The Associated Press is reporting that a suit filed last year by several former insurance adjusters has been unsealed after U.S. Attorney David Dugas announced that he would not intervene in the process.
The whistleblower suit accuses several major insurers of over - billing the National Flood Insurance Program for flood damage that occurred as a result of Hurricane Katrina. Since flood losses are not covered under most homeowners' policies, any losses that could be attributed to flood would limit the amount of money insurers would have to pay.
According to the article, which was written by Michael Kunzelman , the former adjusters say they inspected hundreds of properties and gathered evidence to show that wind damage was being underreported while flood damages were being inflated. Reports said that the adjusters had direct knowledge of the scheme to defraud the federal government, which is why their names are not being released.
Among those insurers named in the suit were: Allstate Insurance Co., State Farm Fire and Casualty Co., Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co., Fidelity National Insurance Co., American National Property & Casualty Co., Scottsdale Insurance Co. and Travelers.
For the complete AP article, please HYPERLINK "http://channels.isp.netscape.com/pf/story.jsp?floc=FF-APO-1333&idq=/ff/story/0001%2F20070531%2F1734614259.htm&sc=1333" click here .
Interested in more legal news and in-depth articles? Head over to Claims' legal channel for more information.
