Here’s a reason to throw away your dead flowers. State Far Insurance Co. ruled that dead flowers in a plastic flower pot spontaneously combusted, sparking a house fire that did $20,000 in damages to a northeast Arkansas home, according to the Associated Press. “The fire was caused by self-heating through decomposition of organic materials contained within a plastic flowerpot,” the Aug. 25 letter from State Farm Insurance Co. to the owner said.

The homeowner Brian Duncan said the flowerpot was holding dead, decomposing flowers and potting soil that his wife planted over a year ago. “She had intended on repotting (the flowers),” Duncan told the Associated Press. But instead they sat on the porch, drying out and dying. Duncan said it was obvious that the fire started in the flower pot because there was a charred hole on the porch and the remnants had fallen to the ground several feet below. But the homeowner told the Associated Press he was still surprised when the results showed the fire started due to spontaneous combustion.

No one was hurt in the late-August blaze, but considerable damage was done to the home. Duncan’s father-in-law used a garden hose to squelch the flames before firefighters showed up to the scene. Duncan said some of the damages included ruined decking, burned vinyl siding, a broken window and damage to the air conditioning system. “The house was full of smoke,” he told the Associated Press.

A local fire marshal maintains that spontaneous combustion is very rare. “Spontaneous combustion is something where you have to have a lot of variables come together and it has to be just right,” Jason Wills told Jonesboro television station KAIT. “It’s something that does happen, but this is the first one in our area that I’m aware of.”

Five additional parents of US soldiers killed during duty have joined with another parent in a lawsuit against Prudential Financial. The suit claims Prudential profited from the dead soldiers’ policies by paying only a small amount of interest on life insurance benefits while holding on to a large portion of interest themselves. According to a report by the Associated Press, the families say bookkeeping misrepresented how the insurance beneficiaries could collect lump-sum payouts.

The case could eventually impact tens of thousands of soldiers’ beneficiaries who received payments. The Associated Press reported that company officials couldn’t address the current legislation, they say they are handling money properly. The suit deals with Alliance Accounts which are similar to checking accounts. Beneficiaries can write “checks” to receive some of the insurance money or they can get 36 equal payments each month. If they opted for the Alliance Account, beneficiaries received interest rates ranging from .5 to 1.5 percent. But the soldiers’ families say Prudential actually holds the money in a general account worth $2 billion and that the company earns five to six percent interest. Then they say the company keeps the difference.

Some experts say that insurance agents, brokers and small insurance companies may become victims of the massive health care overhaul set to kick in in 2014. The health care reform bill will impact nearly every corner of the health care industry which makes up one-sixth of the US economy. According to a report by Time Magazine, agents and brokers are concerned they’ll soon be viewed as redundant under the new legislation.

At a recent meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, 25 commissioners passed a resolutions stating that health care reform should “recognize and protect the indispensable role that licensed insurance professionals play in serving consumers.” At issue is how insurance companies should now calculate their medical and administrative expenses. Most experts believe health care reform will put an end to agent and broker commissions which make up anywhere from 5-20 percent of premiums. Health care reform may also make their roles as sales people and marketers unnecessary as new state insurance exchanges will be posted online by 2014. This will be a place where people and small groups can go to purchase insurance directly.

One role that brokers and agents are confident they’ll still be able to fulfill is that of a navigator through the health insurance maze. “More of the upfront stuff will be done online, but it won’t replace the service,” Janet Trautwein, CEO of the National Association of Health Underwriters, which represents agents and brokers, told Time Magazine.

A proposed  health insurance rate hike in New Mexico prompted death threats against top staff at Blue Cross Blue Shield, according to TV station KOB. Extra security was hired to protect high ranking Blue Cross Blue Shield officials at a hearing held this week in Santa Fe. There were also four additional officers provided by the Public Regulation Commission, according to reports.

The hearing was held in response to Blue Cross Blue Shield’s request to regulators to approve a 21.3 percent rate increase on 12 of their insurance plans. The proposed hike would impact thousands of residents in New Mexico, according to KOB. State officials listened to information provided by the Attorney General’s office and Blue Cross Blue Shield about whether or not the hike was justified and necessary.

Towards the end of the hearing the public was allowed to provide their thoughts on the proposed increase. Many argued that it wasn’t necessary when Blue Cross Blue Shield has a reported reserve fund of about $7 billion, according to KOB. But Blue Cross Blue Shield argued that the $7 billion was for emergencies like pandemics and said that higher expenses warranted a rate hike. Company officials say they actually needed a 36 percent increase to break even, but settled on 21.3 percent increase. Officials aren’t expecting any decisions to be made for about a month.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@BSimple: Do you know your score? Its important if you want to simplify your finances.

@5DollarDinners: Who needs the gym when you can push a 100 lb grocery cart around the store for 45 min! I *may* have been out of breath in the checkout line!

@MattJabs: My beautiful wife and I talked through the process of putting our home up for sale last night. Craigslist ad forthcoming.

@MoneyMatters: Would You Give Up Your Favorite Financial Sin To Achieve Financial Freedom?

@RegularGuyMoney: All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent. Thomas Jefferson

@HappyHousewife: Wow- it is actually cooler today. The high will be 80 degrees. Do I open my windows and save some $$ on the power bill this month?

@EventualMillion: My son just said “I want to be everything when I grow up.” I think that’s my problem too.

@FinanceSavvyUK: “If I were able to give you back all the money you’ve ever spent buying on impulse, would you take the cash and hand over the stuff?” YES!!!

@27andFrugal: #FrugalQuestion: How often do you price around for car repair? Do you have a mechanic you completely trust?

@ThomasJStanley: Affluent America? “19% of Americans believe they are among the richest 1%” – BusinessWeek

Forty-five states are getting $1 million dollar grants to keep an eye on insurance premium increases. The Obama administration said the money is only the beginning in a $250 million, five-year program to help states limit rate increases. Premiums have at times jumped as much as 30 percent in one year, and many people are paying double what they were paying a decade ago, according to the Washington Post.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius said some states are already regulating premiums well, others can do a better job. “Some states have full and rigorous rate review and [the right of] prior approval, so before a company raises a rate it goes through intense actuarial analysis. . . . In others the company doesn’t even have to file [with state authorities],” she told the Washington Post.

The states that already regulate premiums closely will be using the grant money differently than states who don’t. For example, Maryland already has a system in place for regulating insurance premiums. Officials there say they’ll use the $1 million to hire consultants to investigate what additional data needs to be requested from insurers. Some states say they plan to start requiring insurance companies to get pre-approval before any rate increases are implemented. Delaware Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart thanked the Obama administration for the money. “This important grant will help my department and I not only protect Delawareans from redundant rate increases, but will also allow me to pave a critical path toward modernizing our approaches in reaching the goal of affordable, accessible and first rate care for all,” Stewart told the Dover Post .

