Insurance Fraud Charge Fully Expunged After ARD

A retired steel industry employee in his mid-50s was recently charged with insurance fraud, a felony in Pennsylvania. He had no prior criminal record and wanted to maintain a clean record. The Commonwealth alleged that our client placed a claim with his homeowner’s insurance for a broken piece of circuitry on his hot water heater. He claimed that an electrical surge had caused the damage, but he failed to mentioned to the insurance company that a heating specialist had already informed him that the problem was the age of the heater, not an electrical surge. When the insurance company learned this information, they contacted the police and our client was charged with fraud.

We attended three court dates in Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on our client’s behalf. As part of our defense, we showed that the Commonwealth could not obtain sufficient evidence to prove that our client was actively and knowingly lying to the insurance company. After negotiating with the prosecution, we were able to have our client admitted to the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) program. After completely the program, along with community service, our client was required to remain crime free for a brief period. Our clients charges were then allowed to be fully expunged from his record, allowing him to put this ordeal behind him.

Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.