Auto Insurance
Back to Home > Friday, May 12, 2006 Business Posted on Fri, May. 12, 2006 email this print this
An investigation by county, state and federal officials of a Miami man selling bogus insurance led to the arrests this week of 25 dump truck drivers who had purchased fake insurance ID cards.
The truck drivers, identified by Department of Transportation officers when they were pulled over during the investigation in February and March, had purchased the fake insurance and then presented it to police as proof of insurance.
Both buying bogus auto insurance and presenting it as proof of insurance are third-degree felonies, each carrying a maximum of five years in prison.
In December, the Department of Financial Services' division of insurance fraud got a tip from the Miami-Dade Police Department that a Miami man, Robert Dominguez, was the source of fake insurance for many truckers, said Bill Santner, law enforcement lieutenant in the Department of Financial Services' fraud division in Miami.
Dominguez allegedly sold liability insurance policies, which truckers need to purchase, providing $1 million in coverage for just $300. Usually, such coverage costs between $8,000 and $10,000 a year.
Dominguez also may have sold thousands of fake insurance cards to motorists seeking proof of insurance to renew their car registrations. He also sold bogus homeowners policies, according to Miami-Dade police.
The danger for South Florida consumers is that if they're involved with an auto accident with a driver carrying bogus insurance, they're dealing with an uninsured driver, said Robert Brown, director of the Miami-Dade Police Department. ''The public should know there are uninsured drivers out there,'' he said.
''If you're buying insurance out of the back of a car, it's probably not legitimate insurance,'' added Priscilla Pardo from the state attorney's office.
He explained that as truckers were pulled over earlier this year as part of the Dominguez case and DFS began checks to verify their insurance, they also found many insurance cards issued by Rosa and Peter Bajdor. This couple had been arrested last July for insurance fraud charges.
The couple operated a Miami agency known as Insurance Express. They claimed to be selling insurance policies issued by Canal Insurance and Lincoln General Insurance, two companies that are licensed to sell insurance in Florida.
Santner said the Bajdors were known in the community as the source of bogus insurance. After their arrest, investigators believe Dominguez took their place ''as the go-to guy'' for fake insurance cards.
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An investigation by county, state and federal officials of a Miami man selling bogus insurance led to the arrests this week of 25 dump truck drivers who had purchased fake insurance ID cards.
The truck drivers, identified by Department of Transportation officers when they were pulled over during the investigation in February and March, had purchased the fake insurance and then presented it to police as proof of insurance.
Both buying bogus auto insurance and presenting it as proof of insurance are third-degree felonies, each carrying a maximum of five years in prison.
In December, the Department of Financial Services' division of insurance fraud got a tip from the Miami-Dade Police Department that a Miami man, Robert Dominguez, was the source of fake insurance for many truckers, said Bill Santner, law enforcement lieutenant in the Department of Financial Services' fraud division in Miami.
Dominguez allegedly sold liability insurance policies, which truckers need to purchase, providing $1 million in coverage for just $300. Usually, such coverage costs between $8,000 and $10,000 a year.
Dominguez also may have sold thousands of fake insurance cards to motorists seeking proof of insurance to renew their car registrations. He also sold bogus homeowners policies, according to Miami-Dade police.
The danger for South Florida consumers is that if they're involved with an auto accident with a driver carrying bogus insurance, they're dealing with an uninsured driver, said Robert Brown, director of the Miami-Dade Police Department. ''The public should know there are uninsured drivers out there,'' he said.
''If you're buying insurance out of the back of a car, it's probably not legitimate insurance,'' added Priscilla Pardo from the state attorney's office.
He explained that as truckers were pulled over earlier this year as part of the Dominguez case and DFS began checks to verify their insurance, they also found many insurance cards issued by Rosa and Peter Bajdor. This couple had been arrested last July for insurance fraud charges.
The couple operated a Miami agency known as Insurance Express. They claimed to be selling insurance policies issued by Canal Insurance and Lincoln General Insurance, two companies that are licensed to sell insurance in Florida.
Santner said the Bajdors were known in the community as the source of bogus insurance. After their arrest, investigators believe Dominguez took their place ''as the go-to guy'' for fake insurance cards.
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