BAKERSFIELD - A Bakersfield couple is accused of lying to their insurance company about who was driving their car when they were involved in an accident in order to receive money to cover the cost of the collision.
Following a California Department of Insurance investigation, Parneet Kaur, 34, and her husband Sarabjit Singh, 46, surrendered to authorities and were charged with multiple felony counts which allege the couple conspired to defraud their insurance company into paying for a collision that was not covered under their policy.
The accident, which happened in September 2016, damaged the other driver's vehicle and totaled the couple’s 2012 Toyota Camry.
In his initial statement, following the crash, Singh reported he was driving, but was not covered as a driver on the auto policy. He changed his statement and claimed his wife, Parneet ,was actually driving. As a result, Progressive Insurance paid more than $11,600 to the lienholder.
When the claim adjuster interviewed the other driver involved in the crash, that driver reported Singh was actually driving the car at the time of the crash. Suspecting possible fraud, Progressive referred the case to the Department of Insurance for investigation. Detectives uncovered evidence that the couple allegedly provided false statements to the insurance company to collect on the policy even though they did not have the coverage.
Sarabjit Singh surrendered to authorities at the Kern County Jail on Friday, October 7th.
Parneet Kaur surrendered to authorities at the Kern County Jail on Monday, October 9th.
