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Workers' comp fraud rising: Task force to make unannounced visits(Daily Press (Victorville, CA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Mar. 29--SA N B E R N A R D I N O --When the economic outlook is bleak and business owners are faced with difficult choices that can make a difference between staying in business or going under, t h e b u s i n e s s ow n e r will sometimes make a choice that is against the law, according to the San Bernardino County D i s t r i c t At t o r n ey 's Workers' Compensation Fraud Unit. "The theory is that in a difficult economic climate, crime tends to go up as does fraud. People who aren't otherwise motivated to be dishonest may follow that path," said Maureen O'Connell deputy district attorney with the fraud unit. The unit has seen a marked increase in workers' compensation fraud over the past year and has had to double the fraud unit's staff to handle the volume, she said. A task force will go into businesses unannounced to investigate i f a n e m p l oye r h a s workers' compensation insurance. "If they don't have i n s u ra n ce fo r t h e i r employees, the business owner faces a mandatory $10,000 fine and up to a year in jail," O'Connell said. One reason for the increase in fraud is the high cost that employers pay for certain job classifications. The more risky the job the higher the insurance premium. To keep their premiums low, O'Connell said some employers may illegally classify an employee's job task. O'Connell said another fraud they are seeing is employers paying employees partially in cash. This is because the insurance premium for workers' compensation is based on the amount of total payroll -- less payroll the lower the premium. "They may be paying people under the table so they lower the amount of their payroll, which will lower the amount of their premium," O'Connell said. She said the other part of the workers' compensation fraud on the rise involves employees who normally wouldn't break the law but find it easier to continue receiving workers benefits than going back to work. "Sometimes they're being expected to be let go, sometimes they're not motivated to go back to work once they're injured and acclimate to a different way of life not going to work every day," O'Connell said. Every employer in the state has to carry workers' compensation insurance. To see more of the Daily Press, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.vvdailypress.com. Copyright (c) 2009, Daily Press, Victorville, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |