Thomas Pollock, once an agent for St. Petersburg College, is accused of canceling a policy he sold the college and pocketing the premiums.
By MEGAN SCOTT
Published May 10, 2003
PALM HARBOR - A Palm Harbor man has surrendered his insurance licenses after pocketing nearly $119,000 in premiums from St. Petersburg College.
Thomas Pollock, 50, is accused of signing up the college to a cancer reimbursement insurance plan in 1990, then canceling the policy with the underwriter two years later.
Pollock kept collecting premiums from the college and did not tell administrators that he had canceled the plan. While he collected the premiums, Pollock also paid claims. The difference, $118,712, he kept.
"There are no unpaid claims that we know about," said Justin Glover, spokesman for the Florida Department of Financial Services. "But what if there was a large claim that Mr. Pollock was unable to pay? There's always that possibility."
Pollock voluntarily surrendered his licenses last week. He had been licensed as a life and health agent since 1987 and had been licensed to sell variable annuities since 1988. He will be able to reapply for a license in two years.
"It's up to the discretion of the Department of Financial Services," Glover said. "Past criminal history, surrendered licenses do have an impact on whether we will grant you an insurance license. He would need to demonstrate to us that he would be a trustworthy individual."
Pollock pleaded guilty in February to grand theft and the sale of unlicensed insurance because he accepted the risk of paying claims after he let the policy lapse.
The plan was a supplemental policy for faculty and staff that covered out-of-pocket expenses related to cancer, such as deductibles and co-pays generally not covered by primary health insurance.
Pollock was placed on three years probation and ordered to pay $40,000 to a victim restitution fund. He also was ordered to pay another $15,000 in fines, court and investigative costs.
Pollock could not be reached for comment this week. A woman who answered his home telephone hung up on a Times reporter who asked to speak to him.
Glover said after the insurance company was dropped, none of the St. Petersburg College employees had coverage under the cancer reimbursement insurance plan. Instead, when an employee filed a claim, Pollock used the money collected from the premiums to pay it off.
"Many consumer protections are afforded to consumers who buy from a licensed insurance company," Glover said. "A guarantee fund, in case a company goes bankrupt. It is also a possibility that the insured would have difficulty in obtaining new coverage" because their coverage lapsed. "In this case, there was no harm done, but there was certainly that potential."
Glover said it appears that the college was the only client that Pollock duped.
Douglas Duncan, the school's human resource director, said the college had added some preventive measures to make sure this doesn't happen again.
"Certainly we've audited the plan very closely," he said. "We're just very careful to make sure that in all these cases that we get certificates of insurance from the original companies."
Duncan discovered the discrepancy in April 2001 when the college was considering sending out the policy for other bids. There was no insurance company listed on the certificate of coverage.
He questioned Pollock, who provided him with another certificate of coverage, but Duncan called the underwriter and learned that the coverage had been canceled.
Duncan reported Pollock to the Florida Department of Insurance, which launched an investigation last summer.
Consumers are advised to make sure they receive a verified policy from the insurance carrier and that all claims are filed directly with the company.
"Always make checks payable to the insurance company and obtain the policy documents," Glover said. "You should have a card with your policy number and the coverage that is provided to you. If you do not receive this from your agent or company, call and ask questions."
