Insurance Agent Arrested for Fraudulent Polices
Insurance Agent Arrested for Fraudulent Polices
On July 27, 2015, the Florida Department of Financial Services’ Division of Insurance Fraud (DIF) announced the arrest of insurance agent Julia Shurdom, 67, for conducting insurance related business with a suspended insurance license, scheming to defraud, and uttering a forged document.
Shurdom was allegedly working for Absolute Insurance Services in Orlando, Florida with a suspended license when the fraud was committed. According to the press release, DIF received a complaint in regards to Ms. Shurdom, after a client who purchased homeowners’ insurance in 2013 and 2014 discovered that her home had remained uninsured. After the complaint, DIF began an investigation which found, per Ms. Shurdom bank records, that she collected two homeowners’ insurance premium payments and used the money for personal profit.
According to the investigation, DIF conducted a license search for the accused agent and found that the Department’s Division of Agent & Agency Services (A&A) had already begun investigating Ms. Shurdom for a number of unrelated events. The investigation also revealed that A&A had suspended Julia Shurdom’s license to conduct insurance related business.
A follow up audit by A&A and the ongoing investigation by DIF revealed that Ms. Shurdom continued to sell insurance polices without the proper licensing from the Department of Financial Services, and that the transactions were fraudulent, according to DIF.
Shurdom was booked into Orange County Correctional Facility with a bond of $6,500 on charges which include scheme to defraud, uttering a forged instrument, and violation of a suspension order. Shurdom’s faces up to 15 years in prison.
Click here for the press release.
