The Maui News
Fake agents are illegally selling auto insurance ID cards on Maui, using the names of actual agents and legitimate businesses, First Insurance Company of Hawaii warned Wednesday.
The cards list FICOH as the carrier and Business Insurance Services as the insurance agency, according to a news release. Dozens of unsuspecting victims have called to file a claim or tried to complete their safety inspections only to find out they don’t actually have a policy with FICOH. When they discover they don’t have insurance, they are left to pay for damages out of their own pocket or face driving their car illegally.
Fake cards listing other insurance companies have also been reported.
Criminals who sell fake cards often pose as insurance agents; the fraudsters on Maui are using legitimate agents’ names and are pocketing the premiums paid by victims without securing or providing any coverage, the company said.
The company offered tips to protect against fraud, including:
• Taking note of where the agent asks the customer to go to make a payment. If it’s somewhere other than their office or the carrier’s website, that could be a sign of a scam.
• Asking for an electronic or paper copy of the insurance policy; failure to produce one could indicate the agent never secured the insurance.
• Looking at the printing on the insurance card. A fake card may have different shades of print on it, while authentic cards should have consistent ink coloring.
• Checking that the vehicle’s year, make, model and VIN match the same information on the car.
• Making sure the card contains the policy’s effective date and expiration, policy number, insurance company’s name and contact information and insurance agent’s name, which should be the same as the person the customer is purchasing the policy from. If any of this information is missing, it’s a red flag that the card may be fake.
Residents can verify their auto insurance by contacting the carrier or agent listed on the card or by contacting Hawaii’s Division of Motor Vehicles. They should also confirm that the car insurance company, the insurance agency and the insurance agent are licensed to do business in Hawaii by contacting the Hawaii Insurance Division.
Suspected fraudulent activity can also be reported to the National Insurance Crime Bureau at www.nicb.org/how-we-help/report-fraud.
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