You know that sinking feeling you get when a cop car pulls up behind you and flashes its lights, and the officer broadcasts (so passersby can hear) that you should pull over? If you do, you are probably one of the millions who have been ticketed for a moving violation. In most states, moving violations, like running a stop sign, running a red light, speeding, illegal u-turns, unsafe lane changes, etc., will earn you points. These aren’t the kind of points you get to trade in for goods and services. If these add up in a short period of time, these are the kind that can cost you more money for your insurance and possibly cause you to lose your driving privileges.

While the details vary from state to state, most point systems typically work in one of two ways:
• State system 1: Each ordinary moving violation counts as a single point, but two points are assessed for speed violations that are far in excess of the speed limit. A license is suspended when a driver receives four points in a year, six in two years, or eight in three years.
• State system 2: Two points are assessed for minor violations such as an illegal turn or slightly exceeding the speed limit. Three, four or five points are assigned for more serious violations, such as running a stop sign or a red light. A license is suspended if a driver gets 12 points over three years.

Some states also assess points for accidents if you are at fault.

If you get a ticket for a moving violation, check the vehicle code violation number with which you are charged—it should be written on the face of your ticket. Then call your department of motor vehicles and ask three questions:

1. Will the violation add points to your record?
2. How many points do you currently have on your record? (That might require a trip down there to get a printout.)
3. How many points does it take to have your license suspended?

Insurance Rates
Most insurance companies regularly review your record and may raise your premium if you get a certain number of points. Some states, such as California, do not allow insurance companies to raise your premiums for getting only one point on your record. In other states, drivers can be assessed two different types of points, driver’s license and insurance points. Call your insurance company to find out their policies. Depending on the laws in your state and your insurance company’s policies, your insurer will likely allow one moving violation every three to five years. Anything more than that and your premiums increase. Accidents will raise your premiums, as well, if you were at fault. The rates may go up as much as twenty to thirty percent depending on the severity of the accident or the number of points for your moving violation.

How to Avoid or Remove the Points
• Contest the ticket
One way to avoid moving violation points, (something you’ll want to do, especially if you are getting close to having your licensed snatched), is by contesting the ticket. (You might want to consult the national edition of Nolo’s Beat Your Ticket for some potentially winning strategies.) But there is another way.

• Traffic School
If you pay your ticket and go to traffic school, the points from the traffic offense will not go on your record. While traffic school may involve spending up to eight hours in a classroom listening to a lecture and watching films about gory accidents, it can be well worth it to avoid the increased insurance premiums. It may seem like an inconvenience, but it is a path that provides more certainty than contesting your ticket in court. How often you can attend traffic school varies by jurisdiction. Some allow attendance once a year; others are stricter at once every eighteen to twenty-four months. If you were ticketed for driving at least fifteen miles per hour over the posted speed limit, local law may prevent you from attending traffic school at all.

Some states, such as California, allow you to complete online traffic school, but others require you to sign up through a court clerk or even to appear before a judge. When you’ve completed the class, you receive a certificate to prove you’ve taken it. Some traffic schools go out of their way to attract customers by injecting humor into their curriculum. You get the same basic information, but with a twist, to make the day go a little faster.

• Defensive Driving Classes
In some areas, you can take defensive driving or other types of drivers’ education classes to have points removed from your license once they are on there. Check with your state’s department of motor vehicles for your options.

No insurance company wants to insure a bad risk and one of the strong indicators of that risk is whether or not the insured has been convicted of a number of moving violations because these bad habits may lead to accidents. Accidents create claims, which cost the insurance company money. Your best bet to keep your insurance rates down, of course, is to avoid getting moving violations at all. No one is perfect and insurance companies do understand this, but you must understand that they will ask you to pay for your transgressions.

