GA Chapter, International Association of Special Investigation Units Holds Insurance Fraud Training

March 21, 2010 - PRLog -- ATLANTA, GA  – More than 100 insurance fraud investigators and law enforcement personnel gathered at the Cobb Galleria Centre for the Georgia Chapter, International Association of Special Investigation Units’ (GA IASIU) - http://gaiasiu.org - insurance fraud seminar and annual meeting on March 18th. The seminar afforded both public and private investigators the opportunity to meet their annual training goals while exchanging ideas and tactics with fellow investigators.

“This is the second year that the training has been approved by the Georgia Police Officer Standards and Training and the Department of Insurance for continuing education credits,” said Walter Swett, Nationwide Insurance Special Investigation Unit and the outgoing GA IASIU President.  

During the morning training session, presentations were given by Frank Sztuk, Board Member of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud (CAIF) - http://insurancefraud.org - and Michelle Bergeron of Esurance. Sztuk’s presentation covered the role of the CAIF, and he highlighted current fraud trends. Bergeron outlined procedures for collecting and analyzing information and the ways to apply it to insurance fraud investigations.  The afternoon seminars included presentations on healthcare fraud trends, given by Dr. Howard Levinson, Wellpoint, Inc. and the identification and investigation of insurance fraud during catastrophic events by Scott Goss, GEICO and David Moss, Liberty Mutual Insurance. Following the seminar, investigators had the opportunity to sit for the Certified Insurance Fraud Investigator examination. Throughout the day attendees were also introduced to a variety of services and products, which could be used to enhance their fraud investigations.

“The CAIF estimates insurance fraud crimes cost Americans $80 billion each year,” said Swett. “Training like this is one of the main ways of increasing the awareness of the problem and helping develop the skills needed to combat it.  Insurance fraud in Georgia is a felony, and it is a crime that everyone pays for through higher premiums.”

During the annual meeting portion of the day, three individuals were honored for their outstanding work in fraud investigation.  David Renaud, a Special Agent with the National Insurance Crime Bureau, - http://nicb.org - received the Life Membership Award for his 16 years of service to the Georgia chapter. Special Agent Michelle Duchemin, Enforcement Division – Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner’s Office, was honored as the GA IASIU Law Enforcement Officer of the Year for her role in identifying and breaking up several staged accident rings that were operating in Georgia.  Special Investigator Ben Tibbs, GEICO Special Investigation Unit, was recognized as the Investigator of the Year for his role in 45 investigations that were referred for criminal prosecution. To conclude the annual meeting, Eric Swilley, GEICO Special Investigation Unit, was elected as the new GA IASIU President and will serve the next two years in that role.

“GA IASIU will continue offering our members cutting edge training, and we intend on working with organizations within our communities to educate the public about insurance fraud and how it impacts everyone,” Eric Swilley said.

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About GA IASIU:

GA IASIU is the professional organization of insurance fraud investigators and its objectives are to:

- Promote a coordinated effort within the insurance industry to combat insurance fraud
- Provide education and training for insurance employees and law enforcement personnel
- Develop a greater awareness of insurance fraud
- Encourage high professional standards of conduct among insurance investigators
- Support legislation which acts as a deterrent to insurance fraud
- Encourage development and implementation of programs designed to facilitate the coordination and cooperation with law enforcement and criminal justice agencies in the investigation and prosecution of insurance fraud crimes

To learn more about GA IASIU, please visit http://www.gaiasiu.org.