Insurance World

Insurance is meant to protect you. But scams out there can make buying insurance dangerous. These schemes can cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars, and leave you and your family without vital insurance protection. Here’s what to watch out for:

Scams

• Steal your premiums-An agent takes your premium check but doesn’t buy you the promised insurance. Instead, the agent steals your money. You aren’t protected, and may not know this until you make a claim.

• Sliding-An agent secretly slips extra features into your policy (such as motor club membership, legal defense coverage, accidental death coverage, guaranteed renewable life, towing coverage). Hidden “extras” that may be worthless can add up to $200 or more to your premium.

• Churning-You’re conned into dropping a perfectly good life insurance policy and buying an expensive one you don’t need. Example: Cashing out your valuable whole life policy to buy a “better” one. You lose years of built-up cash value and have to start all over again. Seniors, especially, should watch out.

• Fake insurance-You’re sold fake insurance (often from a company that isn’t licensed or doesn’t even exist) such as auto coverage, or health insurance for your business.

Fortunately, you can protect yourself. The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud offers these money-saving tips:

• Call your state insurance department and make sure both agent and insurer are licensed.

• Normally, you should make your premium check out to the insurance company, instead of the agent. Call the insurance company within 60 days to confirm you’re covered.

• Read all insurance documents thoroughly before you buy. Insist that the policy is clearly explained point by point, in plain English. Also have a trusted relative or financial expert review. Demand a point-by-point comparison with your current policy. Do you need this new policy? Is it better than your current one?

• Go slow if the price of coverage seems too low to be true.

• Back off if you get vague answers to your questions, or you’re pressured to “sign up now because this special deal expires today.”

• Never sign a blank insurance form, and get copies of all forms.

• Be wary of door-to-door salespeople or e-mail pitches.

If you are pregnant, are considering becoming pregnant, or have someone on your health insurance plan that is pregnant or will become pregnant and especially if you live in the state of Florida then this is “The Maternity Insurance Article” for you. The aim of this article is to explain some of the maternity options available to you and to debunk some common myths concerning maternity insurance, maternity riders, maternity discount plans, and other types of maternity coverage.

First of all, if you are a Florida resident and you are pregnant and do not have maternity coverage then you will not be eligible for maternity coverage under an individual health insurance plan. Those with the foresight to plan ahead and purchase some type of maternity coverage before they become pregnant are rewarded while those who wait until they are actually pregnant are of course not afforded individual maternity coverage. (If you are pregnant and have access to a group plan through you or your spouses’ employer then now is the time to seriously inquire about your enrollment options as many group health insurance plans usually cover maternity just as they do any other illness). Naturally, sick people always want health insurance and people with a pregnancy in the family always want some form of maternity insurance.

If you are not pregnant and would like to add on additional maternity coverage to your individual health insurance plan then there are a few things that you should know. Most individual health insurance policies will allow you some measure of maternity coverage in the form of a rider for an additional cost. It is quite common for a maternity rider to have a waiting period of at least 12 months before they pay out any type of maternity benefit. Still some other maternity riders, such as the one that Golden Rule/United Healthcare offers in Florida allow full benefits to be paid up to a set amount after 12 months and 50% of the benefit paid out beginning immediately.

So how much does a pregnancy in our example state of Florida really cost anyway? How much of a maternity benefit should I be certain to have? How much can I anticipate paying out of pocket for the pregnancy and related expenses? These are all important questions and the answer may be, “Not quite as much as you at first think.” According to FloridaCompare.gov the statewide average charge for a normal delivery is $1,689 while the statewide average charge for a cesarean section is $14,458. As you can see there is quite a range in the cost depending on if there are any complications present during the pregnancy.

The important thing is to know the options that are available to you and to obtain maternity insurance and health insurance before you need it!

To compare multiple quotes from top health insurance companies like United Healthcare, Aetna, and Humana simply view free health insurance quotes.