SAN DIEGO- One thing California Department of Insurance detectives don't take kindly to is when uninsured drivers purchase insurance policies immediately following a car accident they have been involved in and then file a claim for repairs.
That's what detectives busted Tamickeua Jones, 30, of San Diego for. She was was arrested February 3, 2015 on three felony counts of insurance fraud for filing a fraudulent auto claim. Jones was allegedly involved in a collision while driving uninsured. According to detectives, Jones purchased insurance after the accident and then filed a claim.
“This case and the 200 arrests in November should serve as a warning to consumers to not drive without insurance," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. “These are not victimless crimes. Every consumer pays for fraud through higher insurance rates, when insurers pass the losses along to policyholders.”
In December 2014, Tamickeua Jones crashed into another vehicle while driving without insurance. According to the Department of Insurance, a few hours after the accident, she purchased a new insurance policy and within minutes of purchasing the policy, reported to the insurance company that she had been involved in an accident. Jones is accused of filing a fraudulent claim in an attempt to get the insurer to cover the damage to her vehicle.
"There's no question there are a lot of unscrupulous people who attempt to get away with this," said California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) President Alan Barcelona. "They skip out on insurance until they need it. It doesn't work that way. And California Department of Insurance detectives will catch up with them. Their sweep last year in which they arrested 200, 35 in San Diego is evidence of that."
The "crash then buy" insurance fraud scheme is the most common type of auto insurance fraud in California. The loss from fraud in Tamickeua Jone's case totaled $3,500.
