Everyone is hoping that when it comes to cars, they can get the cheapest auto insurance out there. However, the one question that keeps coming up is the question of is it a scam because it is so cheap? What if it is a phishing site just trying to steal my information. How can I tell if it is legit or not? Well we will go over 2 auto insurance scams to be on the look out for and 2 ways to avoid them.
Robo Calls
If someone calls you and when you answer there is a person or an automated voice on the other line telling you that you qualify for low insurance, it is a scam. What these people do is ask for your personal information acting as if it is going to be for finalizing an application that you probably never even started in the first place.
They will then take that information and steal your identity and because they have you on tape willingly giving your information it can be hard to fight them and get your life back. In fact, these scams are one of the reasons that people end up going bankrupt because they consented to giving these people their information to essentially steal their lives.
Insurance Agent
Sometimes an insurance agent will draw you in with the promise of a low insurance rate only to raise it by what seems like an odd amount when it comes time to pay your first month or the month after. What these people are doing is creating fake numbers and when you pay that amount, they pocket the excess amount of whatever you are paying. So instead of paying for your insurance you are literally paying a person to steal your money from you.
The other type of insurance agent scam is the fake insurance agent. These people have set up phishing sites that will make you think that you are signing up for some great cheap policy but in reality that policy does not exist and you are just paying this person money for a fake auto insurance card. Now with this one nothing will seem off until you get into an accident and try to file a claim for it. That is when the whole scam will be revealed to you. The next two points will be how to avoid these scams.
Never give info over phone
If you are not actively looking for car insurance or they call you do not ever give them your information over the phone. This is the quickest way for them to steal your identity and even dance around the legal system while doing it.
They can avoid fines, repayments, and jail time simply because you consented to giving them your information. So, if you receive a call from a place you never applied for, never spoke to before, or just seems really off do not give them your information as that can save you a lot of heart ache in the end when trying to get cheap auto insurance.
Do your research
Always do your research on the company and be wary of what that research says. When looking into an agent always make sure that you find out if they work for the company, how long they have worked there, and what policies they work with. Now even doing that you may still run into unethical agents.
To keep from that, reviews are going to be your best friend. They will tell you if they are good workers or not. If they do their job or not. If all they have are perfect reviews retreat immediately because there should be some that aren’t perfect because you cannot win them all. The other thing to do your research on is the insurance agency themselves. Sometime those agencies will be completely made up and are just a front for a scheme to steal people’s money.