Feb 28 2026

Were you in a wreck? Tips for auto insurance claims

It helps to know what will happen with your insurance claim after you’re in a wreck. Use these tips to learn what to do and what to expect.

  1. At the accident scene

If no one was injured, move out of the road. If someone was injured or the other driver drove away, call the police. Get a copy of the police report for your insurance company.  If you can’t drive your car, the police will call a tow truck driver. You can tell them to take it to a car storage lot or body shop of your choice.

Get this information for your claim:

  1. Collect the other driver’s information. Take a picture of their insurance card and driver’s license. If they don’t have an insurance card, ask for their name, phone number, insurance company name, and policy number. Give the other driver your information.
  2. Take pictures. Get pictures of the other cars involved, including license plates and damage. Also get pictures of street signs and road angles.
  3. Talk to witnesses. Ask for names and phone numbers. 
  4. Write down details. Include the location, time of the wreck, weather conditions, and what happened.
  5. After you get home
    • Call your insurance company to report the accident.
    • Get the name and phone number of the adjuster assigned to your claim.
    • If you go to a doctor, keep medical records and bills to show your insurance company.
  6. Getting your car repaired

Your insurance company might give you a list of body shops, but you can take your car to any shop you choose. Before you leave your car, read any agreement the body shop gives you.

Your insurance company will give you a repair estimate. If it costs more to repair your car, the body shop will give your insurance company a new estimate. Your company will pay for the extra repairs if it agrees with the estimate.

  1. The other driver was at fault

If you think the other driver caused the accident, you can report the wreck to the other driver’s insurance company. Their insurance should pay for your car repair, medical bills, and a rental car.

If the other insurance company won’t pay the full amount or refuses to pay, file a claim with your company. Your insurance company will try to recover the money, including your deductible, from the other driver’s insurance and give your deductible back.

  1. The other driver didn’t have insurance or drove away

Most auto policies include collision coverage that will pay for your car repairs. Your auto policy might have medical payments and personal injury protection coverage that will pay medical bills.

For more information, click here.

Teaching Suggestions:

  • Ask students if they or their family members had filed an insurance claim after a car accident.  If so, what was the outcome?
  • Ask students what steps should be taken if they are in a car accident.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why is it important to take pictures of the cars involved in an accident?
  2. If your car needs repairs, must you take your car to a repair shop recommended by your insurance company?
  3. What should you do if you believe the other driver caused an accident?
Feb 14 2026

Looking for health insurance? Make sure that’s what you’re getting

Are you looking to get or switch your health insurance? Know that some dishonest marketers might lie about what your plan would cover, make it seem like they’re selling health insurance when you’re just getting a discount plan, or try to sell you something else entirely.

If you’re looking for health insurance, make sure that’s what you’re buying:

  • Don’t decide on the spot. Get details in writing before you sign up. If the marketer won’t give you information in writing about the plan’s benefits and limitations before you give a credit card number or other payment information, that’s a major red flag.
  • Review the plan documents carefully and make sure it’s what you want. Is it health insurance, a medical discount plan, or something else? Call your health care providers directly to find out if it would cover your care, and how much it would cost you for things like going to the emergency room or being admitted to the hospital. Call before you enroll or pay any fees.
  • Search online for any company or plan name listed in the documents with the words “complaint,” “scam,” or “fraud.” Read reviews and see what others have to say.

Spot a misleading ad? Tell the FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

For more information, click here.
 
Teaching Suggestions:

  • Ask students if they know the difference between health insurance and a medical discount plan.
  • Ask students to make a list of steps to take if they want to get or switch their health insurance.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why is it important to get details of your medical plan and review it carefully before you sign up?
  2. How do you check if your medical plan provider is a legitimate business?
Jan 31 2026

Do you need life insurance?

Think about your age, your financial situation, and if you have people who depend on your income. If you do decide to shop for life insurance, here are some things to consider.

1.   How much life insurance do you need?

Life insurance is there to help your loved ones with financial needs if you aren’t there anymore. Consider your mortgage and other debts, how much income would need to be replaced, money to cover a funeral, and college for the kids. Add those up, and you’ll have a good idea of how much insurance you’ll need.

