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Insurance fraud is more widespread, and more
costly, than many people think. Consider these statistics:
- Fraud cost the insurance industry an
estimated $96.2 billion in 1999. (Conning & Co.)
- Conning & Co. also estimated in 2001
that insurance fraud costs the average American household more than $5,000 a
year in the form of higher premiums and higher prices for goods and services.
- Insurance fraud is the second most
costly white-collar crime, after tax evasion, costing Americans about $30
billion each year. (National Insurance Crime Bureau)
- More than one-third of people hurt in
auto accidents exaggerate their injuries. This adds $13-$18 billion to
America's annual insurance bill. (Rand Institute for Civil Justice)
- Fraudulent property/casualty insurance claims cost insurers about $30
billion annually. (Insurance Information Institute)
- Healthcare fraud alone costs Americans $54 billion a year. (Coalition
Against Insurance Fraud)
- Workers' compensation fraud costs the insurance industry $5 billion each
year. (National Insurance Crime Bureau)
- In a 2001 study sponsored by the IFPA, 58 percent of Pennsylvanians
surveyed said they would find some form of insurance fraud strongly
appropriate under certain circumstances. That translates to 5.4 million
Pennsylvanians who admit they might commit a fraud. (Polk-Lepson Research
Group)
The Pennsylvania
Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority (IFPA) public awareness campaign has fought
fraud by educating consumers. According to independent research,* the campaign
has changed Pennsylvanians’ attitudes about:
- Workers’
compensation fraud:
In 1997, 25.3 percent of Pennsylvanians said they would be willing to receive
bogus workers’ comp payments. By 1999, that number had dropped to 15.9
percent.*
- Auto insurance
fraud:
The number of Pennsylvanians willing to inflate an auto accident claim fell
dramatically, from 12.5 percent in 1997 to just 5.5 percent in 1999.*
- Medical
insurance fraud:
In 1999, nearly 80 percent of Pennsylvanians said they review their medical
bills for accuracy. In 1997, that number was just 70.5 percent.*
(Through June 2002)*
Source: Polk-Lepson Research Group
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