Insurance Fraud - Double Death Claim

A 55-year-old woman from Mumbai's Bhayander allegedly faked her death twice in two years. But why, you may ask? To claim insurance worth Rs 1.1 crore, of which Rs 70 lakh had already been paid out. The family managed to deceive four insurance companies.

How did she carry out the fraud - Kanchan Pai, alias Pavitra, bought insurance policies from Max Life, Bharti AXA, HDFC, and Future Generali, totalling approximately Rs 1.1 crore. After purchasing the policies, the family declared Kanchan dead and submitted fake death and cremation certificates to claim the insurance money.

Between 2021 and 2023, the insurance companies disbursed Rs 70 lakh based on these fraudulent claims. The scam came to light when one of the insurers noticed discrepancies while processing an additional claim of Rs 41 lakh, prompting an internal investigation. 

The first reported fake death occurred on October 11, 2021, with Kanchan’s son, Dhanraj, submitting documents that led to a payout of Rs 20.4 lakh after verification. Another insurer settled a claim of Rs 25 lakh for the same ‘death’.

On October 20, 2023, another death was recorded under the name Pavitra, with Rohit, the husband, receiving Rs 24.2 lakh. However, an audit in January 2024 raised suspicions due to inconsistencies like the same address but different names of the insured on Aadhaar and PAN cards, prompting insurers to exchange information and uncover the fraud. Realising their scheme was exposed, the family absconded.

In another case, last year in January, a man with insurance policies worth Rs 7.4 crore faked his death in a car accident. The man had multiple policies and staged a fatal accident to claim the money, highlighting the lengths to which individuals will go for financial gain.