Most People Wouldn't Report False Insurance Claim

Less than a quarter of people quizzed on their attitudes to insurance fraud would report someone for making a false claim, according to new figures.

Just 23% would report the fraud and one in seven, or 14%, believe that it is acceptable to exaggerate a claim.

More than half, 56%, of the 2,700 people questioned for a survey by researchers at ITV said they could understand why someone might make up a claim in order to clear their debts. And 22% said they would have sympathy for someone who did.

The majority of those surveyed, 89%, said that insurance companies are out to make as much money as they can from people.

But even though 13% of people said that they had thought of exaggerating a claim, only 3% admitted to actually doing it.

Shopping offer likely a scam

Dear Troubleshooter: Thought this might be of interest to readers. Of course, I did not initiate this offer. It just appeared in my junk mail! - J. H.
For the benefit of my readers, let's explain this mailing. It is an offer to become a mystery shopper. As indicated, the letter arrived unsolicited and stated the recipient was selected to be a mystery shopper .
In addition to the letter, the mailing includes a cashier's check in the amount of $4,998 "to assist you with your assignment." The letter provides instructions for the recipient to follow with regard to their "probational training." It further says they absolutely must contact the company office immediately upon receipt.
Among the tasks the recipient is required to perform include making small purchases at two well-known retailers. However, the crux of the transaction instructs the addressee to arrange money transfers at two different financial wire services.
There's only one way to accomplish this...the recipient will have to deposit the $4998 check. Though the letter doesn't state this, there's a likelihood he'll be told to do so when he makes that required call to the company office.
There is little doubt in my mind the check is fraudulent. This opinion is re-enforced by several postings on various rip-off Web sites. Unfortunately, once the check is deposited and the "employee" carries out his mission, the money will almost surely be gone...never to be seen again. In a week or two, the bank will notify the recipient that the check was fake.
Here are some tell-tale red flags to support my opinion. The envelope contains a Canadian postmark. The company address is in South Dakota but the telephone and fax numbers contain the area code for Ontario, Canada. And finally, the check is drawn on a bank in Wyoming.
Cross-border fraud is an ever-growing problem. Unfortunately, criminals working out of Canada have often been the source for various scams. There are several cooperating government agencies on both sides of the border who work side-by-side in an effort to track down these con artists and bring them to justice.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, many mystery shopping ads promise so-called lucrative jobs but don not deliver real opportunities.
While legitimate companies do in fact hire individuals to evaluate quality of service at particular businesses, the FTC indicates it is unnecessary to pay money to someone to get into the mystery shopping business.

Detroit Piston Lindsay Hunter Investigated in Mortgage Fraud

The FBI and Wayne County are investigating a fraud case that involves Lindsey Hunter and a company Hunter is a partner in.

Crain's Detroit Business: So far, Wayne County investigators consider [Hunter] a victim, with
someone else serving as what they describe as "a mastermind." The FBI, on the other hand,
according to sources close to its investigation, has him as its main focus and as a leading
participant in at least two possibly fraudulent deals that went awry.

To Bruce McClellan of Waterford Township, a boiler operator with the Pontiac Schools, there is no doubt about Hunter's role.

McClellan was duped by people claiming to represent Lindsey Hunter and talked into purchasing a home in Bloomfield Hills for 1.25 million dollars, even though Mr. McClellan made only about $35,000 a year.

Foreclosures Open Door to Fraud

At The Barber's Chair, in the small, quiet community of Accokeek at the far end of Prince George's County, Md., the talk often turns to the foreclosure crisis -- for good reason. Here, in the nation's most affluent majority black jurisdiction, a remarkable example of the growing wealth of the new black middle class, foreclosures are growing at one of the fastest rates in the country, and foreclosure fraud is increasing right along with it.

With locals constantly in and out, Leo Harrington, the owner, hears it all. How people who bought homes once valued at $800,000 down the the road at upscale subdivisions like The Preserves or at the one- and two-acre homesites of St. James have friends and relatives living in their basements to help pay the mortgage.

How lenders pushed deceptive and high-cost loans on first-generation homeowners, without disclosing the consequences, assuring them that home values only go up. How people bought expensive cars, timeshare vacations and boats -- and put their homes at risk. How lenders continue to target the community and push loans. And how homeowners, with years of mistrust in mainstream lenders, wait too long to get help when they fall behind on their loans, wary of trying for a short sale or a loan workout, and so fall prey to foreclosure scams.

