A CDI and Ventura County District Attorney’s Office investigation

“Auto insurance fraud costs all of us money in higher premiums.  We appreciate the efforts of CDI investigators and detectives as well as local district attorneys’ offices for investigating and prosecuting these types of cases.”

– CSLEA President Alan Barcelona

VENTURA– On May 2, 2024, Eric Ramirez, 33, of Oxnard, pled guilty to one felony count of automobile insurance fraud. In August 2022, Ramirez was uninsured when he was involved in a traffic collision. After the collision Ramirez obtained automobile insurance from Progressive Insurance Company. Approximately 11 days after he purchased the coverage, Ramirez filed a claim for damages with Progressive falsely claiming that the collision occurred on a date after he had obtained insurance.  An investigation by the California Department of Insurance and Progressive Insurance Company revealed that Ramirez lied about the date of the collision to obtain insurance benefits from Progressive.

Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced on June 5, 2024. Automobile insurance fraud is punishable by up to five years in county jail and a fine up to $50,000, or double the amount of fraud, whichever is greater.