Insurance-fraud reporting back on committee agenda; advocates call for mandatory reporting statute

Industry groups and anti-fraud advocates urged the Joint & Standing committee to pursue mandatory insurance-fraud reporting as an interim topic.

Marian Smith, director of strategy, policy and government affairs for the National Insurance Crime Bureau, told the committee that Wyoming is among only two states that lack statutory mandatory reporting for insurance fraud. "It's costing you and I and your constituents between $4,000 and $7,000 over a period in insurance premium costs," Smith said, arguing that mandatory reporting is a consumer-protection tool that helps identify fraud patterns and reduce wasteful costs.

Smith said national model-act changes now include additional categories (for example, inflated billing) and that the bureau stands ready to help provide data and draft language. She also said the bureau is investigating fraudulent LLC activity in neighboring states that has been used to launder or mask criminal activity related to stolen vehicles and other title-based crimes.

Committee members heard that mandatory reporting could be coupled with other anti-fraud measures—registered-agent oversight, third-party-filer registration and software analytics—to form a broader fraud-prevention package.

What happens next: advocates asked the committee to place insurance-fraud reporting on the interim list and to coordinate with the Secretary of State and law-enforcement stakeholders on complementary measures.