Family used fraud to secure coverage, file claims for rental car fleet
The California family filed over 40 bogus auto claims and collected nearly $200k in payouts.
Husband and wife Moshe and Shannon Ninio are both facing charges of insurance fraud for allegedly using their car rental company to steal consumers’ personal information, which was then used to obtain auto coverage for the fleet as well as to file fraudulent insurance claims, according to the California Department of Insurance (CDI). The couple’s son-in-law, Ivan Lebedynets, was also arraigned for his alleged involvement.
The investigation into AT Car Rental began with reports from a carrier that Moshe Ninio was using stolen identities to obtain auto insurance for the company’s vehicles, CDI reported.
When AT Car Rental customers were in legitimate accidents, Moshe Ninio would file insurance claims by impersonating the identity theft victims he listed as policyholders. To disguise the rental car business, Moshe would claim to have allowed a “friend,” who was actually the current vehicle renter, to use the car. Shannon Ninio and Lebedynets often posed as policyholders for the fake claims, the insurance regulator reported.
According to the CDI, between September 2018 and July 2020, 47 auto claims were filed against the fraudulently obtained policies. Carriers paid out a total of $192,282 to cover the fabricated losses.
As part of its investigation, the CDI interviewed 15 people who were listed as policyholders and a majority of the ID theft victims said they had previously rented cars from AT Car Rental. The victims interviewed said they never filed fraudulent insurance policies and that their personal information was used without their permission.
The Ninios were arrested on Dec. 21, 2023, while Lebedynets self-surrender on Jan. 29, 2024. The trio are scheduled to appear in court on April 15.
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