On Friday in the New York State Supreme Court, Unitrin Safeguard Insurance Company filed a complaint against 25 entities, alleging insurance claim fraud following a collision.
Three of the defendants (collectively, “claimants”) allegedly were involved in a car crash on Sept. 2, 2019, that caused “very minor damage” to the claimants’ vehicle, a 2014 Honda insured by Unitrin, and the other vehicle involved, according to the police report. The police report also noted that the claimants “refused medical attention at the scene.” However, according to the complaint, the claimants later reported “serious bodily injuries” following the crash and filed No-Fault claims related to the incident.
The claimants then received treatment from the remaining 22 defendants, among other entities, all medical providers. These medical provider defendants submitted more than $90,000 in No-Fault claims, the complaint said.
According to the complaint, given the “sheer magnitude” of the claims, the indication by the police report that the claimants refused medical attention at the scene of the collision and did not report any injuries, and that “one or more of the Medical Provider Defendants have previously submitted questionable claims,” the plaintiff alleged a “strong possibility” that the claimants’ reported injuries were not related to the Sept. 9 collision or that they were not related to any incident that a No-Fault claim covers.
The plaintiff claimed it previously sought examination under oath (EUO) of the claimants in order to verify the legitimacy of their claims; however, the claimants failed to appear on two separate occasions, which is a condition for coverage under No-Fault claims, the complaint said. On the basis of the alleged violations of No-Fault regulations, the plaintiff denied the claimants’ claims, and it maintained its founded belief that the collision in question should not be covered under No-Fault claims.
The plaintiff declared it has no obligation to pay any of the claimants’ No-Fault claims related to the Sept. 2 collision and requested that the court stay any lawsuits related to the No-Fault claims brought by the defendants, along with other relief the court deems reasonable.
The plaintiff is represented by Goldberg, Miller & Rubin, P.C.
