Rise In Searches For ’How To Set Fire’ A Sign Insurance Fraud Beckons As Economy Crashes

Internet search queries for "how to set fire" are spiking amid the downturn from the coronavirus pandemic, which experts say is a sign that some people may be planning to commit insurance fraud.

Search term data compiled by Google shows that the number of users looking for information on how to start a fire grew by 125% year-over-year in the last week of March. A massive 700,000 jobs were lost during the month.

"This is creating a lot of economic hardship where people are going to look and say, ‘Can I save my business? Can I save my home? Do I really need this car?’ Some percentage of those consumers may unfortunately turn to, or consider, arson as an opportunity to rectify their financial problem,” Matthew Smith, executive director of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, told the Washington Examiner.

"We saw this coming out of the Great Recession, where there was a spike in claims, whether that involved homes, businesses, or automobiles. No one has the perfect crystal ball right now, but there’s every indication that we could the same or worse coming out of COVID-19."

Smith described a scenario where consumers or business owners feel "trapped and like they’re going to lose their life savings if they are not able to meet their financial obligation," either because they’ve lost their jobs or because consumer demand has slowed.