Insurance fraud is sadly a common crime, and has only increased in numbers in recent years. It can range between false or inflated theft, staged accidents, intentional damage, falsifying the date or circumstances to get coverage, and many more misleading instances. Overall it is the misuse or exploitation of an insurance policy or insurance application used for illegal financial gain. With the amount of technology available to us, online forms, electronic signatures, it makes it even easier for scammers to make false claims without ever being caught. Fortunately, many private investigators have been called upon to help sift through these fraudulent claims and to dig deeper into the lives of those who try to scam insurance companies.
The SIU (special investigations unit) digs deep into the lives, backgrounds and claims history of those thought to be falsely reporting claims. They’re pros at detecting unusual activity, and from there they pursue any and all leads that may prove their case. The process can be very extensive and they work in a variety of ways to collect evidence. Through this evidence, insurance companies can usually find the leverage they need to assume fraud, deny claims and take legal action.
One of the most important things when private SIU investigators are collecting any kind of evidence is to make sure it’s acquired legally. If they need their findings to be permissible in court, they must take the proper legal steps in obtaining it. After conducting an initial assessment, they check the scammer’s activities, things such as spending habits, where they live and work, or any recent changes to their lifestyle. These are all things that will help them see the bigger picture.
The best way to catch someone red handed is good old fashioned surveillance. Canvasing the neighborhood, home and workplace of someone thought to be committing insurance fraud can be all the evidence you’ll need. For example, someone who has claimed compensation for a broken leg, yet is leaving their house with no cast and a soccer ball in hand could be possible evidence of fraud. Talking to others in the community could also be helpful if you ask the right questions. Even if their neighbors don’t know them well, they live closely and see things, therefore they might have some useful information such as recent activity in the home, new purchases, or whether they’ve been taking more vacations than usual.
Social media is another goldmine of evidence, this is where they’re most likely to slip up. Many people assume making their profiles private will protect them from private investigators, but social media platforms generally have no qualms about handing over user information when they receive a subpoena for it. The investigators will then dig through their posts, incriminating posts they may be tagged in, comments, and more. Regardless of the means these private investigators use to collect their evidence, they all have a few things in common. They plan their investigations well, they conduct insightful interviews, they understand how their evidence will benefit the case and they report their finding.
