As debt grows, desperate car owners turn to fraud

LOS ANGELES (AP) - One sheriff’s investigator says people who normally wouldn’t steal a piece of candy but are driven to desperation, have been reporting their cars stolen to cash in on the insurance.
   
A growing number of financially strapped car owners are torching, sinking or ditching their vehicles in a practice known as owner give-ups.
   
Losses have been concentrated in regions hit hard by the economic meltdown.
   
SUVs have been found ablaze in Nevada, cars have been dumped in a Miami canal and a BMW was discovered buried in a field in Texas.
   
Authorities say most of the false claims are filed by first-time offenders looking for a quick financial fix without regard for consequences.
   
Experts say the insurance losses are recouped from honest consumers as premium increases.