An insurance agent who used a loophole and bilked several companies out of $150,000 in premiums has been charged with insurance fraud and other crimes – and may face up to 15 years in prison.
Jeffery Metviner, 45, of Long Beach, Long Island, has been arraigned on a 37-count criminal complaint charging him with two counts each of second- and third-degree insurance fraud; two counts of third-degree grand larceny; one count of fourth-degree conspiracy; one count of fourth-degree grand larceny; 21 counts of first-degree falsifying business records; one count of first-degree scheme to defraud and one count of petit larceny.
According to the charges, Metviner and another suspect met in Jamaica and conspired between March 8, 2007, and June 15, 2009 to file false insurance paperwork with various insurance companies – including Lincoln General Insurance, Auto One Insurance, Hereford Insurance and Farm Family Insurance – on 21 commuter vans, commonly known as dollar vans, operating in Far Rockaway.
It is alleged that by intentionally classifying the dollar vans at a cheaper rate class (vanpools), the van owners paid lower insurance premiums. A vanpool is a group of seven to 15 people who have a similar commute pattern, commute together in a van on a daily basis, and share the cost of their monthly ride.
As a result, Metviner is alleged to have defrauded the insurance companies out of more than $150,000 in owed premiums.
“Vanpools cost thousands of dollars less to insure than dollar vans – which operate commercially as shared taxis and pick up and drop off people anywhere along routes that commonly follows bus or subway lines,” said District Attorney Richard A. Brown. “By allegedly failing to properly insure the vehicles, the defendant is alleged to have created a significant public safety issue for those members of the riding public who frequent dollar vans. If, for example, an underinsured vehicle was involved in an accident, the passenger insurance coverage limit would be a great deal less and any rider whose injury expenses exceeded the limit could find themselves having to pay out of pocket.”
Metviner, who works out of his residence, was released on his own recognizance.
