Photo/Illutration A Bigmotor Co. used car lot (Yuki Kubota)

One major insurance company has admitted to being reluctant to look into suspicious activity at Bigmotor Co. repair shops despite the alarm being raised by one of the insurer’s own representatives.

Officials of Sompo Japan Insurance Inc. said an employee who was dispatched to Bigmotor filed a report last summer alleging that a repair shop chief ordered subordinates to carry out improper actions.

Yet Sompo Japan merely temporarily suspended a business arrangement it had with Bigmotor. It did not dig deeply into the report because the priority was simply to ensure no repeat, Sompo Japan officials said.

Sompo Japan apologized for not investigating further.

At one time or another, Bigmotor has been the repair service of choice for three major insurance companies.

Sompo Japan, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co. and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. all recommended that their policyholders use Bigmotor to repair their vehicles following an accident.

In exchange, Bigmotor outlets sold auto insurance for the three companies. Sompo Japan was the largest of the three in terms of policies sold at Bigmotor outlets, an insurance sector source said.

The relationship included exchanges of staff. The three insurers dispatched representatives to Bigmotor outlets to help sell policies and to show how to file the paperwork needed for insurance payments.

In early 2022, all three companies became aware that Bigmotor was inflating claims for insurance payouts by damaging vehicles or by doing unnecessary repairs, among other ruses.

In June, all three companies asked Bigmotor to look into the allegations. At the same time they ceased recommending Bigmotor to policyholders.

Several insurance sector sources said the problems at Bigmotor were attributed to inexperienced mechanics, not supervisors instructing them to damage vehicles.

Tokio and Mitsui officials were not satisfied and asked for a more thorough investigation. However, sources said Sompo Japan was less enthusiastic about pursuing the matter and in late July it resumed recommending Bigmotor to policyholders involved in accidents.

Hiroyuki Kaneshige, the Bigmotor president, apologized and pledged that such acts would not be repeated, Sompo Japan officials said. That apology was enough for Sompo Japan to name Bigmotor once again as the repairer of choice.

But in September, Sompo Japan again stopped directing policyholders to Bigmotor repair shops because of new suspicions of an organization-wide scheme to defraud insurers through payment claims.

On July 25, Kaneshige announced his resignation as president of Bigmotor.

It is no surprise that none of the three major insurance companies currently urge policyholders to take their vehicles to Bigmotor for repairs.

Related News