Coffelt Land Title, Inc., a title insurance agency operating throughout Missouri and Kansas, was one of several agencies recognized by underwriter Alliant National for their successful prevention of fraud.
Jessica Wackerman, who works at Coffelt as a title searcher and examiner, noticed a potentially fraudulent transaction while examining a series of files on three properties involving one buyer.
“Looking at all of them together, I noticed some issues with the deeds as far as the same formatting, the spelling of grantor and grantee names, as well as notary names,” she said. “I then did some digging and found lots of issues, such as finding death information on one individual.”
After noticing this and collecting the requisite information, she quickly notified her contact at Alliant National and sent in copies of the questionable deeds and commitments.
Taken together, these various properties represented a potential fraud amount of nearly $20,000, pointing to the importance of vigilance when it comes to detecting and reporting fraud.
Through the Crime Watch program, agents receive monetary awards for detecting and preventing fraud
“Alliant National’s Crime Watch program is a great thing for the agents and underwriter,” Wackerman said. “It protects everyone, but it also ensures that the agents are looking into anything that might seem a little suspicious. The incentive is a nice reward for doing the research to produce all the information.
“I think all title companies need to be more aware of the fraud that is happening in their markets. They should not act under the assumption that it won’t happen to them or their customers,” she said.
In 2022, Alliant National agents, through the company’s Crime Watch program, collectively reported 12 instances of attempted fraud, totaling a potential liability amount of $1.8 million. In recognition of these agent sleuths, Alliant issued $12,000 in awards. In addition to Wackerman, those recipients include:
- Siesta Title Escrow and Services, Florida, Amanda Pertuch and Claire Hooper
- Title Professionals of Florida, Florida, David Lanaux
- Alliance Nationwide Title Agency, Missouri,Daniel Onwiler
- Alliance Nationwide Title Agency, Kansas, Ben Chapman
- Coastal Title Services, Florida, Brianna Steel
- Legacy Title & Escrow, Florida, Kathy Morgan
- Caldwell County Abstract and Title Co., Missouri Megan Eitel and Amanda McGinley
- Sunrise Title Services, Florida, Adaliz Alvarez
- First International Title, Florida, Natia Johnson