Guarding Against Disaster Aid Fraud
Release Date: July 25, 2001
Release Number: 1378-31
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Charleston, WV -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the West Virginia Office of Emergency Services are working to identify the small percentage of disaster assistance applicants who try to cash in on the misfortune of others.
"Managing a multi-million dollar disaster program always means walking a fine line between bringing speedy service to those who need it and ensuring that taxpayers' dollars are not misused," said Stephen S. Kappa, disaster recovery coordinator for the state.
"A number of methods are used to detect fraud," said Carlos Mitchell, federal coordinating officer. "An automated system cross checks information with other agencies and insurance companies to weed out duplicate applications. Field inspections are then conducted to verify losses and damages."
Making false statements to a FEMA inspector is itself a prosecutable offense under Title 18 of the United States Code. Potential cases of fraud or misuse are referred to the U. S. Department of Justice for prosecution. Penalties for felony offenses can be severe.
People who made a mistake when reporting damage or who may have misrepresented their losses have the opportunity to cancel their claim. They may call the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-525-0321 (TTY 1-800-462-7585) to withdraw or correct an application and avoid prosecution.
Anyone who knows of someone who has filed false damage claims or perpetrated any other disaster-related fraud, may report the incident to the Fraud Hotline at 1-800-323-8603.
Last Modified: Tuesday, 21-Oct-2003 10:02:45