Zenith Insurance Company Sues Chiropractor William Wu for Unfair Business Practices

March 12, 2004 04:57 PM US Eastern Timezone

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 12, 2004--Zenith National Insurance Corp. (NYSE:ZNT) announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, Zenith Insurance Company ("Zenith"), has sued San Diego County chiropractor William Wu under California's Unfair Competition Law for unlawful and fraudulent billing acts and practices.

The lawsuit, filed in San Diego County Superior Court, alleges that Dr. Wu has defrauded Zenith and California employers by billing for work conditioning and other services that were not in fact rendered to workers. The lawsuit further alleges that Dr. Wu, who has offices in San Diego, Encinitas, Fallbrook and Blythe, violated various criminal and civil statutes prohibiting insurance fraud by making unlawful referrals of workers for MRIs, nerve conduction studies, interpretation services and other services and by unlawfully splitting fees with persons to whom referrals were made. Although Dr. Wu and his chiropractic corporation presently are the only named defendants, Zenith anticipates amending the Complaint to join additional defendants. The Complaint seeks a permanent injunction as well as restitution for monies paid to Dr. Wu.

The lawsuit against Dr. Wu continues Zenith's efforts to combat workers' compensation fraud by health care providers who are taking advantage of a system that is designed to help injured workers. Zenith, a specialty workers' compensation insurer headquartered in Woodland Hills, California, has been committed for many years to taking the profit out of fraud.