Starting in 2014 states will have the ability to punish insurance providers that raise rates unreasonably. They’ll be able to exclude those companies from subsidized state-run insurance programs. Five states opted out of the first round of grant money. They are Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota and Wyoming.

While insurance companies argue that rate increases are a direct response to rising medical costs, Sebelius believes there needs to be better oversight of the industry. “Just having transparency . . . in itself is going to change the dynamics of what is happening in terms of the massive rate increases in this country,” Sebelius told the Washington Post.

New statistics show more people are asking for unemployment insurance which means employers are continuing layoffs. Applications for unemployment benefits reached 500,000 last week which was the highest since November 2009. The number marked a 12,000 increase according to the Department of Labor. Statistics show that it was the fourth increase in five weeks, which some say is a sign of economic instability.

According to a report by the Associated Press, home building companies and construction firms seem to be laying off at higher rates since the homebuyers’ tax credit expired. Other large amounts of layoffs are coming from the public sector as states attempt to balance budgets. “This is obviously a disappointing number that shows ongoing weakness in the job market,” Robert Dye, senior economist at the PNC Financial Services Group, told the Associated Press.

The jobless rate is sitting at 9.5 percent, the same level it’s been at for two months. According to the Associated Press, private employers had been adding about 100,000 jobs each month. Those requesting unemployment insurance reached a peak in March of 2009 as 651,000 people requested assistance. Currently 4.5 million people are receiving benefits, according to the Department of Labor.

Auto insurance company GEICO unveiled plans to expand their technology reach with apps for the iPad and Android. The GloveBox app will add more features, according to a report by Insurance Technology. “GEICO wants the best experience for our customers at all times,” Dave Weaver, manager of mobile applications, told Insurance Technology. “Our mobile applications for iPad mobile digital devices and Android operating system were built with that in mind.”

Want to pay an insurance bill? There’s an app for that. Want to access insurance ID cards, record accident information, call a GEICO representative or view GEICO videos? There’s an app for that too. The idea is to help consumers through an accident and help them pay their bills. “Instead of simply shrinking our existing website, we reinvented the interaction with our latest applications,” Steve Smith, assistant vice president of GEICO’s Internet business unit, told Insurance Technology.

The company currently insures 16 million vehicles and recently announced they’re hiring hundreds of new workers.

Iowa officials say recent flooding proves that all Iowans should consider buying flood insurance. “Earlier in the year the lieutenant governor and I were in Clarion to look at flood damage there and the important part that stood out about Clarion is there was not a river nearby,” David Miller, administrator to the Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management division, told Radio Iowa. “It wasn’t river flooding. It was flash flooding and runoff.” Miller told all Iowans– regardless of whether they live near a river or not– that they need to be concerned with possible flooding. “What we’re seeing is almost anybody can be affected by flooding and it’s why we’ve been really promoting involvement and joining in the National Flood Insurance Program,” he told Radio Iowa.

Recent flooding has struck the city of Ames severely. Two rivers meet there, but other cities and towns experiencing flooding aren’t near bodies of water. Governor Culver told Radio Iowa the “new normal” in the state appears to be “unprecedented” flooding. “In Ames, this is worse than ’93 and so anything that we can do in terms of flood mitigation, flood prevention — we need to make that a priority here at the capitol,” Culver told Radio Iowa.

Local insurance agents say most of their clients don’t carry flood insurance. State Farm Insurance Agent Pat Brown told the Ames Tribune that her customers only carry it if federal law requires them to. “If water seeps through basement walls or breaks the basement windows, that’s flood damage, and it’s hard for people to get their arms around that,” Brown said. Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division told the Ames Tribune that most homeowners’ policies don’t cover flood damage. “We remind people annually that one out of every four ‘flood events,’ as we call them, happens outside flood plains,” Tom Alger of the Iowa Insurance Division told the Ames Tribune.

A mansion, Arizona real estate, luxury cars and investments were all paid for by money authorities say a Chicago cardiologist scammed from Medicare, according to a report by the Associated Press. The suburban doctor practicing in Burr Ridge was sentenced to five years in prison for what authorities say amounted to more than $13 million in Medicare reimbursements for care that was never provided.

Authorities say 50-year-old Sushil Sheth pleaded guilty a year ago to one count of health care fraud, and received his sentence this week. He’ll begin serving a five year prison term in two months. The fraud happened between January 2002 and July 2007. In June 2007, the Associated Press says that federal agents seized more than 600 uncashed checks from insurance companies totaling more than $6.7 million.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Sheth “lied thousands of times to Medicare and other insurers in order to receive millions of dollars he did not earn for patients he never treated,” according to a statement released by the  U.S. attorney’s office. According to the Chicago Tribune, Sheth stole patient information from three unnamed hospitals and used it to bill Medicare and other insurance companies for services he never performed and patients he never treated.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@TaxTweet: taking a trip, biz or personal, soon? expect to pay higher travel-related taxes

@OutofYourRut: When buying a new car, be ready to use your “Nuclear Option”—get up and leave!

@MoneySmart: Angie’s List is a great resource for finding good mechanics and other great contractors, it’s only $25 a year

@AhhPhotography: Materialism: Buying things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people who don’t matter.

@WalletPopper: We’re no geezers @laweekly! Beware the wrath of the coupon mom crowd — many a politician has been felled by underestimating their might.

@FrugalDad: Why would new financial bill allow colleges to put a cap on how much one can pay with a credit card? Maybe b/c gov’t now runs student loans?

@MoneyManagement: 1 in 4 will opt in to pricey overdraft protections

@BudgetsAreSexy: Coffee + Money blogs = Beautiful morning

@RainyDaySaver: Cars ARE total money sinks! Nothing else depreciates faster.

@CarrieCheap: If I were rich, I think I would buy like 10 wedding dresses for my wedding. They’re all so beautiful. I. Want.

Some experts say Medicare may be around a little longer than originally projected. Trustees who oversee Medicare and Social Security are adding another 12 years onto the life of Medicare and they say it’s because of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul. But others remain skeptical that the program’s life has really been extended, according to an Associated Press report. The trustees were careful to add that these projections, “do not represent a reasonable expectation” for hospitalizing America’s elderly.

