Prairie State Wire

Fraud crimes such as identity theft and shopping scams cost Illinois $93.3 million last year during the COVID-19 pandemic, representing a nearly 160% increase more than the amount of fraud recorded in 2019, according to a study by QuoteWizard.com. 

The 2020 jump in fraud recorded in Illinois was the third-highest among the 50 states, based on percentage increases in consumer dollars lost due to deception, the insurance marketplace website reported. 

Nationwide, Americans paid out more than $2.3 billion last year due to an increasing number of fraud reports that corresponded with the coronavirus pandemic. Among all types of fraud, the fastest-growing categories in 2020 were scams involving employment opportunities and credit bureaus, the study found.

Rapid rises in deception reports were also found to be common among the states. Fraud instances rose by 20% or more in 20 states, according to QuoteWizard.com.

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The Cost of Fraud in Each State in 2020

Rank	State	% Increase in Dollars Lost 2019-2020	Total Loss in 2020
1	Nebraska	193.2%	$12,900,000
2	South Dakota	180.0%	$4,200,000
3	Illinois	159.9%	$93,300,000
4	Utah	157.0%	$23,900,000
5	Hawaii	151.6%	$15,600,000
6	Arizona	138.0%	$69,500,000
7	Nevada	137.0%	$36,500,000
8	Washington	134.5%	$68,700,000
9	Wisconsin	124.2%	$34,300,000
10	North Carolina	121.8%	$72,100,000
11	Florida	119.8%	$199,400,000
12	Georgia	118.9%	$71,800,000
13	New Mexico	115.9%	$24,400,000
14	New Jersey	115.5%	$71,100,000
15	Virginia	114.2%	$72,600,000
16	Michigan	113.0%	$57,500,000
17	California	111.9%	$400,900,000
18	South Carolina	107.1%	$35,200,000
19	New York	102.9%	$169,800,000
20	Pennsylvania	100.8%	$74,700,000
21	Oregon	100.6%	$32,100,000
22	Texas	99.1%	$203,100,000
23	Alabama	97.7%	$25,900,000
24	Maryland	96.8%	$55,100,000
25	Indiana	96.3%	$31,600,000
26	Tennessee	96.1%	$40,600,000
27	Minnesota	93.7%	$36,800,000
28	Louisiana	92.0%	$21,500,000
29	Oklahoma	85.3%	$18,900,000
30	Iowa	81.9%	$17,100,000
31	Ohio	79.6%	$58,000,000
32	Maine	78.8%	$5,900,000
33	Wyoming	78.3%	$4,100,000
34	Colorado	74.9%	$50,900,000
35	Connecticut	74.8%	$24,300,000
36	Rhode Island	70.8%	$4,100,000
37	Massachusetts	58.5%	$40,900,000
38	Vermont	56.5%	$3,600,000
39	Delaware	54.2%	$9,100,000
40	Kentucky	47.7%	$15,800,000
41	Kansas	47.5%	14,900,000
42	Missouri	43.9%	$40,300,000
43	Arkansas	43.8%	$13,800,000
44	Montana	43.6%	$5,600,000
45	West Virginia	42.4%	$9,400,000
46	Mississippi	39.0%	$10,700,000
47	Idaho	37.0%	$10,000,000
48	New Hampshire	21.2%	$6,300,000
49	North Dakota	11.1%	$3,000,000
50	Alaska	9.6%	$5,700,000

Source: QuoteWizard.com