New York auto insurance premiums shoot up due to increasing frauds

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New York currently ranks fourth in the list of states that charge high insurance premiums for no-fault auto insurance. The reason for the increasing the premium is not just the increase in the auto insurance fraud, but also the increasing cost of medical treatment and care. Car owners in Manhattan and Bronx currently pay $919.57 per year which is the highest in the state as compared to the average of $211.19 that any other New Yorker pays.

Fraud Costs New York’s spokesperson, Michael McKeon, said that this is soon becoming a crisis. Fraud Costs New York is a coalition of businesses, consumers, insurance trade associations and elected officials, alongside many others who are fighting tooth and nail to curtail the rising auto insurance fraud in the state. McKeon went on to say that it is time for stringent measures to be taken to curtail this problem and curb rising insurance costs. He said that New Yorkers needed some regulatory and legislative action in the form of certain reforms which would provide respite to the residents in this state.

Governor Cuomo recently vowed to take steps to curb medical fraud that is costing millions of dollars each year. One of the recent measures passed by the New York Senate includes one that makes no-fault auto insurance fraud nothing short of a felony. These measures are now awaiting the vote by the state Assembly in order to bring it into effect.

Aite Group’s senior analyst, Stephen Applebaum, who recently published an important study that talks about the impact of the rising medical costs on casualty and property insurance, said that the current issue is about unfair medical billing practices. He said that these practices are leading to waste of precious money that is causing a lot of unnecessary expenditure to people living in this state. Applebaum says that in addition to auto insurance fraud, overbilling by hospitals and health care facilities are the main causes that need to be brought under control.