Insurance Fraud Lawyer Denver, Colorado

Like most other white-collar crimes, insurance fraud claims are often subject to lengthy investigations before a person is actually indicted on a charge or actually charged. Should you find yourself subject to any such investigation, it’s important you get in touch with an insurance fraud lawyer experienced in this practice area ASAP.

Contact the Law Office of Kevin Cahill for skilled representation and guidance. Call (720) 548-2990 today.

Insurance Fraud: All Types of Insurance

There is no single sector of the insurance market that is free from fraud or the potential for fraud. Additionally, companies who sell insurance, insurance consumers and those who benefit from insurance claims can potentially be under investigation for fraud or may have committed fraud.

It is important to understand that there are two common classifications of insurance fraud: one known as soft fraud and one known as hard fraud.

These classifications are further defined as:

• Soft fraud: When a consumer, homeowner or anyone who is eligible to place a claim inflates the amount of the actual claim. An example of this would be someone who places a claim against their rental insurance and inflates the value of property stolen. In these cases, the claimant has a legitimate claim, they simply inflate the amount of the loss.
• Hard fraud: This type of fraud involves placing an insurance claim when there has been no genuine loss or reason for filing a claim. For example, faking someone’s death, an injury or a robbery are examples of some of the actions that may be taken. On a larger scale, physicians who bill Medicaid or other health insurance companies for services that were never provided.

The Cost of Insurance Fraud

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on average, a consumer could be spending as much as $700 annually to cover the cost of fraudulent insurance activity.

This does not take into consideration any health-care related insurance fraud which was estimated to be $3 trillion in 2014.

Any charges of insurance fraud are pursued aggressively; while the investigation may be lengthy, officials will not stop investigating until they are certain they have the basis for filing charges of they have completely proven there was no wrongdoing.

Colorado Insurance Fraud Penalties for Convictions

Under the laws of Colorado, specifically C.R.S. 18-5-211, charges of insurance fraud will be considered a Class 5 felony. Under Colorado sentencing laws, a Class 5 felony is subject to up to five years in prison as well as fines of up to $100,000. Under federal laws, any conviction of a federal case of insurance fraud is subject to jail time of up to five years as well as associated fines.

Are You Under Investigation or Being Questioned by an Insurance Adjuster?

You may have been approached by an insurance investigator asking you questions about a medical insurance claim, a worker’s compensation claim or a homeowner’s insurance claim. Typically, this may not raise any “red flags” particularly if you believe you have done nothing improper. However, if this is the case, you may wish to consult with a Denver insurance fraud lawyer right away before you answer too many questions.

The adjuster may be conducting an investigation with the sole intent of eventually filing insurance fraud charges against you. The sooner you contact an insurance fraud lawyer, the sooner they can find out what the problems are and help address them. Oftentimes, an attorney can help stop an investigation or ensure there is no indictment.

Call Our Insurance Fraud Attorneys Today – Free Consultations

Sometimes when a person finds out they are being investigated for a “white collar” crime, they believe since they have done nothing wrong, they do not need legal help. However, it is important to remember you have certain rights while under investigation and typically, since you are uncertain of those rights, you could be providing information that is unnecessarily incriminating yourself. Contact the Denver insurance fraud lawyer at The Law Offices of Kevin Cahill today!