NEBRASKA NEWS
IOWA NEWS
Currently our division has the following people:
Eric Dunning
Fraud Division Director
E-mail: Eric.dunning@nebrasak.gov
Kimberly P. Church, SCLA, CIFI, AHFI
Fraud Division Chief
Telephone: 402.471.4999
E-mail: Kimberly.Church@nebraska.gov
John McGahan
Fraud Investigator
Telephone: 402.471.1842
E-mail:: John.McGahan@nebraska.gov
Charles Starr
Fraud Investigator
Telephone: 402.471.8334
E-Mail:: charles.starr@nebraska.gov
Connie C. Drake
Fraud Analyst
Telephone: 402.471.8336
E-mail:: Connie.Drake@nebraska.gov
2019 Nebraska Insurance
Fraud Proclamation
The Iowa Insurance Division & Fraud Bureau is charged with investigating financial crimes in violation of the insurance laws of the State of Iowa. The Bureau is staffed by full-time law enforcement officers and is currently led by Bureau Chief Matt Mortvedt. Fraud Bureau investigators are trained to investigate referrals covering all lines of insurance, including but not
limited to auto, property & casualty, life, healthcare, and disability. The Bureau has one criminal intelligence analyst and six full-time investigators, with two specifically dedicated to Workers'
Compensation referrals.
During calendar year 2022, the Fraud Bureau received 1079 referrals of insurance and securities fraud from multiple sources including insurance companies, the National Insurance Crime Bureau, law enforcement, fire marshals, other state government entities, and concerned citizens.
Even with only 9% of the referrals attaching a value to the loss, the financial impact reported was a loss of over $10.5 million with an actual loss amount of over $5.7 million. Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Investigators made 36 arrests on 108 charges.
Insurance fraud was not isolated to any specific geographic region of the state. Of Iowa’s 99 counties, 90 had referrals of insurance fraud taking place. Polk County led all others with 232 referrals, with Linn and Scott County following with 82 and 72 referrals respectively.
In 2022, auto claims made up the bulk of referrals to the Fraud Bureau. Most of these involved the purchase or attempted purchase of insurance coverage after a loss or turning in existing damage as new. Property and Casualty claims were around half the number of referrals, but with
a much greater amount of actual loss. Most P&C referrals related to inflated item values following a loss and losses that did not occur in the first place.
Currently in 2023, there have been 775 referrals of insurance and securities fraud. To date, there have been 23 arrests on 92 counts of insurance fraud.
Any Iowans who wish to report possible insurance fraud or have questions about what constitutes fraud should contact the Fraud Bureau at (515) 654-6556 or via email at Fraud@iid.iowa.gov
Currently our division has the following people:
Dawn Blahnik
Special Investigator
Telephone: 515.654.6558
E-mail: Dawn.Blahnik@iid.iowa.gov
Ryan Hubbert, CPCU
Criminal Intelligence Analyst Senior
Telephone: 515.654.6556
E-mail: Ryan.Hubbert@iid.iowa.gov
Matt Mortvedt
Interim Bureau Chief
Telephone: 515.654.6552
E-mail: Matt.Mortvedt@iid.iowa.gov
Dave Powers, CFE
Special Investigator
Telephone: 515.654.6554
E-mail: David.Powers@iid.iowa.gov
Chris Scanlan, CFE
Special Investigator
Telephone: 515.654.6557
E-mail: Chris.Scanlan@iid.iowa.gov
The Insurance Fraud Prevention Division (IFPD) received 744 case referrals regarding potential violations of the Nebraska Insurance Fraud Act during 2021. Of the referrals received, 550 (74%) were submitted through the National Insurance Crime Bureau and 100 (13%) were submitted via the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ online fraud reporting system. The remainder were submitted by victims, concerned consumers, or law enforcement agencies.
Actual or potential monetary losses, exceeding $5.5 million, were reported for 44% (327) of the cases.
Cases are evaluated based upon a number of criteria, including the statute of
limitations, applicability of Nebraska statutes, and solvability factors. Upon completion of the case review, a status letter is sent advising the complainant of disposition.
The IFPD investigated the following types of insurance fraud cases during 2021:
Property/Casualty = 614 Cases (83%)
Life/Health = 123 Cases (16%)
Agent or Internal Fraud = 6 Cases (.5%)
Other Fraud = 1 Cases (.5%)
Upon completion of a case investigation, the IFPD makes a determination to close
the case for one of the following reasons: unfounded allegations, insufficient
evidence for prosecution, or sufficient evidence to forward the information to a
prosecutor for consideration in filing a criminal violation of the Nebraska Insurance Fraud Act. Before sending a case for a prosecutor’s review, the IFPD prepares an investigative summary report outlining the circumstances of the investigation.
2021 Cases Sent for Criminal Prosecution:
29 Cases
21 Suspects
2021 Convictions:
22 Cases
16 Suspects
2021 Restitution:
12 Cases
$89,266.40
Cases referred to the IFPD for investigation had venue in 56 Nebraska counties.
Douglas, Lancaster, and Sarpy Counties accounted for 75% of cases (558 cases).
2019 Iowa Insurance
Fraud Proclamation
Jared Kirby Appointed Deputy Insurance Commissioner
Des Moines, Iowa – Iowa Insurance Commissioner Doug Ommen today announced that Jared Kirby has been appointed as Deputy Insurance Commissioner for Market Regulation.