Denver Fire Department Admits Filing False Insurance Reports

The Denver Fire Department has acknowledged submitting incorrect training records to an agency that helps set insurance prices but says the errors weren’t deliberate.

KMGH-TV in Denver reported Sunday that the records claimed some firefighters put in up to 40 hours of training in a single 24-hour day, and that other firefighters were training on days they were on vacation or out sick.

Other records showed 85 firefighters in the same training for the same length of time on the same date. Kevin Klein, director of the state Division of Fire Safety, said that’s virtually impossible since the firefighters were at different stations on different shifts.

The records were submitted to the Insurance Service Office, which rates fire protection based on firefighter training and other factors. Insurers use the ratings to set premiums.

Fire Chief Nick Nuanes told the station no one deliberately falsified the records.

He said a corrected training record was submitted, but KMGH reported those records included discrepancies, such as firefighters listed in training on days they were on vacation or on leave for military training.

Nuanes said the records are “a work in progress” and are being corrected.

KMGH says there was no indication individual firefighters falsified their training records.

Topics Training Development