N.Y. Fraud Bureau Touts Record Year

New York saw more than 750 insurance fraud-related arrests in 2005 as a result of stepped-up law enforcement alliances with federal, state and local officials, according to the state’s insurance fraud report.

New York Superintendent of Insurance Howard Mills released the New York State Insurance Department’s 2005 Frauds Bureau Annual Report, a document that includes reports on anti-fraud efforts that led last year to unprecedented auto insurance premium rate reductions statewide.

The report includes what the fraud burea sees as its major accomplishments during 2005, such as a major investigation into so-called staged accidents in New York City and the Buffalo area that resulted in 42 arrests.

It also cites the closing of a major Westchester County medical facility, which allegedly operated for the sole purpose of abusing the state’s no-fault auto insurance system, following a joint three-year investigation that led to 28 arrests.

The report includes a month-by-month summary of the frauds bureau’s major cases, key statistical data and its 2006 legislative recommendations.

The report is available online through the Insurance Department’s Web site, www.ins.state.ny.us, and can be accessed by clicking the ‘Publications’ icon.