New Study Finds Lower Acceptance of Insurance Fraud

Findings from an online Insurance Research Council (IRC) public opinion study reveal 24 percent of Americans believe it is acceptable to increase an insurance claim by a small amount to make up for deductibles they are required to pay, lower than the 33 percent found in a 2002 telephone survey. Eighteen percent believe it is acceptable to increase a claim to make up for premiums paid in previous years when they had no claims, the lowest percentage since the question was first asked in a 1981 in-home survey.

Younger respondents, especially young men, were more likely to view claim padding as acceptable. Among males age 18 to 34, 23 percent agree it is OK to increase claim amounts to make up for premiums, compared with just 5 percent of their older male counterparts and just 8 percent of females aged 18 to 34.

The IRC study also found that 86 percent of Americans agree with the statement “insurance fraud leads to higher rates for everyone,” while 10 percent agree that “insurance fraud doesn’t hurt anyone.”