GEICO says two DME Companies ran $1.9M Phantom-Billing Scheme

www.Insurancebusinessmag.com, Tez Romero, September 29, 2026

What happened: GEICO alleges two DME shell companies billed $1.9 million for medically unnecessary equipment prescribed to fender-bender victims through forged prescriptions

Who's involved: GEICO (plaintiff) against two DME supply companies and their listed owners

What's at stake: More than $666,000 already paid, plus $952,000 in pending claims GEICO wants declared void

Why it matters: The filing maps a playbook for rotating shell DME entities to evade insurer scrutiny under New York No-Fault

Where it stands: Complaint filed September 28, 2026; no response on record

Two durable medical equipment companies, supposedly run by different people in different parts of the New York area, used the same phone number on their delivery receipts.

That detail sits near the middle of a 70-page complaint GEICO filed on September 28, 2026, in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York - but it is the thread the insurer says unravels the whole operation. The filing alleges Austin Supply Inc. and Mr. DME Inc. were shell companies controlled by an unidentified "secret owner" who used them in rotation to submit more than $1.9 million in what GEICO calls fraudulent No-Fault insurance claims for medical equipment that was either never needed, never properly prescribed, or never worth anything close to what was billed.

According to the complaint, GEICO has already paid more than $666,000 on those claims. Another $952,000 in charges remain pending. Continue article