Allegheny County Man Convicted in Jury Trial on Insurance Fraud Charges
24 March 1999
Allegheny County Man Convicted in Jury Trial on Insurance Fraud Charges PITTSBURGH, March 24 -- The Allegheny County District
Attorney's Office Insurance Fraud Unit, funded since July 1998 by the
Pennsylvania Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority, received its first
insurance fraud jury trial conviction last week. In a deliberation that took
less than 20 minutes, the jury found William "Skip" Nedzesky, owner of Skip's
Auto Body of Pittsburgh, guilty on two counts of insurance fraud and one count
of theft of property lost, mislaid or delivered by mistake. Nedzesky now
faces the possibility of up to one year in prison and fines of up to $5,000
for his crime. His sentencing is scheduled for May 4.
The conviction stems from a complicated auto accident insurance fraud scam
perpetrated by Nedzesky. He was presented with two insurance companies'
repair estimates for a Nissan Altima involved in an accident. Atlanta
Casualty, insurer of the Nissan, estimated repairs to be $2,389.79. State
Farm insured the vehicle which hit the Nissan and estimated repairs at
$1,406.87. Nedzesky advised the Nissan driver that he could not fix the car
for the $1,400. He also advised her that there was concealed damage not
included in either estimate, and that there was unrelated damage to the
driver's side of the car. Nedzesky repaired the accident damage and the
unrelated damage, then took a claim for $2,684.04 (Atlanta Casualty's original
estimate plus $294.25 for the "concealed" damage) to State Farm's Drive-In
Service Center on Fort Couch Road in Bethel Park. State Farm was unaware of
the unrelated damage or the fact that Nedzesky made any such repairs.
Because the claim was $1,200 more than State Farm's original estimate,
they did not pay Nedzesky, stating that they would need to inspect the repairs
before paying. State Farm also contacted Atlanta Casualty regarding the
discrepancy in estimates.
State Farm was the first to inspect the vehicle, noting that the
"concealed" damage had not been repaired _ original factory welds were still
in place. State Farm refused to pay.
By the time Atlanta Casualty's independent appraisal company, Property
Damage Appraisers (PDA) inspected the vehicle, Nedzesky had covered the
"concealed" damage with a thick coat of rustproofing. PDA reduced the
original estimate by $719.22.
While inspections were taking place, Atlanta Casualty sent a check to the
Nissan driver for $1,899.79 (the original estimate less the $500 deductible).
She, in turn, took the check to Nedzesky who deposited it into his bank
account. After PDA reduced the estimate, Atlanta stopped payment on the first
check and issued a second check for $1,464.82 (the adjusted estimate less the
deductible). Nedzesky deposited that check, too. Both checks cleared.
Repeated attempts by Atlanta to retrieve the first check failed. Nedzesky
agreed to return the money only if "the problem went away." It was at this
point the Atlanta Casualty called the Allegheny County Police.
Assistant District Attorney Nick Radoycis, who prosecuted the case, stated
"This is a classic example of auto body insurance fraud. Mr. Nedzesky thought
that no one would be the wiser when he fraudulently claimed repairs were made.
He was wrong. His conviction on this felony crime should be a loud and clear
message to other would-be fraud perpetrators -- commit the crime, and you will
be caught and prosecuted."
Insurance fraud is a pervasive crime that affects every policy holder
through increased premium costs. Some estimates state that insurance fraud
costs between $200 and $800 per year per policy holder.
Nedzesky's case is not unique, last year, the twelve units funded by the
Insurance Fraud Prevention Authority investigated 444 cases of auto insurance
fraud. The IFPA's funded units' conviction rate for all insurance fraud cases
is 96 percent.
For more information on this case or the Insurance Fraud Prevention
Authority, please contact IFPA PR Director, Sara McLin at 717-975-9074 or the
Allegheny County Assistant District Attorney, Nick Radoycis at 412-350-3113.