Originally, Medicare was projected to run out of funds in 2017, but the new report says the program will have enough money to be sustained until 2029. Meanwhile, Social Security is expected to run out of funds in 2037. And the trustees also say they’re not enough money to include a cost-of-living increase in next year’s social security checks.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the report showed positive gains, but that much work was left to be done. “We must continue to make progress addressing the financing challenges,” he said according to the Associated Press. “Those reforms require that we achieve very substantial improvements in efficiency and productivity.”

Analysts say that in the future, more of the economy will be taken up by Medicare costs. Right now 3.6 percent of the economy goes to Medicare, but by 2050, experts say that will grow to eight percent, which equates to hundreds of billions of dollars. John Rother, Executive Vice President of the AARP says the affect of Obama’s health care plan won’t be fully known for a while. “The purpose of the law was to slow the growth in health care costs,” Rother said to the AP. “The fact is we really won’t know until some of the regulations get spelled out.”

The recession isn’t helping matters. For the first time since the 1980’s Social Security will hand out more money than it collects. It’s expected to return to a surplus, but then once again have a deficit in 2015. And by 2037 it will only collect enough money to pay out about three-fourths of the benefits that are owed to citizens. “The fact that the costs for the program will likely exceed tax revenue this year is not a cause for panic, but it does send a strong message that it’s time for us to make the tough choices that we know we need to make,” Social Security Commissioner Michael J. Astrue told the Associated Press. Social Security built up a $2.5 trillion surplus, but the government has borrowed that money over the years to fund other programs.

Missouri voters hit the polls to vote on Proposition C. They were the first in the country to speak their minds with ballots on whether health care should be mandatory. And voters said loud and clear, no. About 71 percent of Missouri voters supported Proposition C, which prohibits the government requiring citizens to carry health insurance or from penalizing anyone who doesn’t.

But what the vote actually accomplishes is up for debate. Federal law always trumps state law, but some say it may change the outcome of the upcoming November elections. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Republican National Chairman Michael Steele believes it’s a big blow to the Obama administration and believes it’s a sign that Republicans will regain the majority in November. “By rejecting ObamaCare with nearly three-quarters of the vote in a critical swing state, Missouri sent a clear message to Democrats and the Obama administration that government-run health care is a gross overreach of the federal government that needs to be repealed and replaced,” Steele said in a statement to the Post-Dispatch.

Other states have similar upcoming votes including Arizona and Oklahoma. Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana and Virginia have passed similar measures, but did not put them on a ballot.

Turns out, thieves have good taste in cars. They aren’t after minivans or hybrids. They want flash, speed and chrome, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, a research group associated with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Here are the top four most-stolen vehicles:

1. 2007-2009 Cadillac Escalade luxury SUV

2. Ford F-250 heavy-duty pickup

3. Infiniti G37 luxury car

4. Dodge Charger

Experts say these cars are targeted by thieves three to five times more than all other vehicles. “Sedate family cars and fuel sippers aren’t on the hot list,” Kim Hazelbaker, senior vice president of HLDI, told the Wall Street Journal. “Thieves are after chrome, horsepower, and Hemis.”

This is nothing new for the Escalade. The SUV has ranked at the top of the “most stolen” list on six of the past seven reports. The model at the top of that list is the Escalade EXT, a four-door, four-wheel-drive pickup. You might think the Escalade would be a difficult car for thieves to steal since it has extensive anti-theft protection, but Hazelbaker told the Wall Street Journal, ”even though Escalades have the latest immobilizer technology, thieves still can put them on flatbeds and haul them away.” In general pickup trucks have been targeted more and more. Trucks get stolen twice as much as cars and SUVs.

Auto insurance companies paid out more than $1 million in claims for fake car accidents, according to investigators. The extensive scheme included dozens of people and this week the man police say was at the head of the scam was sentenced to four to ten years in state prison in Pennsylvania. Forty-four-year-old Wallace Morris Sr, also known as “Popsicle” and “Pops” also faces federal charges, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Authorities say Morris pleaded guilty to his involvement in 44 fake car accidents in order to collect insurance money. The judge also ordered Morris to repay about $440,000 to 17 different insurance companies that Morris scammed. The insurance companies include AIG, Allstate, Geico, Liberty Mutual, Nationwide, Progressive, and State Farm, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. While Morris was at the head of the insurance fraud operation, officers say Philadelphia police officers Deshane Riggins and Drexel Reid Jr. were a part of it too. Riggins wrote fake accident reports for Morris, according to reports.

For a period of two years, from 2004 to 2006, Morris lead a fraud ring that included at least 268 relatives, friends and acquaintences. The District Attorney’s Office says Morris orchestrated the submission of 187 fake insurance claims. Officials say each phony accident usually involved two vehicles with three passengers in each car so that six claims were generated. So far, nearly 100 arrests have been made, but more could be on the way.

According KYW, the assistant district attorney says Morris’ friends and relatives would claim they were injured in accidents that never happened. “Mr. Wallace Morris was a co-conspirator in a large insurance fraud scheme totalling in 44 car accidents, 115- arrests, over $1-million loss to 17 insurance companies,” Linda Montag told KYW. The judge in the case also mentioned the irony in the fact that Morris stated his transportation company went out of business because of high insurance costs.

Many families of fallen military members may be the victims of fraud, which is why New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is calling for an investigation. According to CNN, Cuomo’s office released details of the new investigation saying they’re looking into “practices that appear to have denied grieving military families and others of millions in life-insurance cash.”

Officials say that some insurance companies are telling families of late military personnel that they’re putting life insurance policy money into an interest-bearing account. But what really happens, according to some officials, is that the insurance company is benefiting from most of the interested earned– some times taking as much as 4.8 percent while the families receive just .5 percent of the interest. Another issue Cuomo is raising is that the insurance money is being put in banks that are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC. “It is shocking and just plain wrong for these multi-national life insurance companies to pocket hundreds of millions in profits that really belong to those who have lost family members and have already suffered immensely,” Cuomo told CNN.

Officials say the accounts being targeted in the investigation include Prudential’s Alliance Account and MetLife’s Total Control Account. However, the attorney general’s office says they’re looking into the entire life insurance industry. According to CNN, Prudential’s Chairman and CEO John Stangfield released a written statement saying, “It is important that the beneficiaries of our fallen service men and women are treated with dignity and respect during a very difficult time. Given the questions raised over the life insurance program we administer for the Department of Veteran Affairs, we welcome an opportunity to address the concerns and to set the record straight.” Stangfield denied doing anything wrong. “Prudential does not in any way take money from beneficiaries,” the company said according to CNN.

