As professional investigators, we provide each of our clients with only the best combination of skill sets. Very proudly, we can boast that our investigators are long-time leaders in the areas of digital forensics including both forensic computer analysis and mobile phone forensics. In fact, our lab is one of only a few private, full-service forensics labs in the nation.
But along with our dedication to mastering all of the newest technology, we also pay close attention to social issues and criminal activities which, unfortunately, continue to thrive. One of the fastest growing schemes is fraudulent claims filed for workers compensation benefits.
In fact, in the most recent studies of this form of fraud, more than 45,000 active cases were active, involving employees pretending that they were seriously injured on the job. Of that number, more than 5,000 arrests were made, resulting in more than 4,000 cases being successfully prosecuted.
Phantom symptoms is the primary reason why some criminals so sneakily avoid being prosecuted. When people complain of sore backs and whiplash, those particular symptoms are nearly impossible for medical professionals to debunk. But if you happen to be a distraught employer with a suspicion that your employee is using your workers comp insurance as a cash cow, don’t assume you have no ammunition to protect yourself and the financial future of your business.
In countless cases, has tracked down evidence to prove that some employees appear to be severely injured only when they are in public. We stay on the cutting edge of investigative strategies including the use of social media and sites such as YouTube and Flickr to identify persons abusing the system. Of course, we continue to conduct physical covert surveillance as well.
During our research, it is not unusual for our investigators to detect photos of suspects in the midst of their own game. For example, one employee tells his employer and the insurance carrier that he must now wear a neck brace at all times and walk with a cane because of injuries suffered at a job site. But over the course of two weeks investigators secured photographs and video proof that actually, the suspect is miraculously capable of playing basketball with his buddies. Every bit of the evidence collected was handled within strict protocol so that it might be used in a court of law.
Once evidence is delivered to insurance companies that proves insurance fraud, it is up to them whether they file charges or not. A workers compensation fraud investigation is usually over for us when we provide the final report so we don’t always know what happens in the end. But the statistics are clear, workers compensation fraud is costly and doesn’t seem to be tapering off. We just keep doing our best to stop workers comp fraud when we find it.
We work with both insurance carriers and business owners, so if you are in this position, contact and fight back.
-Brenda McGinley, CEO, All in Investigations, All in Investigations
