Commission Reports Big Jump in Fraud Charges and Collections
Tuesday, October 9, 2018 | 0
The North Carolina Industrial Commission continues to crack the whip on employers that fail to obtain workers' compensation insurance, outpacing some larger states in the number of prosecutions.
The commission reported that in fiscal 2017-2018, the fraud unit issued 696 criminal charges and collected more than $8 million in fines. Compared to 2013-2014, that's a 43-fold increase in the number of charges brought and a 24-fold increase in fines collected, the commission announced in a news release.
Some states with larger populations have far smaller numbers of fraud investigations. Illinois, for example, indicted only five people for fraud in 2017, and most of those were claimants who were found to be working while collecting benefits. Ohio last year reported 133 workers' compensation fraud convictions.
In North Carolina, "the Compliance and Fraud Investigative Division proactively works with businesses to ensure adequate insurance is maintained, and also identifies noncompliant businesses, using an advanced data-matching application," the commission said.
Proceeds collected from the penalties go to benefit North Carolina public schools.
The announcement did not explain why prosecutions have increased in recent years.
“Failure to carry proper coverage creates an unnecessary hazard to North Carolina’s employees, and fraud leads to costs being passed on to the public,” said fraud unit Director Bryan Strickland.
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