MetLife also commented. According to CNN the company’s spokesman John Calagna released a written statement saying, “However we strongly disagree with many misleading statements in recent media reports and want to be clear regarding several important features of MetLife’s Total Control Account (’TCA’). Our materials carefully explain the TCA to our customers so that they understand that they can use their checkbooks to withdraw all of their benefits immediately or over time as they choose,” Calagna told CNN. “They have full access to their funds and earn a guaranteed minimum interest rate that exceeds what they could earn on most money market accounts.”

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates told CNN he had no idea many military families were being treated this way. “Until today, I actually believed that the families of our fallen heroes got a check for the full amount of their benefit,” Gates told CNN during a Pentagon briefing. “So this came as news to me. And so I will just say I will be very interested in the outcome of an investigation.

Next Tuesday Missouri voters will tell the world what they think of the recently passed federal Health Care Reform Act when they head to the polls. Missourians are the first in the nation to vote on the issue. They’ll be voting on Proposition C, a law that would prohibit the government from forcing people or businesses to buy health insurance, according to Fox 4 News.

If it passes, the public would be saying that the government could not issue fines to those who refuse to buy health insurance. But, a no vote would mean they support health care reform. “If Proposition C is passed, it’s also going to cause a lot of the uninsured to continue going uninsured,” Mase Hakes, who plans to vote “no” on Proposition C, told Fox 4 News. “And no one will be forced to change their policy if they’re happy with something they already have, they don’t have to change it. This is just something to make it available for those who cannot.”

According to the Associated Press, a recent Mason-Dixon poll conducted for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and KMOV found that 61 percent of people opposed the federal health care law. Federal law says that the new health insurance program will go into affect in 2014.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@MoneyTreeMom: Attention is friendship’s currency. Invest. -Oprah

@FinancialVision: If you take your lunch to work every day you could be giving yourself a $40 raise a week, that is an extra $160/mo or $1,920/yr. Real Money

@pastdue: If money is a poor motivator, then what do we do for clients, referrals, employees, etc.?

@FindingForward: A genius would get lost in any country without a road map. Brian Tracy

@BSimple: In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure. Bill Cosby

@MillionMommyND: Don’t Be A Hen-Pecked Chicken; Be A Donkey and Declare Your Personal Independence!

@onefrugalgirl: I don’t want an extravagant life, but I would like to spend my money sharing great experiences w/ people I love

@investorjunkie: Any one wanna bet we’ll still have financial meltdowns now that #finreg has passed?

@KingdomFirstMom: Actual comment on my Facebook Page yesterday: My behind is so broke, if jesus is handing out coupons, you can count me in!

@Couponing101: Coupons aren’t just for cereal and toothpaste! I got FREE CLOTHES at Target with coupons yesterday!

A 2008 wind storm is still causing problems for Ohio homeowners. This time instead of downed trees and ripped off roofs, homeowners are having to deal with higher homeowners’ insurance rates. According to the Ohio Department of Insurance, rates increased by an average of 9.7 percent. The Ohio Department of Insurance surveyed the top ten providers of homeowners’ insurance, according to the Dayton Business Journal.

The increase comes on the heels of a seven percent increase in 2008, which at the time was the largest jump in five years, according to reports. Insurance companies say they paid out more than $1.4 billion in 2008 as a result of the September wind storm that left millions without power for days. The storm was what was left of Hurricane Ike, wiping out power to 1.9 million electricity customers in the Dayton area.

In addition to increased homeowners’ insurance rates, Ohio residents will also see a 2.8 percent increase in auto insurance rates. But despite the increases, reports show that Ohio is still the sixth lowest in the country for homeowner’s insurance rates and the 11th lowest for auto insurance rates.

Many auto insurance companies are trying to keep your business by offering perks and incentives. Wondering what all of these things mean? Here are some key auto insurance terms defined:

Accident Forgiveness: In the past, every time you got in an accident your insurance premiums soared and you ended up paying way more. But now many insurance companies are offering accident forgiveness. If you’re in an accident that is your fault, accident forgiveness will protect your driving record and prevent your rates from skyrocketing.

Deductible Rewards: Many insurance companies have realized how annoying it is to be a great driver, but not get any incentive for it. Now with deductible rewards the insurance company will take a certain amount of money off of your Collision deductible every year you go without having an accident.

Safe Driving Bonus: When you don’t get into accidents, the insurance company doesn’t have to spend any money on you. Now some companies are giving you a piece of your money back as a reward for being a safe driver. Every six months to a year they’ll cut you a check if you haven’t had any issues. The amount of the check is usually equal to a small percentage of your premium.

New Car Replacement: This term is just like it sounds. Since cars lose their value so quickly, drivers who totaled their new cars ended up with a bad deal. They’d get the money equal to what their car was worth, which worked out to be a bad deal. Now some auto insurance providers are promising to give you a new car if yours is totaled within the first three years– not just the depreciated value.

The U.S. House of Representatives is moving closer to approving a bill that would extend the flood insurance program for five years. Called the Flood Insurance Reform Priorities Act of 2010, the bill has the support of both the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (The Big “I”) and the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA National) according to the Insurance Journal.

Once passed by the House, the Senate will need to pass the bill as well. Insurers are hoping lawmakers take out a portion of the bill that removes anti-concurrent clauses from flood policies. “The recent series of expirations and temporary extensions is negatively impacting the market,” Robert Rusbuldt, Big “I” president and CEO, told the Insurance Journal. “The Big ‘I’ commends the House for passing this bill which is a step in the right direction to a long-term extension of the NFIP [National Flood Insurance Program] and includes much-needed reforms to the critical program.”

The NFIP is currently set to expire at the end of September once again. In the past, lawmakers have extended the program five years at a time which provides stability to the insurance marketplace. Although in the past year, Congress has begun extending the program for smaller periods like a month or six months, which has made it difficult for homeowners and those in the insurance industry. “This bill contains many provisions that PIA has consistently advocated,” PIA National Director of Federal Affairs Mike Becker told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader John Boehner according to the Insurance Journal. “Perhaps most significantly, H.R. 5114 extends the flood insurance program through the end of 2015. This would finally end the uncertainty that has resulted from a series of short-term NFIP reauthorizations.”

The Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan is kicking into gear. President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law back in March, which included the creation of the PCIP which makes health insurance available to those who aren’t able to get it because of a pre-existing condition. There are some requirements you must meet in order to be eligible for this government insurance.

• You must have been uninsured for at least six months.
• You must have a pre-existing condition or have been denied health coverage because of your health condition.
• You must be a US citizen or be residing here legally.

This program is only temporary and will only be in affect until 2014 when access to affordable health insurance becomes mandatory. The programs are run differently in each state so you’ll need to research your state’s PCIP. However, funds are limited so many states are offering the program first come first served.

