Showing posts with label fake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fake. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Fake Health Insurance Scams
Jewelry maker Beth Wicker suffered from stroke last April. She still in the hospital to get recovered from stroke and told her health insurance policy which was supposed to be paying her bills was fake.
Wicker reported to CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews:"That this is scam. The insurance I thought I had doesn't exist." The call to Wicker's cell phone came from Scott Richardson, the top insurance regulator in South Carolina. He said, we wanted them to know they were in a bad deal.
To protect from insurance scam:
One of the largest scams involved an official group called, the American Trade Association which was never licensed to sell insurance. Sometimes customers like Wicker would receive policies from real companies whose names were being used without consent.
In the meantime, David Vladeck at the Federal Trade Commission has cracked down on various scams, where an estimated 100,000 families lost nearly $100 million.
FTC says 3 companies such as Health Care One of Arizona, United Benefits of Tennessee and Consumer Health Benefits in Florida promised their customers major medical insurance. But they gave them medical discount cards.
Investigators says the scammers are targeted middle aged Americans who lost their jobs and their company sponsored health insurance during the recession, not able to pay for insurance on their own and then go on the Internet looking for something different. The basic scam was selling insurance. CBS News agreed to withhold his name, but he worked briefly for a scam operation, before blowing the whistle.
Beth Wicker still owes medical bills of around $17,000 and doesn't have insurance. She often wonders why the scammers aren't in jail. She said "I don't know why somebody can't track them down and shut them down instead of letting them just repeatedly do this over and over.
No investigation so far led to an arrest and the scammers are still out there. So what can consumers do? There are two key things to know. First, don't give in to any sales pitch that pressures you to act now. That's a red flag. Second, health care products like limited liability, mini med, insurance and medical discount cards can be lawful, but they need a license and that can be verified by checking with your state insurance department.
To protect from insurance scam:
One of the largest scams involved an official group called, the American Trade Association which was never licensed to sell insurance. Sometimes customers like Wicker would receive policies from real companies whose names were being used without consent.
In the meantime, David Vladeck at the Federal Trade Commission has cracked down on various scams, where an estimated 100,000 families lost nearly $100 million.
FTC says 3 companies such as Health Care One of Arizona, United Benefits of Tennessee and Consumer Health Benefits in Florida promised their customers major medical insurance. But they gave them medical discount cards.
Investigators says the scammers are targeted middle aged Americans who lost their jobs and their company sponsored health insurance during the recession, not able to pay for insurance on their own and then go on the Internet looking for something different. The basic scam was selling insurance. CBS News agreed to withhold his name, but he worked briefly for a scam operation, before blowing the whistle.
Beth Wicker still owes medical bills of around $17,000 and doesn't have insurance. She often wonders why the scammers aren't in jail. She said "I don't know why somebody can't track them down and shut them down instead of letting them just repeatedly do this over and over.
No investigation so far led to an arrest and the scammers are still out there. So what can consumers do? There are two key things to know. First, don't give in to any sales pitch that pressures you to act now. That's a red flag. Second, health care products like limited liability, mini med, insurance and medical discount cards can be lawful, but they need a license and that can be verified by checking with your state insurance department.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Husband says wife scammed cancer for free wedding dress
NEW YORK report: Jessica Vega (23-year-old) , of Yonkers, got a $1,200 wedding dress for free, but now there are reports that she scammed cancer to get a discounted wedding.
After claiming Jessica had leukemia and less than a year to live, she was the recipient of sympathy and good will from members of her community. Jessica Vega said that she wanted to marry her fiancée and be with the couple’s baby daughter before she passed away. Generous strangers in Middletown donated the wedding rings and wedding flowers and also the wedding dress.
Over the weekend, Vega’s husband Michael O’Connell said the entire story was based on a lie. He told the Times Herald-Record that he believes his wife never had a terminal illness citing a letter from Dr. Dan Costin stating her diagnosis was scam.
Moreover, the paper reported that when O’Connell called Costin’s Westchester office, he stated that Vega was never a patient here. Bella Couture Dress Bridal Shop provided the Mona Lisa Royale dress.
Shop owner Gina Verdes told WCBS 880’s Catherine Cioffi: You can’t help but to feel betrayed and you know scammed by somebody who would say that they are dying from a terminal illness. However, Verdes said she wouldn’t feel twice about helping someone in the future. You can’t be soured by it. We still did the right thing and we gave to someone in need and that’s what you do as good people and good business you give to other people in need. Michael O’Connell has filed for divorce and is looking for full custody of the couple’s now 1 year old daughter.
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