2019 West Virginia Code
Chapter 33. Insurance
Article 41. Privileges and Immunity
§33-41-11. Fraudulent Claims to Insurance Companies
(a) Any person who knowingly and willfully and with intent to defraud submits a materially false statement in support of a claim for insurance benefits or payment pursuant to a policy of insurance or who conspires to do so is guilty of a crime and is subject to the penalties set forth in the provisions of this section.
(b) Any person who commits a violation of the provisions of subsection (a) of this section where the benefit sought is $1,000 or more in value is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in a correctional facility for not less than one nor more than ten years, fined not more than $10,000, or both, or in the discretion of the circuit court confined in jail for not more than one year and fined not more than $10,000, or both.
(c) Any person who commits a violation of the provisions of subsection (a) of this section where the benefit sought is less than $1,000 in value is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for not more than one year, fined not more than $2,500, or both.
(d) Any person convicted of a violation of this section is subject to the restitution provisions of article eleven-a, chapter sixty-one of this code.
(e) In addition to the foregoing provisions, the offenses enumerated in sections twenty-four-e through twenty-four-h, inclusive, article three, chapter sixty-one of this code are applicable to matters concerning workers' compensation insurance.
(f) The circuit court may award to the unit or other law-enforcement agency investigating a violation of this section or other criminal offense related to the business of insurance its cost of investigation.
