Questionable tow and glass claims run rampant

Questionable tow and glass claims run rampant

When you think of insurance fraud what may come to mind is running a car off a cliff or starting a fire to collect, but trends are showing thieves going for smaller pay outs.

It’s no surprise, insurance fraud has been around since the first insurance policy, but many are getting creative with the wash, rinse and repeat formula in fertile areas that have no-fault insurance laws like Florida and New York.

According to the latest National Insurance Crime Bureau report auto glass claims have risen 511% since 2008 and inflated tow/storage bills 103%. Making these types of losses the highest in fraudulent claims and under intense scrutiny by insurers who need to stop the millions being lost.

A recent increase of claims harvesting by glass repair companies have been helping the rate of these claims increase as well. Repair shops are scouring parking lots and car washes to drum up business. Many insurers will waive the deductible to repair small cracks but some shops have been pulling the old bait and switch. Promising free repair but finding more items to stack onto the bill. This coupled with fraudulent claims has caused a huge thorn in the side of the insurance industry’s side.

Unfortunately, fraudulent activities affect everyone, no matter how big or small.  Due to these acts, innocent consumers have to pay higher rates because of the billions wasted each year. Though on the flip side, recent reports did show the biggest decline in vehicle theft fraud, approximately 11%. Also, the report showed a decrease in questionable Workers Comp claims too.

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