CREDIT LIFE INSURANCE

You usually take out credit life assurance when you enter into a major financial contract, for example, getting finance for a new car, a new fridge or take out a loan for your child’s education. This type of long-term insurance product is there to protect you or your dependents, should you die or become disabled and cannot replay the loan. Following are some aspects to keep in mind when taking out credit life insurance:

• Read and understand the declarations of the documents you sign. Often, the excitement of buying a new car or fridge sometimes gets in the way of reading the financing agreement and any possible credit life insurance contract you could be entering into. You, then pay too little attention and may end up not being aware of the benefits that you are entitled to.
• When you buy anything on credit make sure whether you have also agreed to buy credit life insurance. If you have, get the details of the insurer, so that you know whom to claim from should you become disabled. Also that your dependents or the beneficiaries in your will know of the cover so that they can claim should you die.
• If you already have sufficient long-term insurance policies in place that you have taken out before to secure the debt, you should not be forced into taking out a new long-term insurance policy. The Long-term Insurance Act (Section 44) makes it clear that you can choose whether you want to take out credit life insurance or use your existing long-term insurance policies to secure the debt. If you decide to take out a new policy, you also have the right to choose the company you prefer to provide you with the policy. If an intermediary is involved, you also have the right to choose whom you would like to use.
• Some policies can include cover for critical illnesses or even retrenchment. You must ask detailed questions about the type of cover that is offered when and if you are purchasing goods that have a credit life insurance portion cover.

However, be aware that your existing long-term insurance policies were probably taken out for other reasons, whereas credit life insurance has been designed to protect you and your family from inheriting a major debt. Very often other long-term insurance policies do not necessarily provide for unique benefits like retrenchment cover.

How to Get Your Health-Care Coverage

Especially for the young and healthy, the prospect of ducking premiums (perhaps vowing to spend a portion of the savings on healthy living) and going without any sort of coverage might be a tempting option. By all accounts it's not a good idea. So, in the interest of keeping our readers healthy, Five for the Money offers strategies for getting health insurance -- or at least lowering health-care costs -- to those working without a net.

1. Buy insurance through Sam's Club. Wal-Mart Stores has taken heat for not providing enough of its hourly employees with health coverage, but a program offered through its Sam's Club warehouse stores could potentially change how Americans buy insurance. Sam's Club members -- the people who pay to shop at the cavernous discount stores -- can now also buy their health insurance through the retailer.Offered with Salt Lake City benefit management outfit Extend Benefits Group, the program is designed to allow Sam's Club members to choose between plans based on their family's needs and budget. For example, a 30-year-old man in Los Angeles could choose from more than 40 plans with monthly premiums ranging from $50 to about $400.Employers can also sign up to get their employees into the program. A Sam's Club spokesman declined to say how many people have signed up for health insurance since the program kicked off in early January, but the store says it has 46 million members.

2. Use a Health Savings Account. For those who can afford it, combining a Health Savings Account (HSA) into medical costs can be an attractive option. Signed into law by President Bush in 2003, the accounts enable people to set aside funds, tax free, to be used for future health care.The money can also be used to fund retirement. The accounts must be paired with an eligible "high-deductible health plan," according to the Treasury Dept.Because they are often coupled with relatively inexpensive insurance policies, HSA users can save money, "especially if they're healthy," says financial adviser Donald Whalen of Alpharetta, Ga. The program provides protection from the costs associated with disastrous medical problems, but not, typically, a family's routine medical expenses. "Insurance is supposed to protect you against catastrophes, it's not supposed to subsidize your doctor's visits," Whalen adds.

3. Work part-time. In addition to placing enormous burdens on individuals, the price of health insurance has forced many employers to reel in their offerings. Nonetheless, part-time employees at a few companies qualify for attractive benefits. For example, Starbucks employees who clock at least 20 hours a week are eligible for health insurance.Start slinging lattes and you'll also be eligible for a 401(k) and stock options. These days, that looks like a bona fide retirement plan, particularly by the flinty standards of the service sector. For many freelancers, the part-time jobs can also be an attractive option because they often offer a degree of flexibility along with the benefits.

4. Find an independent insurance broker. If you're too busy for a part-time job, there are still other avenues available. Whalen says the uninsured often flock to Web sites such as eHealthInsurance.com and INSweb.com, which allow consumers to compare the offerings of different private health insurers. He says it may be smarter to meet with an independent broker first."Being turned down for health insurance is kind of like being declined for credit," Whalen says, in that it can affect how future potential insurers will evaluate you. "It's much better to have someone work with you from the start," to ensure a good fit. He suggests starting the search with the National Association of Health Underwriters, which represents brokers and offers listings on its Web site.

5. Broaden your search. Large employers aren't the only ones offering group plans. A surprising number of professional and independent organizations offer health insurance. In a search for insurance options it's a good idea to check with bar associations, chambers of commerce, and similar groups. A Brooklyn (N.Y.)-based group called Working Today offers a health insurance program to qualifying freelancers.