A Response To The Executive Director Of The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud

Jay,

Maybe yours  and Barry Zalma‘s comments regarding the amount of fraud are correct. However, you provide no objective and reliable data to support your comments. Without that information, your unsupported statistics are little more than fear and suspicion-mongering, which governments and corporations use all the time to influence their citizens and customers. For example, in  the 1940’s and 1950’s our government leaders used crazy and unsubstantiated statistics regarding the number of communists amongst our friends and families to justify harassment and censorship. More recently, our governmental leaders used unsubstantiated information regarding weapons of mass destruction to start a war.

My bottom line suggestion: Prove your statistics. Prove what you say. If it is not possible to prove the entire amount of fraud, be as accurate as you can, and don’t inflate statistics to vilify your customers.

I am simply asking that members of the insurance fraud industry, like you, prove these allegations and make the proof transparent, or apologize to your fellow citizens and neighbors. You have called a substantial number of them crooks.

Have any leaders in the insurance fraud industry considered that by implying that a "substantial minority" of your family members and neighbors are crooks, you are "fear mongerring" or being used as propagandists for the insurance industry?

On Thursday, in an open courtroom in Columbus, Indiana, I read an Allstate publication that states Allstate employees have an obligation to the "insuring public" to be honest, and to conduct "all their dealings with the highest degree of integrity." Can you imagine how an Allstate advertisement would appear on television if it honestly claimed, as it is required to do, and based the ad upon statistics you suggest? The narrative would have to go like this:

"We know that a substantial minority of you tolerate and participate in insurance fraud. When you have a claim, we are going to have trained fraud adjusters look at your claim. That is Allstate’s stand."

The accuracy of the data you cite is important because it makes a huge difference if 3% versus 30% of your friends and neighbors are engaged in insurance fraud. I agree that wrong is wrong, no matter how slight. So even if there is a 3% loss to the insurance industry as a result of fraud, that is a serious problem. Still, citing figures that are not accurate for whatever reason is wrong because it is not honest. We need trained people to help prevent insurance companies from getting ripped off by fraudulent policyholders. It is important that there is an awareness of the penalties. We need the public to support police and criminal justice efforts to investigate and prosecute insurance fraud. Many of your efforts, and those of individuals like Barry Zalma, should be applauded.

What we do not need is organizations, like the Insurance Information Institute acting on behalf of the insurance industry, starting a massive war on insurance fraud against all the customers of its clients, unless a massive war is needed. Insurance propaganda organizations, insurance fraud leaders, and those who make  a living in the insurance fraud industry should stop publicly "guessing" at statistics.

Advocating a witch hunt against policyholders during a claim is very profitable for insurance companies and those who make money with fraud investigation. Implications and unsupported innuendo that a significant number of policyholders are crooks should simply stop. These customers of the insurance product have made insurance companies significant profits and into some of the largest financial institutions in America. Policyholders with losses and claims do not deserve general slander of reputation and an atmosphere of suspicion.