Zalma on Insurance
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Insurance Claims professional presents articles and videos on insurance, insurance Claims and insurance law for insurance Claims adjusters, insurance professionals and insurance lawyers who wish to improve their skills and knowledge. Presented by an internationally recognized expert and author.
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January 26, 2026
Insurance Fraud Gets You Three Squares and a Cot

Insurance Fraud Should Not be a Retirement Plan

More from Excellence in Claims Handling Substack for Subscribers Only

If you are a subscriber you can see the full article at https://lnkd.in/gafFt_x3, if not a subscriber you can see a preview at https://lnkd.in/gP9ETSVb, and at https://zalma.com/blog.

"You’re reading, until you reach the paywall, from the free part of Excellence in Claims Handling until you reach the paywall. You should consider joining as a paid member to get full access to articles for members only, to our news, analysis, insurance coverage, claims, insurance fraud and insurance webinars, by clicking at the “subscribe” button below."

Every insurer is required by its shareholders, members, state statutes and state regulations to do everything possible to deter and defeat attempts at insurance fraud. Most insurers, therefore, have a staff of fraud investigators working under their Special Investigative Unit (SIU) and the SIU works to train the claims handlers to recognize the indicators or red flags of fraud.

Much to the surprise of the public, lawyers, and even some judges, defrauding an insurance company is a crime. In most states, insurance fraud is a felony that could subject the perpetrator to as many as five years in state prison plus serious fines. If the fraud is attempted by use of the mail or telephone, internet, e-mail or against a federal insurance program like Medicare, Medicaid and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFPA) it can also be a federal felony.

Insurance fraud is a crime that should be easy for a prosecutor to prove since all that is required is to prove the insurance criminal knowingly presented a claim for the payment of insurance contract benefits to which the perpetrator is not entitled or the submission of a single false document or oral statement in support of the crime. However, state prosecutors are reluctant to prosecute the crime, regardless of the state where it is committed, because they believe it is their duty to prosecute violent crimes. Financial crimes, like insurance fraud, they believe only hurts rich insurance companies and are not worthy of their efforts.

The full article is only available to subscribers at the small fee of $5 a month or $50 a year by going to this site: https://lnkd.in/gmmzUVBy.

(c) 2026 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.
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Videos
Posts
19 hours ago
Proper Inconsistent Pleading Defeats Policy Anti-Assignment Condition

Amended Complaint Provides Escape from Anti-Assignment Condition
Post number 5345

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/proper-inconsistent-pleading-defeats-policy-condition-barry-mrugc, shttps://www.linkedin.com/pulse/proper-inconsistent-pleading-defeats-policy-condition-barry-mrugc and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

State Farm’s Responsive Pleading Defeated Motion on Anti Assignment Condition

In Tyra Caire Treadway v. State Farm Fire And Casualty Company, Civil Action No. 23-6834, United States District Court, E.D. Louisiana (April 28, 2026) Plaintiff Tyra Caire Treadway owned property at 7000-02 Jeannette Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, which was insured under a State Farm homeowners’ policy.

Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana on August 29, 2021, causing damage to the property. Nearly two years later, on August 9, 2023, Treadway sold the property to M1SRJT Jeanette, LLC and assigned her State Farm insurance claim, including the right to pursue additional damages and penalties for ...

00:07:48
19 hours ago
Proper Inconsistent Pleading Defeats Policy Anti-Assignment Condition

Amended Complaint Provides Escape from Anti-Assignment Condition
Post number 5345

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/proper-inconsistent-pleading-defeats-policy-condition-barry-mrugc, shttps://www.linkedin.com/pulse/proper-inconsistent-pleading-defeats-policy-condition-barry-mrugc and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

State Farm’s Responsive Pleading Defeated Motion on Anti Assignment Condition

In Tyra Caire Treadway v. State Farm Fire And Casualty Company, Civil Action No. 23-6834, United States District Court, E.D. Louisiana (April 28, 2026) Plaintiff Tyra Caire Treadway owned property at 7000-02 Jeannette Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, which was insured under a State Farm homeowners’ policy.

Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana on August 29, 2021, causing damage to the property. Nearly two years later, on August 9, 2023, Treadway sold the property to M1SRJT Jeanette, LLC and assigned her State Farm insurance claim, including the right to pursue additional damages and penalties for ...

00:07:48
19 hours ago
Crime Doesn’t Pay

BACKGROUND

See the video at https://rumble.com/v79dts2-crime-doesnt-pay.html and at https://youtu.be/dw0f4goCbxA, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

Plaintiff:

Andrew J. Mitchell, an incarcerated individual proceeding pro se sued Pandit Law Firm, LLC, on behalf of a corporation that was controlled by Mitchell who had operated Mitchell Adjusting International LLC (MAI), a Texas limited liability company.

According to the US Attorney:

A Texas man (Mitchell) acting as an insurance adjuster who cheated an Albany church out of millions of dollars paid out by its insurance company to repair its facilities heavily damaged by Hurricane Michael in 2018 was sentenced to serve more than 19 years in prison and ordered to pay nearly $4 million in restitution to victims in several states.

Andrew Mitchell, formerly Andrew Aga, 46, of Houston, Texas, was sentenced to serve 235 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $2,895,903.01 in restitution to the Brotherhood ...

00:09:39
May 04, 2026

It is Fraud to Make the Same Claim Twice

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/fraud-make-same-claim-twice-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-c4g8c and at https://zalma.com/blog.

Chutzpah: After Being Paid for a New Roof Insured Makes Second Claim For Same Damages

Post number 5347

No One is Entitled to be Paid for the Same Loss Twice

In Mohammed Ali Khalili v. State Farm Lloyds, No. 14-25-00611-CV, Court of Appeals of Texas (April 30, 2026) Khalili maintained a State Farm Lloyds homeowners insurance policy for decades. In 2008 he filed a roof-damage claim; State Farm paid him to replace the entire roof (shingles and gutters). Khalili never replaced the roof and repeated his claim.

BACKGROUND

In 2021 he filed a second roof claim. State Farm’s inspectors found the roof “very old” with extensive non-storm-related damage. The claim was denied because (1) the damage did not exceed the deductible and (2) State Farm had already paid for a full roof replacement.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

State Farm filed motion for summary...

post photo preview
May 04, 2026

It is Fraud to Make the Same Claim Twice

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/fraud-make-same-claim-twice-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-c4g8c and at https://zalma.com/blog.

Chutzpah: After Being Paid for a New Roof Insured Makes Second Claim For Same Damages

Post number 5347

No One is Entitled to be Paid for the Same Loss Twice

In Mohammed Ali Khalili v. State Farm Lloyds, No. 14-25-00611-CV, Court of Appeals of Texas (April 30, 2026) Khalili maintained a State Farm Lloyds homeowners insurance policy for decades. In 2008 he filed a roof-damage claim; State Farm paid him to replace the entire roof (shingles and gutters). Khalili never replaced the roof and repeated his claim.

BACKGROUND

In 2021 he filed a second roof claim. State Farm’s inspectors found the roof “very old” with extensive non-storm-related damage. The claim was denied because (1) the damage did not exceed the deductible and (2) State Farm had already paid for a full roof replacement.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

State Farm filed motion for summary...

post photo preview
April 30, 2026
Investigation of First Party Property Claims

What Must be Done after Notice of a Claim is Received by the Insurer

Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/gzvvdkMZ and at https://zalma.com/blog.

Below you will read from this post until you reach the the end of this blog post as the free part of an Excellence in Claims Handling post. To read the full article and receive all articles for members of Excellence in Claims Handling you should consider joining as a paid member to get full access to articles for members only, to our news, analysis, insurance coverage, claims, insurance fraud and insurance webinars, by clicking at the subscription link below.

A first party property policy does not insure property: it insures a person, partnership, corporation or other entity against the risk of loss of the property. Before an insured can make a claim for indemnity under a policy of first party property insurance the insured must prove that there was damage to property the risk of loss of which was insured by the policy. The obligation imposed on the insured ...

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