What is Insurance Fraud?
Insurance fraud is any act knowingly committed by a person with the intent to obtain a benefit by deceiving an insurer. Applicants for insurance, policyholders, claimants or professionals who provide services to claimants may commit these acts. Insurance fraud costs can be the result of "padding" or inflating actual claims, or other common scams including, but certainly not limited to: misrepresenting facts on an insurance application, submitting claims for injuries or damage that never occurred; or staging accidents.

Crimes range from individual attempts at "making a few extra bucks" to fully orchestrated fraud schemes involving dozens, sometimes even hundreds of people. Regardless of who they are, these criminals are simply motivated by money.

Fraud Raises Insurance Premiums
Many people think of insurance fraud as a victimless crime. The truth of the matter is, it isn't. While insurance fraud has become a major financial problem for insurance companies, the real victims are you and other honest consumers who must pay higher insurance rates as a result of fraudulent activity. According to Coalition Against Insurance Fraud estimates, insurance fraud costs Americans $80 billion a year, or roughly $1,000 in additional premium for each household.

What To Do If You Suspect Insurance Fraud
Insurance fraud is a crime, and it happens every day, in every state across the country. In fact, insurance fraud is the second most costly white-collar crime in the United States behind tax evasion. While the nation's improved fraud-fighting efforts are making an impact, we need your help in the fight against this serious crime.

If you notice an unexplained discrepancy, or if you hear of or suspect an act of insurance fraud, there are actions you can take, including:

•	Call Lancer's Special Investigation Unit Fraud Hotline at: 1-800-533-8552 or, email us at stopfraud@lancer-ins.com.
•	Contact the National Crime Insurance Bureau (NICB) hotline at: 1-800-TEL-NICB to report any incidents of suspected insurance fraud. The NICB will work with the insurance company being defrauded to investigate the case.
•	Contact the insurer. Many insurers (including Lancer) now have internal Special Investigation Units (SIUs) to investigate potentially fraudulent insurance claims against them. Many of these companies also provide hotlines that allow callers to report insurance fraud anonymously.
•	Report fraud to your state authority. Most states have insurance fraud units dedicated to investigating and prosecuting insurance fraud. Contact your state's insurance fraud unit if you suspect that fraud has been committed.