Orlando, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/09/2012 -- Efforts by the Florida Legislature to cut back on insurance fraud in the Sunshine State are being met with praise by insurers.

“Personal injury protection fraud has gone from being a growing problem in the state to an outright disaster,” said Lee Rogers of the Florida Insurance Group, a Florida auto insurance provider. “It is not fair for the law-abiding citizens of Florida to have to pay higher premiums because of people who stage accidents to cheat the system.”

Two bills are being considered in Tallahassee this session that attempt to cut back on PIP fraud that is said to cost Florida drivers as much as $910 million. Each of the bills would cut back on fraud either by prioritizing hospital claims to weed out unscrupulous “pain clinics” or by adjusting the fee schedule.

“A complete overhaul of the PIP system is called for to reduce fraud,” Rogers said. “The fixes being considered now do not appear to have the teeth to truly fix the system.”

Sheriff Department detectives spoke to lawmakers late last year about what they see when working undercover to reduce fraud. There are entire pain clinics full of victims of accidents that were staged to defraud the system, according to the detectives.

State Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater’s office put together a report showing that insurance premiums have gone up significantly over the past several years even though the number of drivers has remained the same and the number of accidents has gone down.

“It is sad to watch our state’s laws get flaunted like this and to watch the law-abiding consumer have to suffer for it. I hope the Legislature does everything it can to cut back on personal injury protection laws,” Rogers said.

To learn more about Orlando auto insurance, call 1.888.525.2210 or visit http://www.floridainsurance.com.