Car Insurance Accident Scams !!!

[Mike Jung]

from: http://www.moneyville.ca/article/897...n-ontario?bn=1

Staged crashes on the rise in Ontario


Ajax resident Michael Malcolm was turning into a shopping plaza parking lot in August when he believes he was targeted by gang members who schemed to create an accident in order to defraud the insurance system for fake injuries.
Yvonne Berg/Toronto Star


By James Daw | Fri Nov 26 2010


A helpful hand signal and flashing headlights introduced an Ajax educator to what he and investigators suspect is an auto insurance fraud ring.

“Right off the bat I knew I got hustled,” recalls Michael Malcolm, a tall, muscular vice-principal working temporarily for Ontario’s Ministry of Education.

The sort of ploy he describes —where an innocent driver is made to seem at fault for vehicle damage and injuries to a carload of other persons — is relatively common in parts of the United States.

It’s common enough that filmed re-enactments have been posted on the Internet. Burn Notice has a third-season TV episode built around insurance scammers.

But Ontario insurers say it’s also something that’s now being reported more frequently in and around Toronto, and motorists need to know how to protect themselves.

Just in the past two weeks a man posted to a couple of consumer chat sites his description of a midnight collision near Yonge St. and Sheppard Ave. that is quite similar to what Malcolm also describes. But he is afraid to be named.

If these are instances of insurance fraud, the strategy of those involved could be to collect towing fees, repair charges, income-replacement benefits, increased billing activity for injury rehabilitation clinics and possibly other compensation from an insurer.

Malcolm’s experience in August came in the wake of several individuals being convicted criminally for staging collisions with vehicles damaged previously or by crashing one into another.

One 22-year-old man investigated during what Toronto Police Services dubbed Project 92 was convicted in July of commission of an offence for a criminal organization, and dangerous driving causing bodily harm.

Here’s how Malcolm tells his story, and the advice he would give to others:

“I was driving south on Westney Rd. and I was in the left-hand turn lane — low traffic, 9:30 at night — and three cars (driving north) stopped (in the curb lane) to basically wave me through to go into the plaza. There were no other vehicles.”

“I found that odd. So I didn’t go. I was kind of waiting. Then the guy (in front) flipped his high beams saying to go through. So I’m thinking, ‘these guys just want to see the car. They might be car buffs’.

(A week earlier Malcolm had treated himself to a new ‘sexy black’ BMW 650. “It was my 40th birthday wish,” he explains.)

“As soon as I breached into their lane, (they) accelerated at my vehicle. So I floored my brakes before we collided. The first zinged past me; probably missed me by less than three inches.

“I was freaking out. So I blurred my horn. The second vehicle followed at the same speed (and) actually weaved his car toward my car. I was like a sitting duck at this point. So the second car glanced (off my vehicle) and scratched my front bumper.

“All three vehicles stopped, and everyone got out, and they were all of the same nationality. I am assuming they were all together. There were probably about 12 people.

“I was just cursing in my car. I was livid, livid, livid. At that point, in my mind, they were actually rolling me for my car; they were just going to jump in the car and take it.

“So I got out of the car like a bulldog, just so nobody thought they could take this vehicle and screw with me. I was just screaming, (saying) to get back.

“I said you ran into my car, and he’s grabbing his neck and saying: ‘Oh, you’re crazy, I don’t know why you ran. . . ’ And one of the other fellows is on the phone saying: ‘We’re calling the cops.’ I said: ‘Good! Call the cops.’ I was just barking so they couldn’t mess with me.”

Everyone from the other two vehicles left before the police arrived, and before a truck (from Scarborough) arrived to tow the slightly dented car, the drivers exchanged insurance information.

By then, says Malcolm, he had realized “they set it up so that it’s one person’s word against four people. If the other people get their story straight, who’s right? The one person or the four people?

“I knew I was going to be marked as the at-fault driver when I called the police. But this is wrong, and someone needs to pay for this.”

The police issued him a ticket for an illegal left turn. But when he told his story to his insurance adjuster, she notified the other driver’s insurer. That insurer sent an investigator to interview Malcolm, and is taking a close look at the claims submitted by the driver and passengers.

“If I was actually thoughtful, I would have taken a picture of the accident scene,” says Malcolm.

He would have taken pictures of the other cars and occupants, all of the licence plates, the damage to other car, and he would have taken more details from the other driver’s proof of insurance.

Malcolm was right to call the police, even though he received a traffic ticket. He will fight it, and a spokesperson for the Financial Services Commission of Ontario says an insurer would have the latitude to recognize he was not at fault.

His insurer has already shown a willingness to help by contacting the insurer of the other vehicle. Insurers and the Insurance Bureau of Canada work together to investigate suspicious claims.

Rick Dubin, vice-president of investigative services at the IBC, says insurers are calling on Ontario to create a permanent police task force to investigate and dedicated prosecutors to combat staged and created accidents, as exists in certain U.S. states.