But if you are able to secure a place in the program you will receive benefits such as:

• Coverage for primary, specialty and hospital care as well as prescription drug coverage.
• Fair premiums that aren’t based on your existing condition.
• Premiums that aren’t based on income level.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@SoundMindInvest: The secret to taking the emotion out of market ups & downs? If you have a game plan, stick to it. If you don’t, get one… then stick to it!

@CrownUpdates: Pre-owned wedding dresses…ladies would you go there to save a few hundred dollars?

@DebtProofLiving: Definition of crazy: No emer fund, no savings; $650 in mo car payments because “we need 2 reliable cars.” Are you out of your mind?

@RamseyShow: Blake: In order to have a financially successful marriage , the money has to be “ours”…not “mine” and “yours”.

@Mwbuckingham: Any role performed excellently is noble. Whereas any role performed averagely, no matter how senior, is demeaning.

@tedcoine: Wealth allows you to be what you are on a much grander scale. If you’re an ass…?

@financialdude: car shop. guy comes in w/ a Mercedes, needs a tire. its all wheel drive so u cant replace 1 tire. all 4 need to go. $$$. I would be ticked.

@GrlRedBalloon: Just made a $3,0000 payment to my biggest student loan. I am going to beat psychology, Dave Ramsey! You hear me!?

@MoneyMatters: $8,000 and $6,500 Homebuyer Tax Credits Extended Again Through September 2010 Via H.R.5623

@TomZiglar: You must manage yourself before you can lead anyone else. Zig Ziglar

The Michigan Supreme Court supported the practice of using credit scores to set auto and home insurance rates of policyholders. Some say that using credit history discriminates against poor and middle-class people. But those in the insurance industry says it makes sense because credit scores are often indicative of whether a person will file claims. Michigan’s high court voted 4-3 in a case that questioned whether the state’s insurance examiner exceeded her authority in 2005 by trying to ban the credit-based scoring, according to the Detroit Free Press. “We’re very pleased with the ruling,” Peter Kuhnmuench of the Insurance Institute of Michigan told the Detroit Free Press. “The evidence was overwhelming.”

Those against the policy are now trying to get the legislature to ban it. The state House did approve the ban, but early predictions show a different outcome is likely in the Senate. Kuhnmuench told reporters that approving the ban would actually cause rates to increase for two-third of insurance policyholders. On the contrary, a state insurance consumer advocate claims the ban would cut rates for nearly three out of four insurance customers.

Chief Justice Maura Corrigan voted in favor, saying that insurance companies “have demonstrated a clear correlation between insurance scores and risk of loss,” justifying the use of credit scores. Chief Justice Marilyn Kelly who was against eliminating the ban said that the evidence supporting the connection between credit scores and insurance risk was not conclusive or complete.

Claims for unemployment benefits dropped more than expected last week, according to reports. They fell to their lowest level in two months which some are hoping is a sign the economy is improving. Initial claims dropped 21,000 to 454,000 the Labor Department reported. The Labor Department said the number of people continuing to receive benefits in the final week of June was at the lowest level since late last year.

Claims were expected to fall to 460,000, according to Reuters, but they actually fell further. “I think we are too quick in dismissing the potential for growth in the second half of the year, I don’t think it is going to be as weak as earlier thoughts had it,” Chris Rupkey told Reuters, chief financial economist at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi in New York.

While some remain hopeful that the unemployment insurance claim drop is a sign of recovery, the Labor Department says it may be thanks to General Motors. The company is limiting its annual summer plan shutdown to meet demand for some models which means fewer people are out of work.

For customers who mailed insurance payments to Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance last month, the company may not have received them. According to reports, a week’s worth of mail may never have reached the the state-backed property insurer. But despite the claim that some mail may not have made it, the US Postal Service as well as some customers aren’t so sure.

The USPS originally said that someone had completed a change of address form fraudulently, claiming they were with Florida Citizen’s Property Insurance. Another fraudulent claim was submitted via the Internet. Initially the post office thought some mail had been forwarded due to the illegal claim, but now they say that never happened. That’s because by July 1 the insurance company had responded to the USPS when prompted to confirm the change. Citizens did not confirm the change so the request was denied. “There is no evidence at this time to suggest that any mail was forwarded,” according to the USPS and ClaimsJournal.com.

But a spokesperson for Florida Citizen’s Property Insurance says the company received less mail than they normally would during the time period in question, June 14-28. That’s why the company is asking customers to make sure their checks were received and processed. “The systems designed to protect U.S. Postal Service customers did their job. Reporting throughout the state has claimed that as many as 1 million policy holders could have been affected. This is simply NOT true,” responded USPS Communications Director Joseph Breckenridge to ClaimsJournal.com, after media reports raised the prospect of lots of diverted mail. “In fact, there is no evidence whatever to suggest that this fraudulent change of address order caused any mail whatever to be forwarded. ”

The fraudulently filed forwarding address turned out to be an apartment complex and officials say the address did not receive any mail intended for the insurance company. “The quantity of mail received by a major firm like Citizens is very great. We’re talking about thousands upon thousands of pieces of mail every day. The operations of firms like Citizens are on such a scale that such an irregularity would be immediately obvious,” Breckenridge told CJ.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@BargainBabe: Thinking of doing something fun during my summer break. Any suggestions of what to do without breaking the bank?

@Shoestring: Dear LA: Going to a wedding this summer? Hit BCBG on Melrose – $300+ cocktail dresses marked down to as low as $19

@FabandFrugal: Think twice before co-signing for a loan.

@CardAnalysis: Credit card issuers- banks or credit unions- will not be able to charge inactivity fees (aka ANNUAL fee)

@EnemyofDebt: “An excuse is really just a reason to keep doing what you are doing.” Enemy of Debt

@DJSisterhen: Did you hear Kathy’s story? She paid off $50k in debt in 2009 on her way to $130k overall

@UltMoneyBlog: Is Saving Money too Overwhelming?

@RainyDaySaver: Try as I might, Being Frugal 100% of the Time Isn’t For Me

@DebtHater: Getting hungry, but don’t want what I brought to work for lunch. Don’t want to spend $ either. Any1 want to buy me lunch. Purty pleez?!

@IsoulHarris: Michael Jackson’s catalog generated $1 Billion in sales since his death last year.

In June of 2009 Michael Jackson was preparing for a comeback tour under a massive pile of debt. His home was about to be foreclosed on, and even utility bills weren’t being paid. But then on June 25, 2009 Michael Jackson passed away, a drug-related homicide according to authorities.

