Fraud Crackdown Cited In Accident Decline
Wednesday, December 31st, 2003 FraudSince the crackdown on auto insurance fraud began in September, the number of reported accidents in Lawrence has dropped 35 percent compared to a year ago, prosecutors and Attorney General Thomas Reilly said yesterday. That could help consumers, because fraud costs the average policyholder $200 to $300 a year, an insurance industry representative said. Reilly was in Lawrence yesterday to praise public safety and insurance industry officials for the recent indictments of eight people who allegedly filed bogus personal injury claims for a November accident that police say never happened. Reilly said a Liberty Mutual fraud investigator, Sherry Smith, suspected the claims her company received for the accident were bogus. "Sherry contacted my office and further investigation prompted these eight indictments," Reilly said.