[TAG UR IT]

Yep. I've written them before (the accidents) and each and every time, I write a VERY DETAILED account of what I saw, how people acted, the questions they asked, EVERYTHING....so that insurance companies KNOW there is a situation. If we don't, who will? I HATE these people with a passion!

[TJ91]

this sounds exactly like what happened to my camaro this tuesday, in the left hand turn lane when a car suddenly rammed my camaro from the fender al the way back, he then tried to blame me. Im in Ontario btw, sounds very similar

[Mike Jung]

http://www.moneyville.ca/blog/post/9...auto-collision

How to spot a staged auto collision
May 01, 2011
By Sheryl Smolkin


In early April, the Canadian Online Insurance Marketplace Kanetix reported that car insurance rates in Ontario increased by 6.7 per cent over the last year. The multi-million dollar business of auto insurance fraud is a key factor driving up premiums in this province.

A recent Ontario investigation called Project 92 teamed insurance company investigators with law enforcement officers and two dedicated crown prosecutors. More than 50 staged collisions were investigated, with 300 charges laid, 22 individuals convicted and two people jailed.

Rick Dubin, the Insurance Bureau of Canada’s VP of Investigative Services says the losses uncovered by this one project will be up to $25 million. In addition, there are currently up to 50 other organized crime rings under investigation by the Insurance Bureau of Canada for staged collisions and associated service provider fraud.

Although insurance fraud comes in many forms, Dubin cites three common examples, how you can recognize them and what you can do to protect yourself.

Staged collisions

The GTA is the “staged collision” capital of Canada. In one recent case, a driver was fully stopped waiting to turn left into a plaza. The oncoming car was also stopped and waived to her to proceed. Finally she started her turn and the oncoming vehicle drove right into her causing considerable damage to her vehicle.

A red flag that this was a staged collision was that the driver and three occupants showed no sign of injury. However, as soon as emergency services showed up they started complaining and demanded to be taken to hospital by ambulance.

In these kinds of cases Dubin says "victims" hoping to get a hefty settlement as a result of the staged accident pay up to $1,000 for a seat in the car that causes the accident and paid witnesses are often recruited to say it the other driver was at fault. The insurer investigated the strange facts and decided not to hold the driver responsible.

What should you do if you suspect you have been involved in a staged collision?

• If you have a cell phone with a camera, take lots of pictures right away of the other vehicle, where it struck your vehicle, the occupants while still in the vehicle and the interior of the car.
• Check if the air bag deployed.

• Get full particulars of the other vehicle, the occupants, the driver and any witnesses.

• Report suspicious claims to your insurer and the Insurance Bureau of Canada.


Fraudulent rehab claims
The purpose of the staged collision may be not only to stage the claim for the physical damage to the vehicle, which in some cases may be a salvage vehicle with little value. Often the goal is to get these people into rehab clinics where further fraud can be committed.

In Ontario, it is not required that a clinic owner or operator be a registered medical professional. One of the things the Insurance Bureau of Canada has been advocating is stronger control over licensing and operation of medical clinics.

“Medical professionals are not committing fraud,” Dubin explains. He says one scam fraudsters use is to enter registration numbers and forged signatures of physiotherapists or doctors formerly working at the clinic on accident claims form.

How can you help to prevent fraudulent rehab claims?

• Never sign treatment forms in blank.

• Keep in touch with your insurer and let them know how you are doing and how many treatments you needed.

• If your insurance company sends you a summary of treatments and it says you went for 20 appointments but you only had two, report the discrepancy.

Buying a used car:


Be extremely cautious if you buy a used car privately, particularly if the deal seems too good to be true. The car may be stolen and the original vehicle identification number altered so it can’t be traced. The car may also have been written off as a total loss, subject to a lien or have suffered flood damage.

How can you ensure you are getting the real deal?

• For a fee, companies like CARFAX and CarProof can do a history search on the vehicle identification number (VIN).
• You will get a vehicle history of the ID number, discover any liens, find out if the car was involved in past accidents and if it has been marked as a salvage, re-built or non-repairable vehicle.
• Run the VIN at the Canadian Police Information Centre website under the stolen vehicle section.
• Have the vehicle inspected by a very experienced mechanic.
• Ask the seller for his ID and proof of title for the car. If they do not match, walk away.

The province of Ontario has announced a series of initiatives to fight fraud, abuse and over utilization that drives up costs for law-abiding policy holders. But it’s still caveat emptor - we all have to do our part.

Also see: Daw: How a scratched van became a $150,000 bill and Why your auto insurance is about to go up.

[TJ91]

this shit makes me sick. Ive had two incidents where they have tried to lure me into this in the past month ive had my car out. Stay on your toes folks. I had traffic honking the horn behind me to go because there was a guy in the first lane with his right turn signal light on, not in the actual right turn lane, waving me down to go ahead and turn left. This is at an intersection with a green light, with me in the left turn lane. I said hell no until he drove off, which was straight and not right as he indicated, fn basterds. I should have chased him down but whatever