to the hundreds of fraudulent insurance claims exposed every day, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI). To back up is...