SGI’s top five Sask. insurance fraud cases in 2022

Article content

The annual list of SGI‘s top five foiled frauds is out, courtesy of the provincial insurer’s special investigation unit.

Article content

The unit was reportedly responsible for uncovering $5.8 million in false claims in 2022, according to a media release.

Article content

Anyone with information on insurance fraud is urged to contact SGI or Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers.

FOOTAGE FRUSTRATES $50K FRAUD

A man whose vehicle hit a parked car and a tree before coming to a stop on a lawn near his home claimed it had been stolen before the crash. Security footage found by SGI’s investigators showed a person matching the customer’s description walking away from the vehicle after the crash.

The driver confessed he shouldn’t have been behind the wheel “following a celebration,” and ended up facing a $50,000 bill for the damages.

ODOMETER ODDITY 

A woman claimed her truck’s engine failed after she drove through standing water. While the SGI release didn’t mention whether any water damage was found, it did note the vehicle’s odometer was found to have been tampered with, falsifying the mileage to the tune of 150,000 kilometres.

Article content

Article content

The customer withdrew her claim, saving SGI $7,000.

FIBBING ABOUT FOG

A claimant reported he was driving with his girlfriend on a foggy highway when he missed a turnoff and hit an abandoned vehicle. He claimed they panicked and went to a nearby house looking for help, rather than calling police.

Investigators discovered problems with the claimant’s story: there was no turnoff anywhere near the scene, and no evidence of fog at the time of the collision. The vehicle was also found to have been travelling at double the speed reported in the initial claim.

Witnesses claimed the couple were intoxicated at the time of the crash, and police found “concerning items” in their vehicle, including drug paraphernalia. The $40,000 claim was denied for misrepresentation.

Article content

DEER DECEPTION

A customer claimed she left her vehicle by the side of the road after hitting a deer, then returned to find it completely burned.

Investigators found a witness who said they saw two people take items out of the vehicle before it went up in flames. SGI also learned that the vehicle was not registered until about an hour after the crash, leading investigators to believe the vehicle was set on fire in an effort to secure a fraudulent payout.

SGI saved $5,000 by denying the claim.

SUV SCAM

A woman claimed she drove her SUV into a parked vehicle while asleep at the wheel. She admitted she’d been told a day earlier that her vehicle was to be repossessed.

Data retrieved after the crash showed the SUV went from a dead stop five seconds before the crash to 31 km/h at impact. The $63,000 claim was denied on the grounds it was made to avoid having the vehicle repossessed.