ROCKVILLE, Md. -- Due to an increase in insurance scams involving car fires, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue investigators are being trained to detect vehicle arson.

Authorities in Montgomery County and other area jurisdictions reported seeing an increase in automobile owners having their cars burned and claiming that the cars were stolen.

"You've got individuals who maybe have financial problems or for whatever reason want to have their car stolen and burn it in order to ensure it's not recovered and returned to them," said Joseph Asplen, of Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund.

"We just got an arrest warrant for an individual who claims his car was stolen and we found out it wasn't and we charged him with arson," said Kenneth Korenblatt, of fire and explosive investigations.

Montgomery County authorities brought in fire and insurance investigators for a day of instruction on how to spot fraudulently burned vehicles. The course included burning cars in a controlled environment.

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There are certain tell-tale signs of an accidental fire, like the fire's point of origin.

"Most of your fires are under the hood fires, and that's because the majority of your heat sources are located in that area, plus you have an array of combustible or ignitable liquids, such as your power steering fluid, your brake fluid, your fuel obviously," said fire and explosives expert Tom Pavis.

But that isn't always the case, which is why the training is so important.