Man charged with insurance fraud

A Rochester man was arrested Monday for allegedly defrauding a local insurance company after claiming new damage to his vehicle that proved to be old, say police.As a result, Brian Vespa, 39, of Western Avenue has been charged with a Class A misdemeanor for insurance fraud, alleging that he defrauded his insurance agency out of $345.79.
Following his arrest, Vespa was released on $1,000 personal recognizance bail and is scheduled to be arraigned in Portsmouth District Court on Sept. 29.

CREDIT CARD FRAUD

Two Buellton residents are charged with fraudulent use of a credit card, among other things, after a sheriff’s department investigation. Karen Peterson, 47, and Debra Mangino, 49 were arrested August 6.

Deputies began the investigation in early July when a Buellton resident reported that someone had used a credit card that belonged to him. Deputies learned that the person who opened accounts in Buellton and Lompoc had the victim’s social security number for verification, the sheriff’s department said in a press release.

Use of the credit card led deputies to view surveillance video of a Buellton gas station which showed the suspects using the fraudulently obtained credit card, officials said. At some point the women were neighbors of the victim, stealing his mail to get the personal information that was used in the fraud, according to deputies.

Mangino was released on a $20,000 bond after her arrest; however Peterson was unable to post her bail and remained in custody. The two appeared before Judge James Rigali in Santa Maria on Aug. 8. At that time the judge said he intended to raise the bail amount for Mangino because she had pending charges from an arrest in May for forgery and grand theft.

Mangino asked Judge Rigali for permission to make a call to a bondsman after she heard that her bail was to be raised. Rigali said she could leave the courtroom but had to stay on the courthouse grounds for her phone call. Five minutes later, when her public defender went outside to find Mangino, she had fled.

Detective Chris Dallenbach of the Solvang sheriff’s substation said that deputies had Mangino’s house under surveillance and when she showed up midday Sunday, Aug. 10, she was spotted by deputies, pursued through backyards in the west Buellton neighborhood, and caught one block from her house.

Counterfeit Scam Leaves Erwin Couple $10,000 Poorer

The Dunn Police Department is investigating two cases of counterfeit check scams, one of which has left an Erwin couple more than $10,000 in the hole.

When Kimberly Spell saw a classified ad in The Daily Record for a clerical job, she thought it was right up her alley, so she called.

The voice at the other end of the line told Mrs. Spell she had the opportunity to participate in a mystery shopper program, evaluating the customer service and efficiency of Wal-Mart's wire transfer service.

Mrs. Spell was sent a money order for $2,775, along with a checklist of criteria on which to evaluate the Wal-Mart employee. She was told to cash the money order at her own bank, keep $300 for payment and use the rest to evaluate the wire transfer service, sending it back to a fictitious relative named Tracy Spell.

When Mrs. Spell went to her bank, State Employees Credit Union in Dunn, the money order raised eyebrows only because of the unusually high amount. The branch manager was called over to inspect the check. He verified it as authentic and Mrs. Spell was given the cash.

She successfully sent the $2,475 to Laura Spell in Ontario, Canada, all the while paying careful attention to her checklist criteria and the attitude of the Wal-Mart employees.

Following the transaction, Mrs. Spell called the mystery shopper company to confirm the job was complete.

The next day, promptly at 10 a.m., a second package arrived via overnight delivery and the same routine took place again. On the third day, two checks were enclosed in the overnight envelope. On the fourth day, the company in Canada sent Mrs. Spell four checks, bringing the grand total to $23,055.

When Mrs. Spell went to her bank to start the day's work with these four checks, she was told they, along with the first four she had cashed, were all fakes. All of the checks bounced, and Mrs. Spell and her husband, Howard Spell, will be held responsible for the more than $10,000 they wired away to an unknown person in Canada.

The advertisement is no longer running in The Daily Record.

Louisiana Man Found Guilty on 8 Counts of Insurance Fraud

Arthur Copes of Baton Rouge has been found guilty on eight counts of insurance fraud, according to the Louisiana Attorney General's Office. Judge Anthony Marabella rendered the verdict following testimony from former patients who flew in from all over the country to testify against him.

Copes runs a clinic in Baton Rouge which provides braces for Scoliosis patients. David Caldwell, co-prosecutor, along with Butch Wilson, presented evidence showing Copes fraudulently billed Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana of more than $88,000. The AG's office said Copes billed the insurance company for services he was not licensed to render and he expected upfront payments from clients who thought they were seeing a licensed medical doctor, which Copes was not.