insurance fraud

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Man 'Cremated' Years Ago Just Arrested in NC

Jose Salvador Lantigua slipped up on passport application

(Newser) - A Florida businessman who authorities say faked his own death to dodge debts while reaping millions in life insurance benefits is sitting in a North Carolina jail, and a passport application reportedly proved his undoing. Jose Salvador Lantigua—wearing a "poorly dyed beard" and a brown toupee—was arrested...

'Extravagant' Family Accused of $20M Insurance Fraud

Risoldis accused firefighters of $10M theft after suspicious mansion fire

(Newser) - What kind of people would set their home on fire, then falsely accuse volunteer firefighters of stealing $10 million in jewelry? The Risoldi clan of Bucks County, Pa., might fit the bill, according to prosecutors. The family fell under suspicion of fraud after a fire at Claire Risoldi's "...

'Catch Me If You Can,' Tweets Fugitive

Shockingly, this story does not end well for San Diego woman

(Newser) - A fugitive convicted in a big insurance fraud scheme who taunted authorities via Twitter is now in custody in San Diego, reports the LA Times . The plight of Wanda Podgurski is getting national attention because of her bold tweets to the DA in San Diego County. "Catch me if...

Brits Killing Pets for Insurance Money

Association of British Insurers pegs 2010 insurance fraud at $3M

(Newser) - How bad is the economy? Some people are trying to make a buck by killing their pets to rake in the insurance money, says the Association of British Insurers. In a detail that doesn't really do much to restore one's faith in humanity, the insurers note that some...

Spitzer Hit With $90M Libel Suit

Slate column enrages former insurance execs

(Newser) - Two former execs at an insurance firm that paid out $850 million to settle allegations of shady dealing brought by Eliot Spitzer in his days as a crusading attorney general are now suing the former governor for libel. The former Marsh & McLennan execs, who claim Spitzer libeled them in...

Drunken Tycoon Loses $200K Lamborghini
Drunken Tycoon Loses
$200K Lamborghini
a gem from friday
Mar 21, 2010 7:37 PM CDT

Drunken Tycoon Loses $200K Lamborghini

Jury acquits him of insurance fraud

(Newser) - A jury yesterday acquitted real estate tycoon Glenn Knowles of insurance fraud, accepting his story that he’d become so drunk that he forgot where he parked his Lamborghini. When he wasn’t able to find it after an extensive search, he and co-owner Richard Mont reported it stolen, and...

Critics Say Insurers Cutting Sick People Loose

(Newser) - Insurance companies are being hit from all sides on at least one issue—in industry jargon, it's called rescission. In the real world, it's when insurers cancel coverage because they say a customer has lied to them about a preexisting condition or some other issue. It's not clear how many...

Recession Drives Boom in Auto Fraud

(Newser) - Car-insurance fraud spurred by the recession is continuing unabated, Newsweek reports. “Give-ups”—feigning theft or arson to collect insurance money on an unwanted vehicle—are up 24% this year over last, according to an industry group. And claims stemming from suspicious car fires are up 27%. “Normally...

Global Insurance Fraud Floods N. Korea with Cash

 Global Insurance Fraud 
 Floods N. Korea with Cash 
INVESTIGATION
Jun 18, 2009 6:54 AM CDT

Global Insurance Fraud Floods N. Korea with Cash

North Korean leader profits personally from fires, disasters

(Newser) - North Korea has collected hundreds of millions of dollars from global insurance giants on often suspicious claims of fires, floods, and other disasters, according to a Washington Post investigation. While insurers have kept mum about their losses, US officials and Korean defectors describe a sophisticated fraud that has provided Kim...

Boaters Jumping Ship in Troubled Times

Erstwhile skippers scuttle their craft for the insurance payout

(Newser) - Many boaters who bought their vessels during sunnier economic times are now regretting their purchases, and some of them are resorting to desperate measures, reports the New York Times. Facing hefty maintenance costs and docking fees, some skippers are simply cutting their crafts—often fully paid for—loose to drift...

Arson Catches Fire as Car Insurance Fraud Climbs

(Newser) - Car owners sideswiped by the economy have spurred a nationwide wave of arson and abandonment—last-ditch attempts to collect on insurance, the Wall Street Journal reports. Auto arson claims rose 6% nationally in 2008; in some particularly speculative states, the rate jumped as much as 18%. “Lots of desperate...

As Mortgages Melt Down, Owners Burn Up

Debt-motivated arson another facet of US subprime crisis

(Newser) - US homeowners are literally burning down their homes instead of paying their subprime mortgages. Last year saw a dramatic nationwide jump in apparently debt-motivated arson, the Los Angeles Times reports. “I'm busier now than a one-armed paper hanger,” said one investigator. “What is happening is terrifically economically...

Man Kills Stranger, Fakes Own Death

Suspect commits suicide as cops close in; wife under scrutiny

(Newser) - A Chicago-area construction boss trying to work a life-insurance scam killed another man, used the body to fake his own death, then killed himself as police converged, the Chicago Tribune reports. Authorities are now looking at whether the killer and his wife, who had email contact after his “death,...

States Push to Restrain Insurers
States Push to Restrain Insurers
Feb 21, 2008 5:10 PM CST

States Push to Restrain Insurers

Legislators see rise in unfair cancellations of individual plans

(Newser) - As more Americans buy individual health insurance, states are acting to make sure insurers don’t cancel the plans without fair cause, USA Today reports. Plans can be canceled if applicants misreport their medical history, whether accidentally or on purpose. But amid complaints that companies are cutting the plans unjustly,...

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