Contact: Beth Stone 508-584-8120
BROCKTON – The Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office has been awarded $50,000 from the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts, and will continue its work with the Commissioner of Insurance to fight automobile insurance fraud in Brockton and throughout Plymouth County, District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz announced today.
In late 2003, after a staged accident in the city of Lawrence killed a 65 year-old woman, the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts (IFB) created the Community Insurance Fraud Initiative (CIFI). The CIFI consists of specialized taskforces with local law enforcement agencies in Brockton and 10 other communities in Massachusetts. The taskforces join IFB investigators, local police, DA’s Offices, the Attorney General, and insurance company investigators to work together to detect, investigate, prevent and prosecute insurance fraud in the residual motor vehicle insurance market.
DA Cruz first partnered with the IFB and the Brockton Police Department in 2004. The funding delivered to our office by the IFB will supplement and support, in part, the participation of the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office in the CIFI. DA Cruz accepted the funding today from Anthony M. DiPaolo, executive director of the IFB. The $50,000 is funded by Arbella Mutual Insurance Company, as part of a program in coordination with the Commissioner of Insurance and the IFB.
“Each and every one of us pays the price when someone commits insurance fraud and deliberately scams the system,” DA Cruz said. “This collaboration has curbed auto insurance fraud significantly in the City of Brockton, but as important, it has been a major factor in reducing premiums for policy holders around the state. We look forward to continuing this successful partnership with the Commissioner and the IFB in 2022.”
IFB Executive Director DiPaolo said, “Thirty years ago, the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts was created to combat fraudulent insurance transactions. The success the IFB has seen in Brockton is due in large part to the dedication of Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz and his office along, with the Brockton Police Department. The perseverance and hard work by all involved is a demonstration that insurance fraud will not be tolerated in Massachusetts.”