2.   Term or permanent?

There are two main categories of life insurance:

Term life insurance is the simplest and least expensive option. It covers you for a set period of time. You might consider term life insurance when you have a family that depends on your financial support or while you have a mortgage. For example, you may want a term life policy that lasts until your children are out of school.

Permanent life insurance provides coverage for your entire life as long as you keep up the payments. Because of the length of coverage, it costs more than term life insurance. These policies may have features that offer a cash value that can be used to invest or pay some of the premiums later in life. Permanent life policies are complicated so it’s best to talk to a financial planner when deciding if one is right for you. If you do buy a permanent life policy, make sure to check with your agent each year to see how the policy is doing and if you need to adjust your payments.

3.   How much will it cost?

Insurance companies consider things like your age, health, job, and tobacco and alcohol use when setting prices. It will cost more to purchase life insurance as you get older and if you have health problems. Some companies may require a medical exam before selling you life insurance.

4.   Who will benefit?

You can leave money to a spouse, children, other family member, or friend. This is known as the policy’s beneficiary. You can also name an institution as your beneficiary, such as a business or charity. And you can choose more than one beneficiary and specify how the money will be divided.

For more information, click here.

Teaching Suggestions:

  • Ask students what is the primary purpose of life insurance?
  • How do you determine an appropriate amount of life insurance?

Discussion Questions:

  1. How do you evaluate your need for life insurance?
  2. What is the difference between term or permanent life insurance?
  3. Should you start budgeting for your life insurance premiums while you are still young and healthy?
Jan 17 2026

STORING YOUR FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS

Apartment lease, insurance policies, credit card receipts. These are just a few of the many financial documents you may encounter. To maintain control over these records, consider a system of paper copies, digital versions, or both.

When sorting and tossing financial documents, be sure to keep these documents for the time suggested:

  • Tax records – seven years; unless you have a simple tax return, then three years
  • Bank, investment statements – keep annual statements indefinitely
  • Estate plan documents, social security card, birth certificate, marriage, divorce, adoption records – indefinitely
  • Insurance policies – only keep current policies, not expired ones
  • Loan documents – until debt is paid off
  • Real estate transactions – three years after closing
  • Proof of ownership (titles) – as long as item is owned
  • Medical bills – one year after paid

When in doubt as to the length of time to keep an item, create a digital copy of the financial document. Paper copies should be shredded when the document is no longer needed.

Three common options for the physical storage of documents are:

  1. A locked cabinet allows you to have easy access to financial records in your home. Beware that the contents may be accessed by a thief or damaged by a fire or flood.  
  2. A fireproof safe offers greater protection. However, it could be stolen without proper precautions such as bolting it to the floor.
  3. A safe-deposit box at a bank (for a fee) can provide greater security for your documents and valuables.

Digital storage of documents might include your home computer, an external drive, or a cloud service, such as Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft One Drive, iCloud or Amazon Cloud Drive. For your digital documents:

  • download from the source (or scan) each document, saving them into folders by type of record
  • secure your information using password protection, file encryption and two-factor authentication
  • back up your data on a regular basis

A hybrid system (physical and digital) is often recommended. Then, if paper copies are lost or destroyed, or computer files crash, you are protected with access to the other source.

Organizing financial paperwork to allow access by family members is especially important for estate plan documents. Your attorney can store original documents. Online document storage services for estate planning can be located with an Internet search.

The main documents that should be part of an estate plan file are:

  • Will or trust; Powers of attorney for finances and health care
  • Organ donation form; Living will; HIPAA release
  • Letter of instruction for your heirs; beneficiary designations; password list
  • Bank and investment statements; retirement account documents
  • Real estate deeds and titles; life insurance policies; funeral instructions
  • List of important personal property, such as jewelry, artwork, and estimated values

Updating estate plan documents when a life change occurs is vital. Your attorney can assist with this process whenever a death, birth of a grandchild, divorce, or sale of property takes place. An annual review of your estate documents is also recommended.  

For additional information on storing financial documents, go to:

Link #1

Link #2

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students list the financial documents and records they currently use.
  • Have students create a visual to communicate the system they might use for storing their financial documents.

