Although stories about unsuccessful fraud attempts and inept would-be scam artists often are amusing, insurance fraud is a serious crime that costs consumers a lot of money, according to the Progressive group of insurance companies.

“People think of insurance fraud as a victimless crime when, in fact, honest policyholders end up being victimized,” said Ray Albertini, Progressive's national director of special investigations. “Most insurance companies base their rates on the cost of doing business. When costs go up because of fraudulent claims, other customers end up paying the price.”

Although combating fraud is not an easy task, some hapless offenders make it less difficult. Progressive recently published a list of attempted frauds by criminals who were not quite masterminds.

One fairly common type of fraud is buying coverage after accidents have occurred. What is less common is buying it from the scene of the accident. One motorcyclist, while lying on the side of the road with a ruptured spleen, had the presence of mind to telephone Progressive to buy coverage. A witness who had seen the accident also heard him make the call. In another case, a couple's car caught on fire. While the husband was on the phone trying to purchase a policy, his wife was overheard yelling in the background that the car was about to explode.

Some people figure that the easiest and quickest way to collect insurance money is to destroy their vehicles by setting them on fire. In a recent example, two brothers were hired to burn a car. They doused it with gasoline and, to make sure that it would be completely destroyed, decided to throw in a pipe bomb. The bomb exploded, setting one of the men on fire. Although he likely was killed instantly from the explosion, his brother, not realizing that, rushed to extinguish the flames and ended up catching on fire. He ran toward a nearby highway for help and flagged down a state trooper who had come to investigate the black cloud of smoke. The man told the trooper what he and his brother had done and then died from his injuries.

One creative policyholder submitted a claim for parts that he said had been stolen from his car. To support his claim, he provided what appeared to be phony invoices along with Polaroid photos. On closer inspection, investigators realized that the man had taken close-ups of a toy car that was the same color and make of his insured vehicle.

A passenger riding in a customer's car was injured in a crash and needed chiropractic treatment. Sometime before completing the prescribed series of doctor visits, the passenger died of unrelated, natural causes. The chiropractor continued to bill for treatment for a full month after the patient's death.

“People may laugh at some of these incidents, but what they need to realize is that people who commit fraud are taking money out of everyone else's pockets,” reiterated Albertini. “People need to be aware of fraud and be willing to report it when they suspect it.”

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