National Insurance Crime Bureau Offers Warning to Victims of Wildfires

Already in 2021, numerous wildfires have scorched millions of acres across the western states destroying or damaging untold numbers of homes leaving homeowners with the arduous task of hiring contractors and rebuilding. As these fires continue to burn, the National Insurance Crime Bureau requests your help in spreading the word about contractor fraud.

Victims of catastrophes are under tremendous stress as they are often pulled from their homes, rushed through heavy traffic to get to safety, all while leaving their home and belongings behind. They return home exhausted and strained, a time when they are most susceptible to schemes employed by unscrupulous contractors.

Deceitful contractors and vendors swoop in and take advantage of disaster victims, take the money of unsuspecting homeowners, and do shoddy work, if any at all. Homeowners pay out thousands to tens of thousands of dollars and get no closer to getting their lives and homes back.

We work closely with law enforcement at the local, state, and federal levels to investigate insurance fraud to ensure those responsible are arrested and prosecuted.

As part of our efforts to increase the public’s awareness, we have created the enclosed PSAs available in 30 and 60-second formats for both television and radio.

We trust you will find these beneficial to your audience and air them as time permits.

NICB representatives are available for an interview. Please contact Tully Lehman via phone (925-758-0744) or email (tlehman@nicb.org).

Best regards,

Corey Witte
Interim Vice President, Communications
National Insurance Crime Bureau
847-894-2569
cwitte@nicb.org