IBC: Exaggerated insurance claims classified as fraud
With a little more than a week before Fraud Prevention Month comes to a close, the Insurance Bureau of Canada hopes Canadians enter the month of April knowing a little more about insurance fraud than they did in February.
As such, the IBC is reminding motorists that auto insurance fraud can take many forms.
Auto insurance fraud doesn't have to be a staged accident in order to be called fraud. Stretching the truth on a claim also qualifies. For instance, according to the IBC, someone is committing auto insurance fraud when they knowingly lie on an insurance application, say certain injuries resulted from an accident when they didn't or claim a damaged part resulted from the latest accident when another incident caused it.
"Most people know it's a crime to steal a car," said Rick Dubin, vice president for the IBC's Investigative Services. "But overuse and abuse of the system takes many forms and this costs all policyholders in the form of increased premiums."
At IBC's website, consumers can watch a minute-long video which shows how a minor accident can lead to a fraudster collecting tens of thousands of dollars when claims are exaggerated.