Money, youve got lots of friends
Crowding round the door
Strategically, it was a brilliant move. Hidden in the last place anyone would think to look for evidence of fraud – the scheme is in the technology the insurance industry uses to identify fraudulent claims. The best place to hide a needle is in a haystack of needles.
Them thats got shall get
Them thats not shall lose
Like Monopoly the game, the monopoly game played in the scheme, takes its name from the economic concept:
domination of a market by a single entity.
Players compete to acquire wealth through stylized economic activity…buying…and trading…using…paper money. The supply of money is theoretically unlimited; if the bank runs out of money the players must make do with other markers…
The term “Monopoly money” has been used to refer to currencies which cannot be used to purchase goods and services on the free market.
Technology dominated the market for handling claims of property damage following Hurricane Katrina with an on-going off-board version of the monopoly game – played with the insurance industry’s usual three-pronged response when a significant liability risk begins to emerge:
…limit its financial exposure under policies it has already sold by mounting an aggressive litigation campaign against coverage;
…influence public policy and legislation in a manner that limits its potential financial and legal exposure to such claims; and
…begin developing new insurance products to maximize profit opportunities from the emerging risk.
Mere mention of the word fraud has a Viagra-like effect on the brain of the male WASP. If the thought stays up more than 36 hours, policyholders will get screwed – concurrently – by court order, regulatory change and legislation.
Boardwalk, Park Place and a surge of litigation