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Cooperation among insurers is the key to fighting fraud: special investigator


October 1, 2010   by Canadian Underwriter


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Cooperation between insurers is the key to a successful automobile fraud investigation, according to Rick Muir, senior special investigator with Desjardins General Insurance Group, The Personal and Certas Direct Insurance Companies.
Right now, however, many insurers are going at it alone, worrying about implications of things such as the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), Muir told delegates at the Annual Toronto Fraud Forum on Sept. 29.
“Do like the police do, and combine forces,” he advised the insurance industry. “We’re fighting organized crime and we’re standing alone.
“Don’t be putting up barriers like PIPEDA in front of you. Do your job, nobody is going to touch you. Just know what you have in your hand.”
Preserving evidence is also key, he added. This requires early recognition of a potential issue.
“Get your hands on those cars as quickly as you can – they are your dead body,” Muir said, using an analogy drawn from his previous career in criminal investigations with the Ontario Provincial Province. “As a dead body decomposes, it is harder to put a case back together.”
The same goes for cars, the longer you wait to review the evidence, the more likely repairs will have been made to the vehicle.
Always assess the evidence in totality, he cautioned.
It is essential to compare the accident reconstruction report with the forensic component, and then compare each with the witness and claimant statements.
“It should match,” he said. “If it matches, they are telling you the truth. If it doesn’t, you’ve got yourself a fraud. Deny it [the claim].”


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