This sound awfully familiar. Didn’t the ‘new roof’ scam in Florida drive home insurance rates, well, through the roof?
Now Florida is back with a new car windshield scam that is sure to lead to skyrocketing auto insurance rates, if your policy isn’t cancelled first.
FL may not have an individual income tax, but there sure is an ignorant tax they’re paying.
From the WP story:
Insurance companies call them “harvesters,” and their sales pitch to car owners is simple: Auto glass shops can offer free windshield replacements because it’s covered by comprehensive insurance. All they need is a signature.
But after the signature is collected and the repair is made, the glass shops send exorbitant bills to insurers, who often deny or pay out a lesser amount for the claim. Lawyers then sue the insurance company for payment and the cost of legal fees, often settling hundreds of lawsuits at a time for a hefty sum.
I mentioned this in a prior thread on the inefficiency of insurance. Roofers are doing the same thing with wind / hail damage. Laziness on the part of insurance companies and misplaced trust in having appraisal / adjustment processes automated virtually guarantees wholesale fraud.
When I had my roof replaced, the contractor did the exact same thing. My insurance adjuster and contractor BOTH visited my house at the same time to confirm the work and an estimate. I received a “final” estimate, accepted it and the insurance company accepted it. They did the work. Then a MONTH later, I saw updated paperwork electronically from the insurance company reflecting higher amounts they paid for
I called the insurer and said why did you approve these upcharges? The net cost of the job jumped from about $18,000 to $26,000. You were BOTH onsite at the same time. They knew the pitch of the roof, they knew it was a walkout lot. You used satelite photos to confirm the square footage to lock down the number of squares of shingles. If they underbid with all of that digital data and real-time pricing of the shingles I selected, that’s too bad, why should you and I pay more?
The adjuster just said that’s the way we do things. It’s more efficient that way. More efficient for fraud, maybe.
WTH