Junel Basile recruited people to engage in staged car accidents. Then, he meticulously organized the accidents when he was not driving for Metro Chiropractic & Health Center. At the same time, Sergei Kusyakov paid Florida Hospital employees to steal individual data. Then, Kusyakov used the data to solicit legitimate vehicle accident victims for business. This scam is a small example of how insurance fraud affects Florida insurance rates.
How Much Does Insurance Fraud Affect Florida Insurance Rates?
Specialists say the instances are small samples of fraud that cost Americans millions every year. If we were going to do a TV series on personal-injury-protection scams, this would be a great storyline. Fraud is the second-most-costly white-collar crime in the United States. However, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, it is only trailing tax evasion.
In Florida, authorities have noted a significant rise in staged accidents. According to Florida Insurance Quotes, this rise has caused an increase in insurance rates. Under Florida’s Personal Injury Protection or PIP, Florida requires drivers to have coverage of $10,000 per person for medical expenses. Regulators assume healthcare clinics that run staged accident schemes will never exhaust the $10,000 PIP limit. As a result, Florida lawmakers created sweeping changes to the PIP system. However, a judge found the new legislation unconstitutional last March. The government is appealing the ruling.