MISSION
The Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority (IFPA) was created by an Act of the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 1995. (To see the complete IFPA Act,
click here.) This Act established IFPA as an independent Commonwealth agency whose sole purpose is to combat insurance fraud throughout the state. Since the IFPA’s inception, the organization has evolved into a highly collaborative network that enlists the talents of some of our Commonwealth’s most experienced
fraud-fighting professionals.
The IFPA mission is three-fold. The Authority helps provide law enforcement and prosecutors the necessary resources to fight insurance fraud in the Commonwealth, works to prevent consumer fraud through public awareness, and advises the Governor and the General Assembly on the nature and scope of the insurance fraud problem in Pennsylvania.
STRATEGY
The Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Protection Authority is funded by annual assessments levied on all insurance companies that write policies within our state. While the IFPA’s work benefit all citizens of Pennsylvania‚ no taxpayer dollars are used to support its efforts.
The majority of the IFPA’s budget is directed toward funding fraud–fighting units that investigate and prosecute insurance fraud. Currently‚ the IFPA commits $9.8 million annually to the support of 16 law enforcement agencies throughout the state. The IFPA also invests $2 million each year in fraud prevention initiatives‚ such as public education to discourage instances of opportunistic fraud before they even occur.
EFFECTIVENESS
The IFPA’s strategic allocation of resources has paid dividends in the fight against insurance fraud in Pennsylvania.
The Authority’s support of enforcement efforts has had a significant impact in identifying and prosecuting those who commit insurance fraud. Since 1996‚ IFPA–funded units have been responsible for:
- 4‚363 arrests
- 2‚534 convictions
- 1‚068 Accelerated Rehabilitative Dispositions (ARD)
- prevention of $102 million in potential victim property and/or monetary loss
- over $1.8 million in court–ordered fines
- $1.9 million in civil penalties
- $28.4 million in restitution
The IFPA’s public outreach and educations have also been beneficial to the Commonwealth. Research has been undertaken to track public awareness of the issue of insurance fraud and identify pockets of opportunity within our state’s population where opportunistic fraud can be effectively discouraged. In June 2009‚ the IFPA developed and launched a new prevention campaign and will be monitored for its effectiveness effort toward this end.
Click here to learn more about the IFPA Prevention Campaign.
INVESTIGATIVE UNITS
The IFPA’s rationale for supporting law enforcement is simple‚ yet strategic. This funding supports the professionals who aggressively investigate and prosecute insurance fraud criminals. That’s precisely why the selected insurance fraud units receive financial resources from the IFPA for personnel‚ training‚ equipment
and expenses.
These include an Insurance Fraud Section in the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General and an insurance fraud unit in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office‚ as well as other state and local level fraud prosecution and fraud prevention programs.
Grants fund insurance fraud units in Allegheny‚ Cumberland‚ Delaware‚ Erie‚ Lancaster‚ Lehigh‚ Montgomery and York counties‚ as well as a Lackawanna County task force covering eleven northeastern counties. The IFPA also extends grants to the Pennsylvania State Police and Dauphin County to support arson investigation and to the Pennsylvania Insurance Department to support the anti–fraud programs of insurers.
Click here for Investigative Units contact information.
REPORT INSURANCE FRAUD.