"Suspicious" insurance claims rise 34 percent in Florida

Claims insurers suspected were fraudulent grew 34 percent since 2008, according to a report released today by the National Insurance Crime Bureau. There were 8,724 suspicious claims in 2010, up from 7,447 in 2009 and 6,508 in 2008. About 87 percent of the flagged claims were for personal automobile insurance and insurers’ top reasons included faked or exaggerated injuries, staged accidents and excessive treatment.