Looking Closely At Auto Insurance Fraud
October 11th, 2009 by Gordon MayOne of the biggest problems that auto insurance companies have is auto insurance fraud. If there is a legit accident where a claim must be filed, they are fine with that. However, it is the millions of dollars that industry the industry is being robbed of that hurts everyone. Some people tend to think that insurance fraud is only hurting the major corporations, the “man.” Nevertheless, the problem is that when the insurance companies suffer such great loses, they have to regain their money somehow and that is usually through raising their premiums on their customers.
Someone who is planning auto insurance fraud will not only hurt himself or herself in the long run, but they are also hurting their friends and family. The insurance companies have to find a way to gain back some of the money that they lose and the good paying customers who do not break the law are the ones who pay in the end. There is also the legal end to think about.
Auto insurance fraud is not looked at in a kind light. Many people will find that they spend more time in jail for insurance fraud then for other crimes that one may think are worse than insurance fraud. If caught participating in an insurance fraud, you will not only have to pay back the money you stole but you will also pay hefty fines. On top of the money that will be owed, there will be a considerable jail sentence that one will have to face. Fraud is not something that generally found out about without jail time being tacked onto the punishment. Some people find that they commit auto insurance fraud and really do not even realize it. Even the most innocent mistakes can land you in a lot of trouble so it is very important to make sure that you are not making them. A simple, innocent mistake would be that of claiming that the dent on the side of your car was also caused by the accident involving the deer, even though you know that it was not. By just trying to get one extra dent or scratch covered, you are committing auto insurance fraud.
Extreme types of insurance fraud would be to ditch the car, claim there were all kinds of gifts in the back, and then pretend that the car was stolen. This is a common claim from those who commit fraud and it is no longer working with auto insurance companies as such claims send up a red flag in their eyes. Typically, law enforcement gets involved.
If you ever find that law enforcement is investigating your claims for insurance and you are innocent, do not worry. If you did not commit auto insurance fraud, you have nothing to worry about. In fact, be thankful that they are being proactive and doing their job. This way, when they do come across someone committing the fraud, they will be able to put a stop to it and save you, the innocent customer, a lot of money in your premiums.