Insurance Fraud in Dortmund

For many people in Germany, the temptation is great to claim their own or a friend’s/neighbor’s insurance in order to “get back” what they believe they have paid in premiums. Often, insurance is wrongfully charged because the damage was self-inflicted, yet the person’s own policy does not cover it. Some people become very inventive to avoid paying out of their own pocket. In cases of insurance fraud, the corporate investigators of Kurtz Investigations Dortmund investigate for both local and nationwide insurance companies: +49 231 8401 0065.

Typical Method in Insurance Fraud (Case Study)

Heinz L. (all names changed) and his wife invited his cousin Klara H., her husband, and their large dog to a casual barbecue. After greetings, everyone went into the garden; it was bright and sunny, and everyone wore sunglasses. After a while, Heinz L. dropped the grill tongs, bent down to pick them up, and in the next moment, his everyday glasses slipped out of his shirt pocket — where he had put them because, like everyone else, he was wearing sunglasses. Now the expensive pair lay on the ground: one lens scratched, the other shattered, and a temple bent. Heinz L. had no insurance coverage for this damage; so he asked his cousin to report to her pet liability insurance that her dog had jumped on him with joy during the greeting, caught the shirt pocket with its front paw, tearing it and causing the glasses to fall.

Doubts About the Insurance Claim | Dortmund Detectives Investigate

As requested, both parties filled out the claim forms sent by the insurance company. To avoid risk, Heinz L. and Klara H. wrote almost identical accounts. Nevertheless, the claims officer found the story suspicious: why did the victim and the pet owner know so precisely that it was the thumb claw of the dog?

The insurance employee informed his supervisor, who commissioned the Kurtz Investigations Dortmund corporate investigators to get to the bottom of the matter. Our investigators relied on the element of surprise and went unannounced to Heinz L.’s home to examine the damaged shirt and glasses. Heinz L. complied and presented the broken glasses, which matched the damage described in the claim. When asked about the shirt, he said he needed to fetch it. After some time, he returned with the shirt showing the claimed damage. Upon inspection, the Dortmund detectives noticed the tear in the breast pocket looked suspicious. From their long experience and the fact that one of the two detectives is a dog owner, they quickly concluded that the rips and marks on the shirt could not have been caused by a dog’s claw. With the owner’s permission, both items were taken for evidence and further examination.

Exposing the Insurance Fraudsters Through Forensic Evidence

Back at the operations centre, the detectives examined the shirt under a microscope, consulting a specialist who produced an expert report on the textile damage. On the shirt — particularly the torn breast pocket — no traces of a dog were found.

The corporate investigators then returned to Heinz L. to confront him with the forensic results. Faced with the findings, the insurance fraudster quietly admitted that he had, together with his cousin, attempted to have the insurance pay for the damage to the glasses. He voluntarily signed a notarised acknowledgment of debt.

Note

To preserve discretion and protect the personal rights of clients and targets, all names and locations in this case report have been changed beyond recognition.