Former California Adjuster Hit With 180-day Sentence for Stealing $130K

Former licensed public adjuster John Schoon, 54, of Huntington Beach, Calif., was sentenced to 180 days in county jail and five years of felony probation after pleading guilty to three felony counts of embezzlement and one felony count of forgery.

Schoon reportedly stole over $132,000 in claims proceeds for clients by forging signatures and guarantee stamps.

Schoon has already paid $12,000 in restitution and was ordered to pay an additional $52,311 as a condition of his probation. Additionally, Schoon is not to have any contact with his victims and is forbidden from engaging in insurance related activities.

According to California Department of Insurance investigators, Schoon, acting as World Wide Public Adjusters, negotiated checks by forging the signature of at least one of his clients and also forged endorsement guarantee stamps on behalf of that client’s mortgage company.

On Jan. 17, 2015, CDI revoked Schoon’s licensing rights and privileges; however, Schoon continued to act as a public adjuster under the license of his wife, Andrea Schoon, which she obtained one month later.

Interviews with several insureds that were represented by World Wide Public Adjusters Inc. revealed they entered into contracts with Schoon and not his wife, although the contracts listed her public adjuster license number.

On Sept. 12, 2016, Andrea Schoon’s public adjuster licensing rights were revoked.

Schoon reportedly continued to act as a public adjuster and on at least one occasion, using the public adjuster license number that belonged to a former colleague.

He failed to provide clients with the claim proceeds they were owed on multiple occasions, and lied to clients about the status of their payments and wrote fraudulent checks with no intention of providing them with their funds, while using those claims proceeds for personal expenses or to pay other clients.

This case was prosecuted by the Orange County District Attorney’s office.