While the world will never know what kind of money Jackson could have made through his latest tour, in death he has brought in millions. According to CNBC Jackson’s estate has brought in nearly $275 million in the past year. That money has come from sales of everything from ring tones to merchandise. Debts have dropped to $400 million, down from $500 million before Jackson’s death. And the home that once faced foreclosure has been paid for in full.

Jackson’s life insurance policy wasn’t enough to pay the estate taxes, much of which still has to be paid according to reports. Two men– John Branca and John McClain– have been responsible for making sure Jackson’s wishes are met, his charities receive funds  and his children are cared for. Both Branca and McClain knew Jackson for years and say Jackson was focused on getting his financial life in order just before his sudden death. “We had seen Michael the week before,” Branca told CNBC. When Jackson died, Branca added, “It caught us by surprise,” but as CNBC reported, they were able to move forward with managing the estate because, “We had a game plan.” That plan, according to CNBC included four main goals:

1. Generate a lot of short term cash to pay bills.

2. Establish long-term projects that would generate regular cash flow.

3. Restructure debts.

4. Help Jackson improve his image.

So where is Jackson’s money coming from in the 12 months since his death? Only a small portion came from life insurance. The biggest segment was $125 from Sony in a 10-album deal that will take place over the next seven years. Another big chunk, $60 million according to CNBC, also came from Sony for the rights to “This Is It,” the film that grossed $300 million in the box office. Other funds have come from Mijac Music Publishing which owns the rights to Jackson’s songs, merchandise sales and book revenues. There are more projects in the works, but experts say this year may have been the estate’s most lucrative.

Everyone is looking for ways to cut costs these days and your auto insurance coverage may have some hidden savings. Here are four ways you can lower auto insurance costs.

1. Reduce Coverage on Older Cars. Have a car that’s been around the block about a million times? Make sure you’re not buying more insurance than you need. There is no need to insure the car for more than it’s worth. If your car is totaled, you’ll only be able to get the value of what the car was worth anyway. Experts say it may be OK to drop collision and comprehensive coverage if your car is worth less than ten times the premium.

2. Raise Your Deductible. Going from a $250 deductible to $1000 can cut your monthly costs by as much as 40% which is no small savings. Just make sure you consider how easily you’ll be able to come up with the cash for the deductible if something were to happen.

3. Shop Around for Your Teen. Most people just assume that adding their teen drivers onto their own policies is the cheapest way to go, but that’s not necessarily true. You may be surprised what kind of rates you can find when you shop around with other companies that specialize in high-risk drivers.

4. Ask About Discounts. People that work from home or use public transportation can score cheaper rates because they’re not driving as much. Ask your auto insurance agent if there are any discounts available that you may qualify for. If you’ve been a customer for a while they may give you a lower rate or if your car has added security features.

A new study released by the Kaiser Health Foundation found that millions of people who pay for their own insurance are facing big increases in premium costs. The study says that most people in the US get health insurance through an employer, but there are 14 million under the age of 65 who purchase it through the individual market. And three out of four of those people have recently been told their rates were on the rise.

The study found that the average recent rate increase was 20 percent. Most are paying the increase, but some are switching plans or changing to a different company. “With people in the individual market being hit with average increases of 20%, the survey shows that the steep increases we have been reading about over the last several months are not just extreme cases,” Kaiser Family Foundation President and CEO Drew Altman said in a news release.

The survey found that the average annual premium for someone paying for their own insurance is $3,606 while those with employer-sponsored coverage have annual premiums that are $4,824 on average. Typically older people say they’re paying higher premiums than younger people.  The survey questioned 1,038 people between the ages of 18-64 who pay for their own health insurance coverage.

California officials are cracking down on unnecessary and unfair premium rate increases. According to Examiner.com, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced that any major insurance company filing for a rate increase will be reviewed closely under strict new rules. The review will be conducted by an independent company.

According to reports, 90 percent of California’s health insurance market is controlled by four companies: Anthem Blue Cross, Aetna, Health Net and Blue Shield of California. This new review policy comes in place after Blue Cross’s announcement last spring that it would raise rates by as much as 39 percent on individual policies. Poizner hired outside actuaries to determine if the rate hikes were justified and according to that review, significant mathematical errors were uncovered. Blue Cross’s rate increases never went through.

The review of Blue Cross was conducted by Axene Health Partners. Axene is now reviewing rate increases submitted by Aetna and Blue Shield. Many hope this new step will eliminate unnecessary rate increases for Californians.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@FinancialSamura: The markets are up 3 days in a row so far at 6:46am… has the moon turned blue and did the bookies make USA & Aus the World Cup favorites?

@MoneyBeagle: 3 million feet of boom has been placed in the gulf for the #oilspill. Someone is making some money cranking this out, I bet!

@FinanciallyPoor: Be a part of history. Sign the National Entrepreneurs’ Day petition to Obama.

@MoneyCrush: Shocked at this reader question in RealSimple — > “I tore a dress while trying it on. Can I ask for a discount?”

@aceofwealth: Nearly 1 In 5 Older Americans Withdrew Money Early From Their Retirement Accounts in 2009

@cashmoneylife: Estimated taxes due in 1 week. I love having an accountant.

@deliverawaydebt: BEER the cause of and solution to all of life’s problems -Homer (Simpson)

@LenPenzo: Just curious: What was the best thing BEFORE sliced bread?

@cheapogroovo: DISH Network really has a great promotion running. Free HD for life. Finally no extra HD fees!

@moneyfunk: Stocking Up Your Pantry: Yea or Nay?

@budgetsaresexy: I see some Subway is now charging $0.50 for drink refills… Booooooo

New laws in New York make it harder for insurance companies to raise premiums. The governor signed into law the Governor’s Program Bill No. 278 which gives the New York State Insurance Department authority to review and approve insurance premiums before they are issued. It passed with overwhelming support in a 111-17 vote.  Before this new law the insurance industry was pretty much self-regulated, according to a report by dotmed.com. “Deregulation of health insurance premiums is a failed experiment leading to unjustified premium increases and more people losing their health insurance coverage,” Governor Paterson said in prepared remarks.

Now, if insurance companies want to raise rates, they have to apply for approval first. “Before, health insurance companies could raise premiums as much as they wanted, and all we could do is check long afterward if, in fact, they were overcharging,” David Neustadt, spokesman for the New York State Insurance Department, told DOTmed News. “The current rates are increasing at a much faster rate than before [the file and use law].” This way governing bodies can make sure any increases are justified, and not just created by insurance companies so they can increase bottom lines.