Discussion Questions 

  1. What features would you recommend for an effective and efficient financial document storage system?
  2. Describe financial difficulties and money management concerns that could occur if a person doesn’t have an appropriate financial documents storage system.
Jan 3 2026

DID YOU KNOW THAT WHERE YOU LIVE MAKES SAVING EASIER?

The state you live in can influence how well you’re able to save money. A bankrate.com study analyzed economic conditions, interest rates for certificates of deposit (CDs) and high-yield savings accounts, and taxes to rate the places easiest to save.

The ten states that were most favorable to savers were Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Kentucky, South Dakota, Louisiana, Indiana, and Michigan.  Many of these states have areas with a low cost of living. Some don’t have state income taxes, these include Florida, Tennessee, South Dakota, and Texas.

In contrast, the ten states that were least favorable for savers were Hawaii, Connecticut, Vermont, California, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Washington, New York, and Oregon. These states tend to have a higher cost of living; many of them have higher taxes.

No matter where you live, you can increase your savings by:

  • using a budgeting app to maintain a complete record of your finances. By tracking your spending, you can target an amount each month for saving.
  • automating your monthly saving with online transfers to a separate account. 
  • researching online banks to take advantage of higher savings rates for CDs, money-market accounts, and high-yield savings accounts in other geographic locations. 

For additional information on the best saving states, go to:

Link #1

Link #2

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students obtain suggestions from others on how to increase their savings.
  • Have students search online for websites and AI prompts that would help them increase their savings.

Discussion Questions 

  1. Other than the interest rate, what features of a savings account might be considered when deciding where to save?
  2. Describe actions a person might take to obtain a higher return on their savings.
Dec 20 2025

LOW-TECH BANK SCAMMERS

Digital scams and fraud reported by banks are increasing, and not all involve new technology. Many of these deceptions involve low-tech human error. 

Fraud involves an unauthorized person accessing your bank account to make purchases or other transactions. While scams occur when a criminal tricks a person into sending money under false pretenses.

Social engineering scams involve a fraudster attempting to trick a victim into sending them money.  This cybercrime may occur as phishing (by email), vishing (voice messages), or smishing (text messages).

To protect yourself, cybersecurity experts suggest the following:

  • Confirm that a sender’s email is valid. Scammers use similar but slightly different email addresses than the official ones.
  • Don’t click on suspicious links, which could result in going to a false website.
  • Be skeptical of messages with generic greetings and signatures; also, beware of poor grammar and spelling in the message.
  • Avoid downloading attachments in suspicious, unsolicited messages.
  • Verify money requests. Be sure to look up a company’s legitimate phone number and address online rather than the one provided in an email.
  • Beware of the safety of your phone and home computer.  You may have accidentally checked a box in the past to allow access to what you thought was a “trusted” device.

For additional information on bank scams and fraud, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students talk to others to obtain suggestions for avoiding scams and fraud.
  • Have students create a one-minute podcast with a scam example and how to avoid it.

Discussion Questions 

  1. What suggestions might be offered to a bank or credit union to help them inform their customers about how to avoid scams and fraud?
  2. Describe actions a person might take if they were a victim of a scam or fraud.

Dec 6 2025

AI-Proof Your Career

Artificial Intelligence (AI), as with any new technology, creates a changing job market. While news stories may produce fear among workers, be reminded that new technologies always create a need for adapted job skills. In the case of AI, career experts recommend: (1) focusing on skills that humans do best, and (2) adapting to what AI can help you do better.

The skills that humans do best involve activities related to emotional intelligence, ethics, and creativity. For ongoing career success, develop soft skills in the areas of communication, empathy, leadership, teamwork, and negotiation. In addition, enhance critical thinking abilities to question assumptions and analyze complex situations. Also important is improved creativity related to designing, writing, innovation, and generating ideas.

These high-touch human skills, which are harder to automate, are essential in jobs requiring trust, collaboration, and intricate decision-making. Career fields requiring in-person contact and discernment include healthcare, counseling, teaching, mentoring, therapy, customer experience, coaching, legal guidance, technical trades, crisis support, and creative and performance arts.

