Oklahoma insurance salesman indicted of selling phony insurance policies

The salesman purportedly sold his clients a fake policy, all while bilking the family of almost $2,000 in insurance payments

Insurance News

By Lyle Adriano

An insurance salesman based in Garfield County, Oklahoma was recently accused of selling mock insurance policies.

Enid native Brent M. Baker, 39, was arrested as a result of a year-long investigation by the Oklahoma Insurance Department Anti-Fraud Unit. According to court documents, Baker is charged with felony grand larceny and obtaining money by false pretense.

Investigators said that the client-victims were contacted by their insurance company about lapsed coverage, so the family contacted their agent, Baker, for a new policy quote. The couple asserted that Baker continued with the ruse until they found out that they had not been covered by a policy since 2013, despite Baker taking their payments.

Local news outlet KOCO.com reports that Baker’s ruse began in 2013. Since then, the salesman managed to bilk the couple of $1,914.26, Insurance Department spokeswoman Kelly Dexter told KOCO.com.

“He had been getting checks from the mortgage company,” Dexter explained. “They had been paying the company out of an escrow account, so he had been getting checks out of a bank sending them what looked like certificates of insurance. But they were not legitimate.”

Although Baker once had a license to sell insurance, an online search on the Insurance Department’s website reveals that his license had expired in 2012.

The victims had done business with Baker in the past, which made them believe he was still doing honest work.

“Once you get the policy, call the company yourself to make sure that is a valid policy,” urged Dexter. “Anytime you do business with someone, trust but verify -- make sure you’re getting what you’re paying for.”
The Oklahoma Tax Commission revealed to KOCO that Baker has several liens out of Garfield County, with the first one in 2006.

It is unclear if other customers had purchased sham policies from Baker.


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Insurance agent has license revoked
Insurance salesman pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $1M from friend’s life insurance policies
 

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