Quiggle Work Out

Eight Extreme Cases of Insurance Fraud

What do a rodent in a bowl of soup, a tricked-out street racer at the bottom of a lake, a foreclosure mysteriously set ablaze and a woman who died twice have in common?

They're all part of the outrageous world of insurance scams, in which cash-strapped policyholders, phony or unscrupulous insurance agents, desperate business owners and sundry con artists conspire to defraud insurers by filing inflated or outright bogus claims.

A victimless crime? Hardly.

"The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud conservatively estimates that insurance fraud costs $80 billion a year in stolen claims, not including the social costs," says James Quiggle, spokesman for the nonprofit coalition of insurers and consumer groups. "When you start adding in the lost productivity of businesses, the lost life savings of individuals and the cost to investigate and prosecute, the total figure is likely much higher."

From suspicious tainted-food claims to phony slip-and-falls, faked deaths to real murder, here are eight of the most desperate and devious insurance frauds from the coalition's Insurance Fraud Hall of Shame.

Behold the havoc wrought by insurance fraud on lives, property -- and ultimately your premiums.

Burning Down the House -- For Profit

High living had left Chicago grain futures executive Marc Thompson deeply in debt. In desperation, he torched his home for the $730,000 in insurance money. To make it appear a suicide, he led his 90-year-old mother Carmen downstairs, doused the basement with accelerant and tossed the match. Now Thompson's own future is secure -- for 190 years in federal prison.

Who would burn down their own home, not to mention their own mother, for the money? People caught unprepared for the worst recession in 80 years, that's who.

"People in small but increasing numbers were burning down their homes," says Quiggle. "Often the houses went up in smoke and flames just before the homes were to be foreclosed. People were upside-down on their mortgages, they felt cornered financially, and in acts of desperation, they burned down their own homes."

Lost property claims also surged as the economy tanked.

"People would report their stereo stolen; maybe it was worth $3,000 but they claimed it was worth $8,000. Diamond wedding and engagement rings started seriously getting lost. That kind of crime that could net you a few thousand dollars became more prevalent than ever," Quiggle says.

The Artists Behind Amazing Album Artwork | Katanaville

Of the things that have fallen into my sphere of observation, the things that I remember tended to have made some sort of lasting impression. These are the top four album covers that reside in my memory as being beautiful or compelling or interesting illustrations. Limited somewhat by what music I’ve even heard, nevermind seen the album artwork for, there is a Katana-colored bias in this list- but hey, we are the album title: “Follow the Leader.” The familiar symbols of childhood are laid out to draw the eye up the hopscotch squares leading to the little girl in the red dress, about to fall into the orange space where the album title is written- a masterpiece of a composition. The secondary children characters are done in the sepia tones of the ramp, so as to make the red dress a more compelling focal point. The boy in the baseball cap turns your eye past him, and then back up the hopscotch squares. This artwork is a beautiful doorway into the experience of the album where the conversation started visually will be continued musically, a continuity I find exceptionally satisfying.