The law will impact any rate increases set to take effect on or after October 1, 2011. “I applaud New York on its bold move to hold insurance companies accountable and prevent the kind of unreasonable rate increases that have made health insurance unaffordable for many American families,” said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in a statement, according to dotmed.com. “This is the kind of action that, together with the Affordable Care Act, is shifting power back to consumers.”

According to a new report by Inc, life insurance policies aren’t just for protecting families. They’re helping businesses too. If your business burns down you’re likely protected by insurance. But what if your key employee dies? Life insurance policies are a tool for small businesses who risk losing someone that is key to the success of their company.  “Depending on the type of insurance you purchase, the ownership structure, and beneficiary of the insurance, life insurance can provide financial protection, risk management, and asset protection,” says Josh Patrick, in an Inc report. Patrick is the founding principal in Stage 2 Planning Partners, a financial-planning firm that helps businesses.

These types of insurance policies can help during this time of transition. They can be used to hire new help or just keep the lights on and the doors open, according to experts. “The goal should be if in the event of the death of a major shareholder or other key person that the business can be able to continue with minimal financial interruption,” says Matt Tassey, according to Inc. He’s the past chairman of a nonprofit that helps people make smart insurance decisions. “You can’t do anything about the human interruptions,” Tassey told Inc. “But you can make sure the doors stay open, the light bill gets paid, and the mortgage gets paid.”

Deciding whether to purchase life insurance for your business can be a tough decision. Every business owner knows there are dozens of ways to spend extra money, but it’s important to weigh out the decision carefully. Think about what would happen if the company lost key employees and whether it’s a change the business could survive.  “Insurance is to insure a risk that you can’t afford, so if in your business one of your key people were to die, what would it cost you to replace that person? If you were to die, what is the chance for your business surviving? And what kind of impact would that have on your family?” Patrick told Inc. “If it’s more risk than you can afford, then protect yourself and your business with insurance.”

People who get laid off on or after June 1 can no longer turn to the government for help to cover 65% of their premium costs for COBRA health coverage. COBRA lets workers stay on their former employer’s group health plan for a period of three months. This assistance that once came from the government expired on June 1, and it does not appear that lawmakers will continue it according to the Wall Street Journal.

A new jobs bill once held an extension of the COBRA payment plan, but it was removed. The bill is now in the Senate. Those who lost their jobs between September 2008 and May 31, 2010 could still apply for insurance assistance for up to 15 months. Their former employer would be responsible for paying health insurance costs plus a two percent administrative fee. Under subsidies provided by the economic stimulus package, premiums run $387 on average. Without the assistance, family premiums jump to over $1100 a month. For those who lose their jobs after June 1, the government will no longer pick up that $720 difference.

Families USA found that those laid off after June 1 would have to spend 84% of their monthly unemployment insurance checks on COBRA premiums in order to keep their families covered. Unemployment checks are about $1,313 on average. However in 11 states unemployment income actually would not be enough to cover insurance costs. ”It’s ironic that in a little over two months after health reform passed and is designed to achieve significant coverage improvement, in the short term we will go backwards,” said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, in a Wall Street Journal report.

Another option would be finding individual coverage which could be cheaper, as long as there are no preexisting conditions. “Cobra coverage is so expensive, but the alternatives are either going without coverage or having to go to the individual market,” Park said to the Wall Street Journal. “As long as there’s not a gap of 63 days or more in coverage, you’re guaranteed access to the individual market so insurers can’t deny you. But it may not provide the same comprehensive benefits.”

The oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico is the worst in US history, but according to the Wall Street Journal it won’t lead to huge insurance claims. But that doesn’t mean insurance companies won’t hike premiums. Experts predict the oil leak will cause losses of about $611 million for insurance companies. But as the oil leak continues to gush, that number could rise. Zurich-based insurance company Swiss Re has been the hardest hit by the oil leak and estimates that it will cost about $200 million. Experts say just 20% of the losses stemming from the oil leak are covered by insurance companies. BP will take the largest hit and officials say the company self-insured the risk instead of purchasing liability insurance.

Besides BP, other victims of the oil leak include fishermen and businesses involved in the tourist industry. “In our view, potential business interruption claims represent the largest unknown for insurers,” Moody’s said in a Wall Street Journal report. A hurricane hitting the gulf could make one of the worst disasters in US history even worse for the insurance industry. “Depending on the strength and track of the hurricanes, vast amounts of the existing oil slick and dispersant agents could be captured by the storm and driven well inland by the storm surge,” said Alex Sosnowski, senior meteorologist at Accuweather in a GreenBusienss.com report.

Experts predict that insurance costs for oil rigs will jump, as will prices for offshore energy liability insurance because insurance companies are expected to reevaluate the risks of drilling in deep waters. According to GreenBusiness.com those rates could rise up to 50 percent. Officials say the oil leak could also drive property insurance premiums up by 15 to 25 percent for shallow offshore projects.

Even if you already have health insurance, the cost of prescriptions can still be extreme. According to a 2009 poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, six out of ten people have skilled or delayed healthcare because of the cost. Three in ten people have not filled a prescription because of the cost and one in five have cut pills in half or skipped doses because of the cost.  There are lots of programs available through non-profits and even drug companies that help people cut costs of medicines. Whether you have insurance or not, try checking out these assistance programs.

HealthWell Foundation: The HealthWell Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit created in 2003 in order to help those who have insurance, but can’t afford copayments, coinsurance, and premiums.

Xubex: Xubex offers affordable quality care through a Patient Assistance Program, Free Medication Program and other resources. Xubex offers assistance for generic medications which are historically not included in assistance programs.

Rx Outreach: Through Rx Outreach, qualified patients can buy more than 150 medications for $20 for a 180-day supply. You must meet certain income requirements and apply to receive the discounted medications.

Pfizer Connection to Care: Various drug companies, including Pfizer, offer free medications to those who qualify. Pfizer’s Connection to Care program offers free medicines through your doctor’s office for those who meet household income guidelines.

NeedyMeds: To do more of your own research on available assistance programs head to NeedyMeds.com. Simply search for your medication and you’ll find a list of available programs that offer free or reduced prices. There is also a list of state-sponsored programs that offer help to residents.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@thedigeratilife: “If you want to feel rich, just count the things you have that money can’t buy”

@RamseyShow: Blake: “Extreme Gamers” is on the rise according to a new study. Avg age = 29. Playing video games an avg 48 hours a week! #getalifeandjob

@johncmaxwell: 2 kinds of people in this world: Realists & Dreamers. 1st know where they’re going; 2nd have already been there. -Robert Orben

@thesavalots: **DAD’S DAY IS COMING** How about Golf Equipment at GREAT prices for FATHER’S DAY??!!