Since every worker will be affected by AI, basic technical competency is necessary. A well-prepared career person will need to be AI-literate. While you don’t have to be a programmer or software engineer, your AI skills should include:

  • knowledge of the capabilities and limitations of AI.
  • an ability to write clear, complete prompts to optimize responses.
  • using AI tools for workflows and other career tasks.
  • awareness of current AI trends and applications in your industry.

Using AI as your productivity partner means you will be able to leverage it to automate repetitive tasks, brainstorm ideas, develop preliminary drafts, and suggest analyses.

Ongoing learning and continually updating your skills is vital. Actions to achieve these competencies include taking online courses, earning AI certifications, joining online AI forums, starting an AI club, building a personal project, learning a programming language such as Python, and subscribing to AI and machine language YouTube channels.

While AI won’t replace all jobs, it will impact every worker in some way. To best prepare for the future, blend basic tech competency with strong human skills and seek opportunities for learning and growth. The most successful employees will be those who collaborate with AI and do what technology cannot do. 

For additional information on AI proofing your career, go to:

Link #1

Link #2

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students identify online resources to enhance their AI skills.
  • Have students create a plan to enhance their soft skills for ongoing career success.

Discussion Questions 

  1. What soft skills might be most valuable for a person’s ongoing career success?
  2. Describe actions a person might take to better use AI for their daily activities and work tasks.

Nov 22 2025

“DARK PATTERNS” COSTING TRAVELERS MONEY

Dark patterns are deceptive tactics that manipulate airline customers into paying more than they plan. These psychological tricks can result in a traveler having higher costs as much as double.

These manipulation techniques can occur at various stages of the booking process and include:

  • False scarcity may appear as “Only 2 seats left” to create artificial urgency for higher-priced fare options. Making a quick decision does not allow time to compare prices.
  • Artificial urgency with countdown timers ticking to imply that you only have a few minutes to guarantee your fare or finalize your booking.
  • Fake social pop-ups manipulate you to think that many other travelers are currently considering the same flight. This tactic implies that if you don’t book soon, someone else will take the available seat.
  • Aggressive pop-ups involve prompts at checkout that push upgrades with a prominent, visually appealing button. Remember, the option you initially selected is probably perfectly suitable for your needs. 
  • Bait-and-switch pricing starts with an attractive “bargain fare” without details related to airline, flight times, or restrictions. After you make payment, you realize the schedule or restrictions are no bargain. 
  • FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) warnings are created with intimidating red boxes to make the least expensive fares sound terrible. The fear-mongering notes point out restrictions and inconvenience to create anxiety and encourage paying extra to avoid the imagined hassles. 
  • Forced choice prompts require that you clearly accept or decline add-ons like travel insurance.  A hurried traveler may click “yes” to quickly move forward resulting in an unexpected higher cost.

Actions that can help to avoid these deceptive tactics that result in higher costs include:

  • Browsing in “incognito mode” to prevent an airline from tracking your search history and possibly raising prices based on your interest for a specific flight.  
  • Refreshing your search results to clear any fake warnings and timers.
  • Using “meta-search” engines (such as Skyscanner, Kayak, Google Flights) for obtaining fare information without upsells and manipulation tactics.
  • Checking-in online later in the process when better seats might be available for no upcharge.
  • Reviewing the total cost, not just the basic fare, to make sure the bottom line (after fees and taxes) is still the best deal.

For additional information on travel dark patterns, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students talk to others or use AI to obtain suggestions for getting the best airfares and bargains when buying other goods and services.
  • Have students create a podcast with tips to warn others of deceptive tactics that can result in paying higher airfares.

Discussion Questions 

  1. What tactics discussed in this article have you observed or experienced when making an online purchase?
  2. Describe actions a person might take to avoid deceptive online marketing tactics.
Nov 8 2025

A FINANCE COLUMNIST SCAMMED FOR $50,000

No one is exempt from being a victim of fraud, not even a financial advice columnist.  Charlotte Cowles, a writer for New York Magazine, had reported about the scam experiences of others but then she became a target.

