Though the monetary loss is concerning, the real danger of staged accidents comes in the collisions themselves. In 2007 and 2008, years that saw a dramatic rise in staged accidents, there were 71,452 fatalities as a result of automobile collisions. The fact that offenders are increasingly forgoing the danger of seriously injuring or killing an innocent motorist for the purpose of scamming insurance companies is a serious concern.

When it comes to discussions of criminal false claims too many people only think about women and girls who lie about having been raped. Other criminal false claims are usually shrugged off as so rare that those who make other types of legal claims should be assumed to be truthful.This difference in attitude is used to justify treating reports of rape by girls and women as inherently suspicious while treating other legal claims as inherently trustworthy.This perception difference ignores the fact that if someone is willing to make a false claim in one area they are likely to make a false claim in other areas. Further, the motives given for false rape claims apply to many other types of false claims as well. Revenge, greed and cruelty don't limit themselves to one gender or one type of crime.I was reminded of these contrasting attitudes when I read an article about staged automobile accidents where the motivation is insurance fraud.Despite the seriousness of this crime, few people would support treating everyone who reports an auto accident the way many people want rape victims treated. Those who demand all those who report rape should submit to polygraph exams would be unlikely to support the same demand for everyone who files an insurance claim.If we understand that evidence and not stereotypes should be used to evaluate claims which if false would be criminal then we must understand this when the claim is rape.

Labels: legal