Being sold phony insurance plans and having personal information stolen for non-existent health ID cards have been growing concerns for many Americans. These health insurance scams now operate in most states, and in order to stop them, here are some warning signs that could save you from these fraudulent intruders:

1.    You receive a persistent barrage of phone and email messages or see fliers offering incredibly low-priced deals. If it’s cheap, you’re almost certainly not going to get the coverage you might want or expect — if anything at all.

2.    You’re pressured to “sign up now” because the deal won’t last. The sales rep may even demand your personal financial details before a “policy” can be issued.

3.    The scammer claims to be working for a government agency or working on an officially-sanctioned program. They may even use a term like “Obamacare” to describe the service they work for. There’s no such thing as “Obamacare.”

4.    Your supposed insurance card or policy just doesn’t turn up. If it’s genuine, you should expect to see it promptly.

5.    The rep contends that the policy is exempt from the need for state licensing because it comes under the provisions of a special federal law, such as ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act). This is not true.

If you have people in your life that count on you financially, then life insurance is critical. Finding the right one for you can be daunting, but there a few options to choose from.

Term life Insurance- Term Life insurance is where you select the number of years you would like to be covered in the event of your death. A 20 year term policy means that if you die within that 20 year period, your loved ones would receive a pre-selected amount of money. If the 20 years pass and you are still alive, the policy expires and has no value. All in all it is a policy that helps in covering potential need for life insurance in the short run.

Whole Life Insurance- this type of insurance is available in a variety of options. Whole life insurance is considered a more traditional type as it locks in a fixed premium rate. It also involves investments of your money that may or may not be returned to the policy holder in the form of a dividend. If the market rises, your dividends will be higher. Your expenses will be fixed.

Universal life insurance Instead of flat premiums, you get to choose how much money you put into the investment of this policy. Although the carrier still determines when and how to invest the moneys, you can expect higher yield options to pay more in a bull market. Many such policies also include a provision that lets you apply your accumulated cash account against your annual premiums – a plus if you want your money to start working for you. These policies are considered to be most difficult of all the insurance contracts.

While you cannot predict when you will die, you can guarantee that the financial future for your loved ones will be secure. Take into account both the type of coverage you select and how much it costs.

When considering life insurance, the first thing that comes to most people’s minds is, “how much do I need?” There are two common approaches to determining and calculating how much insurance you should buy: the needs approach and the replacement-income approach.

Using the needs approach, you add up the amounts that represent all the needs
your family will have after your death including all of the expenses that they will need for other future expenses. The needs approach, however, is somewhat limiting. The task of identifying and tallying family needs is difficult, and separating the true needs of your family from what you want for them is often impossible. Common essentials represented in the needs approach includes:

• Funeral and burial costs
• Uninsured medical expenses
• Estate taxes
• Your child’s college tuition
• Business or personal debts
• Food and housing expenses over time

Using the replacement-income approach for estimating life insurance requirements,
you calculate the life insurance proceeds that would replace your earnings over a
specified number of years after your death. Life insurance companies sometimes approximate your replacement income at four or five times your annual income. A more precise estimation considers:

• The actual amount your family members need annually
• The number of years for which they will need this amount
• The interest rate your family will earn on the life insurance proceeds, as well as inflation over the years during which your family draws on the life insurance proceeds.

Insurance quotes and life insurance rates are two different things. While the life insurance quote is an estimate of how much premium you will have to pay the insurance company to get a policy, the actual term life insurance rates will vary depending on certain factors. The most common factors in determining insurance rates are personal factors. This includes gender, age, family history, alcohol or drug use (includes smoking tobacco), and what the medical examiner says about your overall health.

• An unhealthy or terminally sick person will seem more risky and will therefore result in a higher life insurance rate.
• Age is a pre-dominant of the geographic determinants for insurance rates. Typically someone who is in their mid-twenties is less likely to die from complications due to old age. Therefore, providers will take into account your age as a factor for determining your insurance rates.
• Gender is another geographic determinant for life insurance rates. Women have been statistically proven to live longer than men and often outlive their policies and, therefore, they  often get a lower rate than men.
• Whether or not you smoke can also affect life insurance rates. Life insurance companies take into account the fact that tobacco users are twice as likely to die as non-tobacco users while they are insured. It has been estimated that you can save from 20% to 30% on premiums by quitting smoking.
• Another factor attributed to insurance rates is occupation. If you work in a dangerous occupation, such as a job on a ship that carries gas, this will put you into a higher bracket when it comes to getting rates for term insurance. You will have to shop around to compare term life insurance quotes if you are in this category.

Premiums are based on risk-factors. The higher the risk associated with a person, the more he or she is likely to pay for coverage. Although there are many ways insurance premiums increase, these were a few of the commonly overlooked ones.

• If you’ve had a speeding ticket or other violation prior to an accident, you might be deemed an at-risk driver and are more likely to be given a higher premium. Each insurance company has different policies and standards, but they look at your overall propensity towards accidents. Even if the accident was not your fault, your premium can still go up.
• The number of accidents you are in directly affects your premium. You could be in six no-fault accidents, and your carrier could still raise your rates. Insurance companies feel that you must hold some fault for being in so many accidents, whether you are accident prone or just unlucky.
• Insurance fraud also plays a small factor in this equation. Many people “stage” accidents to reap settlements from insurance companies. A high number of no-fault accidents might raise a red-flag with an insurance company.
• Geography is another factor that could increase your premium. If you were to move from an area with little to no traffic to a highly congested city or suburb then your premium will likely go up due to the increase in the potential for accidents.

Owning and maintaining a car can be quite expensive, but it doesn’t have to leave you under a pile of debt. Here are some ways that you can lower your auto insurance premiums.

• Buying a new car: One of the main factors determining your premium is the car itself- and its risks and safety rating.
• Credit has improved: Like it or not, insurance companies are looking more at your credit as a factor in determining premiums. Simply put, the better your credit the lower your premium will be.
• Miles driven decrease: The more you are on the road, the higher the risk you are. By driving less it can ultimately decrease your insurance premium.
• Getting married: Being married proves to Insurance companies that you are less risky, and are deemed worthy of getting a premium discount.
• Graduating: Many insurers offer discounts to alumni of certain universities. Insurance companies will offer a lower premium to those with a degree, because they are lower risk clients. 
• Safe driving: If you go for several years without an accident or ticket, then it is likely that your insurance company will forgive you for all past incidents and your premium will be lowered.
• Use one Insurance company: Group all of your insurance policies – auto, home/renters, etc. – at one insurance company, and you’ll earn a multi-line discount, good for up to 10% off of your total premium.