 
NICB Says Fraudulent Claims Spiked 27 Percent
Since 2010
February 12, 2013
by Casey Neeley, cneeley@glass.com
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), funded by insurers,
has released its 2012 questionable claims (QC) referral reason analysis
for all insurance claim referrals made in 2012, showing an increase
of 26.7 percent in QCs from 2010 to 2012.
Auto glass fraud referrals saw the most dramatic decline over the
past two years, down 63 percent from 2010 to 2011, in addition to
decreasing another 12 percent from 2011 to 2012. Only 722 QCs were
filed for auto glass-related fraud this past year compared to 2,182
potentially fraudulent filings in 2010.
QC reports of inflated damage and hail damage, however, saw increases
of 19 percent from 2011 to 2012. Over the year, questionable property
claims increased an average of 39 percent. Inflated billing (19
percent), duplicate billing (15 percent) and billing for services
not rendered (4 percent) also grew from 2011 to 2012.
For vehicle claims most likely to receive a questionable referral,
hail damage topped the list with a 35 percent jump from 2011 to
2012. Hail damage referrals were number one on the list the past
year as well, with a 72 percent increase from 2010 to 2011. Referrals
resulting from auto body and auto repair shop work also grew 22
percent over the year, while referrals resulting from inflated repair
costs saw a 21 percent hike.
According to a release issued by the NICB, "Questionable claims
are those claims that NICB member insurance companies refer to NICB
for closer review and investigation based on one or more indicators
of possible fraud. A single claim may contain up to seven referral
reasons."
The 2012 number sets a new record; 2010 saw 91,797 QCs, 2011 was
reported at 100,450 while 2012 saw a total of 116,268 QCs.
"The report examines six referral reason categories of claims:
property, casualty, commercial, workers' compensation, vehicle and
miscellaneous referred in 2012, with those referred in 2010 and
2011," reads the NICB statement.
This story is an original story by AGRR™ magazine/glassBYTEs.com™. Subscribe to AGRR™ Magazine.
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