Latest Fraud Headlines
All the headlines from our Fraud Topic Page, ordered by recency.
La. Romance Writer Booked on Insurance Fraud Charges
Apr 7 2005 // Louisiana state police say a New Orleans-based romance writer’s $1.8 million insurance claim for two diamond-encrusted bracelets was itself a romance: an extravagant story lacking basis in fact. Preposterous, says...
Unlicensed S. Fla. Psychotherapist Arrested for Bilking Patients, Providers
Apr 7 2005 // Florida insurance fraud investigators have arrested an unlicensed psychotherapist a second time for reportedly practicing psychotherapy without a license and fraudulently billing insurance companies for his services....
Harris County Clinic Owner Pleads Guilty to Fraud
Apr 6 2005 // Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported that Eric Scheffey’s Harris County Bone and Joint Clinic Association pleaded guilty recently to fraud-related charges. The insurer said the guilty plea marks the end of a...
La. Man Pleads Guilty in CE Credit Scam
Apr 5 2005 // Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr. announced that Leo Vincent Jacob of Covington, La., has pled guilty to six counts of filing false public records in a criminal scheme that involved hundreds of insurance...
La. Sheriff’s Deputy and Two Others Accused of Insurance Fraud
Apr 4 2005 // The assistant chief sheriff’s deputy in Avoyelles Parish, La., and two other men are accused of defrauding an insurance company of $18,000, according to the Associated Press and the Alexandria Daily Town Talk. FBI...
Fla. Agent Charged for Grand Theft; Accused of Not Forwarding Premium
Apr 4 2005 // An Ormond Beach, Fla. man has been accused of not forwarding insurance premiums to his underwriter and charged with grand theft after a New York insurance agent reported the incident to the Flagler Beach Police...
Push Underway for Tough Fla. Insurance Fraud Laws
Apr 4 2005 // Tough legislation to increase fraud penalties in Florida for filing fraudulent auto crash reports that can be used to bilk insurance companies, to strengthen consumers’ rights to sue operators of unauthorized...
Q&A With Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger
Apr 4 2005 // Interviewed by Kevin B. O’Reilly When Insurance Journal last spoke with Sandy Praeger, she was only months into the job. Kansans elected the Republican as insurance commissioner in November 2002. Back then she was...
Agents Beware: Due Diligence is Now Required
Apr 4 2005 // Transactions between retail agents and brokers they place business through just became more labor intensive. I recently testified as an expert in a federal case involving a reputable agency’s failure to conduct...
County Employee Not Guilty of WC Fraud
Apr 4 2005 // An Indian River County. Fla., jury found a former county employee not guilty on charges of workers’ compensation fraud, perjury in an official proceeding and third-degree grand theft. Ernest Rider of Falls Creek,...
14 Floridians Arrested in PIP Fraud Ring
Apr 4 2005 // Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher announced the arrests of 14 individuals in Tampa–including a former sheriff’s deputy–for patient brokering. The patients were “sold” to at...
Agents Beware: Due Diligence is Now Required on Brokers
Apr 4 2005 // Transactions between retail agents and brokers they place business through just became more labor intensive. I recently testified as an expert in a federal case involving a reputable agency’s failure to conduct...
TDI February Enforcement Actions = $1.3 M in Fines and Restitution
Apr 4 2005 // The Texas Department of Insurance recently announced enforcement actions taken by Commissioner José Montemayor that became final during February. The actions include four license revocations, one license denial, and fines...
RBH PLEADS GUILTY TO FRAUD CHARGES
Apr 4 2005 // Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported that RBH Enterprises Inc. of Keller, Texas, recently pleaded guilty to a first-degree felony offense for workers’ compensation insurance fraud-related charges. Judge Julie...
Calif. Sweep Nets Four Fraud Suspects
Apr 4 2005 // Starting Feb. 24, investigators from the California Department of Insurance’s Fraud Division conducted joint operations in the Central Valley to execute outstanding arrest warrants. CDI partnered with the Fresno...
Lake Charles Agent Told to Cease and Desist
Apr 1 2005 // A Lake Charles, La., insurance agent (producer) was arrested and issued a cease and desist order, along with a summary suspension of his license, on charges of submitting fraudulent damage repair claims and pocketing the...
Del. Cracks Down on Auto Insurance Fraud
Apr 1 2005 // Delaware Insurance Commissioner Matt Denn has initiated a crackdown by his department on auto insurance fraud. Denn announced several policy changes in the way auto insurance fraud cases are handled, including makeing them...
Fireman’s Fund Launches Nationwide ‘Identity Theft’ Recovery Service
Apr 1 2005 // California-based Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company, the principal U.S. operating unit of Germany’s Allianz, announced that it now provides Identity Theft Restoration Services throughout the United...
N.Y. Court Upholds No-Fault Regulation Letting Insurers Deny Payments to Fraudulent Medical Firms
Apr 1 2005 // The New York Court of Appeals has upheld the right of an insurance company to refuse to reimburse fraudulently incorporated medical providers for no-fault auto insurance claims even when the medical care provided is...
La. Governor Appoints Inspector General to Combat Fraud, Mismanagement
Mar 29 2005 // Louisiana Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco announced the appointment of Sharon Buchanan Robinson as the new State Inspector General to lead the office in the prevention of waste, mismanagement, abuse, fraud and...
