As Orlando car accident lawyers we have written on the impending demise of our Florida No-Fault law. On October 1, 2007, the law will expire unless the legislature renews it in its September Special Session. At present, that seems unlikely-especially in light of the controversy over extending the no-fault or Personal Injury Protection (PIP).
That controversy involves allegations by car insurance companies of rampant fraud. Recently, a number of arrests in Miami have highlighted the allegations that Florida’s No-Fault law is too vulnerable to fraud and should not be renewed. Specifically, state regulators in Miami announced 11 insurance fraud arrests including a mother-son team that set up an auto-body shop to handle more than 70 fake accident claims in the past four years.
In detailing the arrests, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink said that fraud related to the state’s no-fault law has contributed to at least half of the workload in the Division of Insurance Fraud’s Miami office. Among the arrests, two are accused of participating in a staged auto crash that resulted in more than $11,000 of fraudulent PIP claims through a Hialeah clinic, Havana Treatment Center. Also, the owner of Gables Medical Center in Miami, and a clinic therapist, were arrested on charges of billing more than $8,000 for treatments to two participants in a staged accident.
But CFO Sink acknowledged that auto accident-related insurance fraud won’t disappear if PIP is eliminated. As with any system there will be some degree of fraud and misdealing However, the alternative to a No-Fault system will likely mean more citizens will be required to hire a lawyer to file legal claims on their behalf. For now, we will have to see if the legislature acts before October 1st.