In October of 2023, as Charlotte began her normal weekday routine, she received a phone call at about noon. The caller, who was professional and articulate, was contacting Charlotte about suspicious activity on her Amazon account.  Charlotte was told that thousands of dollars of electronic equipment had been bought through her Amazon business account. When Charlotte told the caller she didn’t have a business account, the caller said, “it looks like one has been opened under your name.”

Next, Charlotte was introduced to a person who claimed to be an investigator from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This person established credibility by providing Charlotte’s address, social security number, and names of family members. The alleged FTC person indicated that Charlotte was being investigated for fraud, money laundering, and other criminal activity since her identity was stolen and being used by others. Dangers to Charlotte and her family were also mentioned.

While Charlotte thought she was being conned, there were no red flags such as asking for money or buying crypto.  Next, she was told her assets would need to be frozen but first to withdraw enough to live on for a year ($50,000).  The bank teller was surprised at the amount but completed the transaction.

She was next told that she would be met by a “CIA colleague” to make sure she and the money were safe. She was assured that the money would be deposited into a new bank account for her. The entire process took place over a six-hour period.  Throughout the ordeal Charlotte felt increasing fear for herself and her family, which is why she followed the instructions of these alleged government officials. The next day she was to have an appointment at the social security office, which never occurred. This is when Charlotte realized she was conned.

She then contacted her brother, a lawyer, and filed reports with the police, FBI, and FTC. Charlotte contacted her bank to secure her other assets but won’t be getting her $50,000 back. She also ran anti-virus software to check for malware on her computer and changed the locks on her apartment door.

Despite her previous knowledge of scams and fraud, these circumstances seemed different and real to Charlotte.  When telling her story publicly, people were shocked since Charlotte was far from the “typical” victim. Her online persona and easy access to personal information by scammers was the basis of the scam. Charlotte noted “the psychological aftermath of being scammed is devastating. It’s such a violating experience and a lot of people have real anxiety and paranoia afterwards. They also feel ashamed, so these scams are wildly under-reported as a result. But if telling my story helps lift the guilt and shame for others, that’s also very gratifying.”  We are all vulnerable.

For additional information on this scam story, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

  • Have students talk to others to learn about any experiences with fraud or scams.
  • Have students create a podcast or visual proposal (poster or slide presentation) with suggestions for avoiding identity theft and scams.

Discussion Questions 

  1. What actions might have been taken to avoid this scam?
  2. Describe actions you might take to avoid identity theft and scams.   
Oct 25 2025

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT DEDUCTIBLES  

Here are some things to know about deductibles when deciding what policy to buy.

  1. Know the math

A deductible may be a specific dollar amount or a percentage. If a policy has a deductible that’s a percentage, make sure you know how that translates to a dollar amount. Here are two examples for homes insured for $150,000:

  • Policy A has a $500 deductible. A hail storm destroys the home’s roof, and the cost for repairs is $6,500. Policy A will pay $6,000 of the cost to repair the roof.
  • Policy B has a 5 percent deductible – or $7,500. If the home needed $6,500 in roof repairs, Policy B would not pay anything because the amount of repairs is less than the deductible.

2. Know when it applies

Deductibles for home and auto policies work differently than deductibles for health policies.

For health policies, the deductible usually covers a year.

For home and auto policies, the deductible will be applied to each claim. If you have a wreck in February and your car gets broken into in June, your insurance company will subtract the same deductible amount from the damages of each claim before paying.

3. Know what works for you

In general, the higher the deductible, the lower the cost for the policy. When deciding what deductible is right for you, think about how much you can afford to pay if your property is damaged. Remember that filing small claims may affect how much you have to pay for insurance later. Switching from a $500 deductible to a $1,000 deductible can save as much as 20 percent on the cost of your insurance premium payments.

For more information, go to: What to know about deductibles

Teaching Suggestions:

  • Ask students what deductibles they have on their automobile and home insurance.  What factors did they consider to determine their deductibles?
  • Have students talk to friends and relatives to determine methods of reducing home and auto insurance premiums.

 Discussion Questions:

  1. What are some arguments in favor of and against higher deductibles?
  2. What should be the main factors used to determine methods of reducing the cost of home and auto insurance?