Insurance rip-off totals nearly $100,000 The California Department of Insurance Fraud Division today announced the arrest of three-of-six individuals suspected of running a glass harvesting ring—filing more than 1,000 false insurance claims... Read More

Drivers should be alert for staged auto collisions that target innocent drivers. Last year 59.5 percent of all insurance fraud referrals received by the California Department of Insurance were for suspected automobile insurance fraud. In Los Angeles County... Read More

The California Department of Insurance arrested Graciela Elena Paredes, aka, Graciela Elena Gaxiola, 36, of Corona, on October 17, 2013. Paredes was arrested on one felony count of insurance fraud for adding herself to a client’s auto insurance... Read More

We are pleased to inform you that our firm has obtained a very favorable and significant decision for no-fault insurers on an important issue of first impression. Specifically, on January 7, 2013, in the case of Allstate Ins. Co. v. Elzanaty , the United... Read More

By John A. Bennett, Stuart D. Jones, Matthew E. Hedberg, Andrew E. Passmore, Attorneys, Bullivant Houser Bailey PC Following a two-month trial, Safeco Insurance Company of Oregon was awarded $9.977 million on its counterclaim for insurance fraud against... Read More

Rodger Edward Winkler, a property and casualty insurance agent, has been arrested and charged with numerous felonies including two counts of felony grand theft, three counts of felony insurance fraud, and one count of petty theft, for allegedly collecting... Read More

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has announced that former life insurance agent, Myles Seishin Hanashiro, 47, was arrested and booked at Los Angeles County Jail on four felony counts of financial elder abuse. Acting as a licensed life insurance... Read More

A joint investigation with the Contra Costa District Attorney’s office led Department of Insurance investigators to the arrest of five individuals for allegedly running an insurance fraud ring throughout northern California and northern Nevada.... Read More

By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant Insurers Must Never Pay a Fraud When I was a young adjuster the motto of the insurance industry was "Millions for Defense and not a Dime for Tribute." Fraud was known but not a large problem. Police... Read More

Leroy Barnes of Los Angeles, known as one of the dancing hamsters in Kia commercials, was arrested on insurance fraud charges related to his alleged fraudulent collection of state disability insurance benefits. Barnes is suspected of deceiving his doctors... Read More

Keith Hooks, a former City of Tracy police officer, has pled guilty to felony insurance fraud after falsifying a claim for the loss of three Mickey Mantle collector baseball cards. The California Department of Insurance initiated an investigation in May... Read More

Convicted felon uses stolen identity to secure credit card and submit bogus insurance applications Eugene Shy-Ren Hsu, a former insurance broker-agent, was arrested by California Department of Insurance officers and charged with multiple felony... Read More

By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant In this, the ninth issue of the 16th year of publication Zalma's Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL), ZIFL reports on: 1. Barry Zalma reports on an interesting appellate decision that convicted a person for failing... Read More

Walter Marion Williams pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1341 , and was sentenced to a term of 108 months' imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Williams appealed from his sentence... Read More

By Barry Zalma, Attorney and Consultant Contract between Agent and Insurer The relationship between insurance agents and brokers with insurers is based upon the contract between the insurer and the agent or broker. When the agent or broker breaches... Read More