Jimmy Patronis announces arrests of 4 people in connection with a fake accident insurance scheme

Attempted insurance fraud — a crime that contributes to Florida’s position as the state with the third highest average auto insurance rates in the country – gave four men a free ride to Miami-Dade County Jail.

Bryan Carlos Hernandez, Elvis Fonseca Lauzao, Juan Fonseca Lauzao And Russia Rivero Tellezwere charged with various crimes on May 22, according to the Office of the Chief Financial Officer Jimmy PatronisThese crimes include grand theft, organized fraud, false insurance claims, and staging an accident for the purpose of insurance fraud.

The four exploited personal injury protection (PIP) benefits of their insurance policies, settlement Progressive Insurance And National General Insurance following a staged accident on May 12, 2023 in Miami-Dade County in which no injuries were reported, according to an investigation by the Criminal Investigations Division (CID) of the CFO, Miami Field Office.

“If you commit insurance fraud in Florida, it will be discovered and you will be held accountable,” Patronis said, according to a press release.PIP fraud not only undermineS the integrity of our insurance Markets but also imposeS an unreasonable financial burden on all Residents of Florida in the form of excessive insurance premiums.”

In fact, the average annual cost of full coverage insurance in Florida is $2,917, which is 44%, or about $900, higher than the national average of about $2,019 per year. Assurea nationwide insurance comparison platform.

According to Patronis’ office, each of the defendants in this case faces up to ten years in prison if convicted.

The investigation found that the men went to physical therapy clinics for injuries they never suffered. Progressive Insurance was then billed a total of over $28,000 by two clinics and paid out over $28,000. National General Insurance was billed over $59,000 and paid out over $24,000. Both insurance companies were billed for physical therapy that none of the four people were entitled to, a news release said.

“A big thank you to my dedicated insurance fraud investigators who tracked down these individuals and brought them to justice,” Patronis said, according to a prepared statement.

The bureau appears to have even more work to do. Insurify cites “severe weather events” and “concessional insurance fraud” as reasons for the high cost of auto insurance in Florida.

While the average cost of auto insurance nationwide is about 2.6% of the national median household income, the median household in Florida spends about 4.3% of its income on auto insurance, according to data. the latest report by Insurify.

Florida ranks behind New York (which has the most expensive auto insurance) and Nevada in the national rankings. When looking at middle-income households, the Sunshine State is tied with New York for the cheapest insurance rates.

Identical reform attempts (SB464 /HB653) submitted by Republican lawmakers, Sen. Erin Grall from Vero Beach and Rep. Daniel Alvarez from Hillsborough County, both died in committee.

There is hope that a cross-party measure (SB1002), the governor Ron DeSantis Signed in 2023, the law will help lower insurance premiums and simplify auto glass lawsuit processes.

———

Editor for Florida Politics Jesse Scheckner contributed to this report.

Post views: 0