Ted Lilly earned over $80 million in his baseball career, but that didn't stop him from trying to defraud Progressive Insurance out of $4,600, according to the California Department of Insurance. The Tribune in San Luis Obispo (Ca.) reports that Lilly was charged back in October with three felony counts of "filing a false insurance claim, filing a false statement in connection with an insurance claim, and concealing a material fact in connection with an insurance claim," and faces five years in jail.


According to the Department of Insurance, the uninsured Lilly got an estimate for damage on his motor home, bought insurance five days later, and then claimed the damage four days after that:

The department's investigation showed Lilly sustained damage in a collision while backing up the vehicle and sought an estimate from a body shop on March 19, [California Department of Insurance spokesperson Nancy] Kincaid said. The estimate was $4,600. Then Lilly bought insurance from Progressive on March 24 and claimed the damage on March 28, Kincaid said.


According to Kincaid, many body shops enter repair estimates into a database accessible by insurance companies. Lilly was caught in a sting that has netted at least 200 people who bought or enhanced their coverage after an accident occurred.

[The Tribune]

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