Contractor Charged with Inflating Insurance Claim

An Upstate New York contractor has been charged with inflating an insurance claim for damage from a faulty plumbing fixture, according to New York State Insurance Department.

Investigators say the contractor, Joseph Watson, filed a $7,800 claim with Chartis Insurance Co. after he installed a faucet that proved to be defective and caused water damage to a house he was working on. He later admitted to investigators that the actual damages amounted to just $1,000. Chartis insures the manufacturer of the faucet.

Watson was charged with third degree insurance fraud.