New Jersey Body Shop Owner Sentenced for $52K Insurance Scam
A New Jersey body shop owner has pleaded guilty to defrauding more than a dozen insurers of nearly $52,000 by submitting fake invoices for repair parts. Prosecutors say Divyakant Patel, owner of J&R Body Masters in Perth Amboy, admitted to including fraudulent invoices in bills his body shop sent to insurers from November 2006 through
New Jersey Body Shop Owner Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Insurance Cos. with Phony Parts Bills
New Jersey Attorney General Paula T. Dow and Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor announced that a Middlesex County, N.J., body shop owner pleaded guilty to defrauding numerous insurance companies out of nearly $52,000. Divyakant Patel, 46, of Iselin, pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Frederick P. DeVesa in Middlesex County to charges of third-degree
13 Charged in Philadelphia Body Shop’s Insurance Fraud/Theft Scheme
An insurance fraud and theft ring operating out of a Philadelphia body shop was broken up recently by the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation Organized Crime Eastern Task Force Unit. Attorney General Tom Corbett said the investigation, which began in November 2008, focused on Phillip "Phil" Sessa, of Ventnor, N.J., the owner and
California DA Charges 53 Body Shop Employees with Insurance Fraud in Sting Operation
The Orange County, Calif., District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) has charged 53 defendants in Operation Straight Body following a five-month undercover sting by the OCDA Automobile Insurance Fraud Unit targeting auto body repair facilities engaging in insurance fraud. Between January and May 2010, the OCDA conducted 152 undercover operations throughout Orange County. The targets for this
STRANGE BUT TRUE: Body Shops’ Best Friend Turns Out to be Insurance Scammer
A steady number of car crashes means steady profit at the shop, right? By all rights, Mohammed Patel should have been UK body shops’ BFF (best friend forever) with the number of crashes he caused and provided to them between 2005-2008: 100 in all. Problem is, he was intentionally causing those crashes so his clients
New York DOI Fines Insurance Agents for Taking Kickbacks from Glass Shops
Forty-three insurance agents and brokers in New York have been fined a total of $42,650 for accepting kickbacks, or failing to supervise staff who accepted kickbacks, to steer customers to certain auto glass repair shops, Insurance Superintendent James Wrynn announced. The agents and brokers, who work at more than two dozen different insurance agencies in
California Shop Owner and Manager Arrested for Insurance Fraud
A body shop owner and a shop manager were arrested on charges of auto insurance fraud after allegedly over-billing for 20 repairs and costing Farmers Insurance $15,000, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced. Dong Suk Choi, 52, owner of Choice Auto Body in Santa Clara and Newark, and Santa Clara shop manager Timothy Zen Powell,
Shop Owner Sentenced to Prison in Insurance Fraud Suit
Farmers Insurance announced that in a plea agreement with the San Jose, Calif., District Attorney’s Office in a criminal prosecution on 17 counts of insurance fraud, Gia Van Tran, owner of Tommy’s Auto Body, San Jose, Calif., was sentenced to three years in prison for violation of Penal Code section 550(a)(1) (false statements in support
Shops Asked to Complete Insurance Labor Rate Survey
The Nebraska Autobody Association (NABA) is conducting a study to determine if insurance companies survey body shops to establish labor rates for body work and/or reimbursements for automotive glass work. The survey provides a list of insurance companies, and participants can check a box to indicate that the company has contacted the participant’s shop about
Oregon Shops Rank Best and Worst Insurance Companies
State Farm and several smaller Northwest-based auto insurers continue to be among the best at taking care of their customers after an accident. And some of the other larger, best-known insurers – including Progressive, Allstate, Safeco and Farmers Insurance – are among the worst. That was the finding of a new survey of Oregon body