Surrey chiropractor ordered to pay nearly $20,000 for fraud against ICBC
Posted August 17, 2017 10:30 am.
Last Updated August 17, 2017 11:05 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS 1130) – A Surrey chiropracter will have to pay nearly $20,000 after committing fraud against ICBC.
Dr. Maninder Singh Badyal, the owner of the Absolute Health and Wellness Clinic, was convicted earlier this year after billing the insurance provider for treatments that were never performed.
Chris Fairbridge with ICBC’s Special Investigations Unit says one person complained about being billed for several visits, when they only went in once.
“[That] led to the court case and 11 patients coming into court… giving a similar story. Essentially we were billed for work that wasn’t done.”
Badyal will have to pay a $10,000 fine and $9,600 in restitution. He’ll have the fraud charge on his employment record and his future in the industry is also under question.
“That’s going to be left up to the College of Chiropractors. We’re not involved in that end of things. I understand that they are aware of [this incident] and they’ll certainly be looking at those things in the future,” says Fairbridge.
He adds if you see any irregularities on your bill, you should call an ICBC adjuster.
“Rarely do we see this with any of our suppliers. But occasionally, they do happen. Fortunately in this case, we identified it and the fellow was convicted.”
ICBC says fraud is costing British Columbians up to $600 million per year, which is more than $100 on every insurance policy.