@eventualmillion: Invest responsibly: Make the world a better place

@LenPenzo: Even crime wouldn’t pay if the government ran it.

@cheapogroovo: Join the Redbox Text Club and you will receive a FREE movie rental on the first Monday of the every month

@frugalistashow: Consumers Saving to Save the US Economy: As predicted in this space, Americans have gone back to saving.

@moneymatters: Last week: Home-Buyer Tax Credits Are Being Delayed Or Denied For Some Filers

@KNSFinancial: Someone 40 pounds overweight is paid 9 percent less than his thinner colleagues!

The US House passed $112 billion worth of legislation that will extend unemployment, restore tax breaks and raise taxes on mangers of buyout funds and other investment partnerships. Now the legislation will move to the Senate next week. “It’s a good bill for jobs, it’s a good bill for closing tax loopholes, it’s a good bill for dissuading people from taking jobs overseas,” Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, said on the House floor before the vote, according to Business Week.

Without this legislation some benefits for the unemployed will end on May 31, but with this new plan the benefits will be extended through the end of November. Unemployment is still sitting around 10 percent with roughly half of those without jobs being out of work for 27 weeks or more. Earlier this year unemployment payments expired for some Americans, but when lawmakers agreed on an extension the payments were made retroactive. Passing this legislation in the House wasn’t without turmoil, according to the Associated Press.

Fiscally conservative democrats weren’t happy about adding to the country’s $13 trillion in debt. “With this vote, we can help families across the country and continue the path we set out on last year to help dig the country out of a terrible recession,” said Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y, according to the Associated Press. The bill includes $58 billion in tax increases to pay for some of the benefits. “This is not a jobs bill,” said Rep. Wally Herger, R-Calif, according to the Associated Press.  “It is just another extension of the ‘tax too much, spend too much, borrow too much’ philosophy that we have come to expect” from Democrats.

What do you do when you approach a yellow light? What’s considered a safe following distance when driving on a highway? What’s the speed limit in a school zone? Residents of Kansas got more questions like these correct than any other state. Kansas ranked first on the GMAC Insurance National Driver’s Test survey. Kansas took the number one spot after placing fourth last year.

It’s the sixth year for the survey. GMAC questioned more than 5,000 drivers from all 50 states and the District of Columbia in order to figure out which state was the most educated in the rules of the road. The drivers were asked a series of 20 questions from state DMV exams. But despite the smarts shown by Kansas residents, GMAC says Americans’ knowledge of road rules is declining. The national average test score dropped from 76.6 percent in 2009 to 76.2 percent in 2010. Almost nine out of ten drivers questioned didn’t know what to do when approaching a yellow light or what is considered a safe following distance.

Kansas drivers scored an average of 82.3 percent with drivers in Oregon, South Dakota and Minnesota not far behind. New Yorkers scored the worst, with an average score of 70 percent. Also at the bottom of the results were New Jersey, the District of Columbia and California.

A new initiative could help four to six million uninsured restaurant employees get coverage. According to the Chicago Tribune, the National Restaurant Association along with UnitedHealth Group Inc teamed up to make health insurance coverage easier for restaurant workers to get. The move comes three years before the US government will require everyone to have health insurance and will help roughly ten percent of the uninsured workforce.

An array of insurance plans geared toward the restaurant industry will be unveiled by officials. Plans will be released first in Pennsylvania and Colorado, then expanded to California, Florida, Illinois, Texas and other states within the upcoming year. Eventually the plan will encompass the whole year. “Because of the narrow profit margins of the restaurant business, it has been an ongoing real challenge for our industry to find affordable [insurance] products they could offer to employees,” said Dawn Sweeney, chief executive of the influential restaurant group, which represents about 380,000 employers nationwide, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Officials from UnitedHealthcare say they’ve been working on the program for two years. “We hope that by working together, we can make inroads in covering the people who don’t have insurance,” said Austin Pitman, chief growth officer for UnitedHealthcare, according to the Nation’s Restaurant News. He says the program will also offer a 24-hour health care hotline and wellness programs. The NRA’s chairman of the board, Mike Gibbons believes that health care reform will put a huge burden on the restaurant industry, but this plan may alleviate some of that. “The cost of health care reform could be potentially devastating,” he said. “The alliance will give lower cost health care alternatives.”

The restaurant industry employs nearly 13 million people around the country, but has one of the lowest levels of health care coverage. Sweeney says that’s why identifying health care was identified as a top concern of the association. So what’s included in the plan? According to reports restaurant owners and employees will have a web portal dedicated to them to shop for UnitedHealth insurance products. Restaurant owners could use the site to find plans for their employees, and the site would also offer individual plans for workers whose workplace doesn’t offer the benefit of health insurance. A variety of employer-sponsored plans would be available including plans that offer coverage for preventative care, routine medical visits, catastrophic events and more.

Chrysler, which owns GEM, the world’s largest producer of low-speed vehicles says the cars are safe as long as they are on the roads they are intended for. “GEM vehicles offer customers an inexpensive, clean solution for low-speed environments and comply with (the NHTSA’s) standards for low-speed vehicles, which limit the maximum speed of the vehicle to 25 mph,” said Chrysler officials in a USA Today report. “It’s a grave generalization to say that all LSVs are simply souped-up golf carts,” says Mike McQuary, CEO of Atlanta-based Wheego Electric Cars, which manufactures the Whip LSV, according to USA Today.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@Gary_Foreman: Want free checking? – Check out credit unions. Lower fees and a network of ATMs are just some of the offerings

@MSN_Money: Euro hits a 4-year low against US dollar

@MoneyManagement: Store restroom has a dial timer in place of a light switch so the light turns off automatically in 10 min. Brilliant!

@DJSisterhen: For the econ nerds, credit card delinquency rates are falling, folks are paying their bills

@MoneyMatters: Is It OK To Just Stop Paying Your Underwater Mortgage And Walk Away? my answer? No. What’s yours?

@Flexo: Writing an article about an 18-year-old who bought a house from her winnings for showing championship hogs…

@Leanlifecoach: Knowledge = Money In The Bank

@BudgetsAreSexy: i think it’s time for something hella fun, and hella cheap – a walk.

@CleverDude: I’m tired of buying and spending. How about you?

@fcn: “I want to do that thing rich people do where they turn money into more money.” – Liz Lemon, 30 Rock

This week the White House unveiled new details about a plan that will allow young adults to stay covered under their parents’ health insurance policies until they’re 26-years-old. The new policy forces companies offering employer-sponsored  health plans to offer coverage for their employees’ children up to the age of 26. The rules don’t require the young adult to live with his or her parents, attend college or even be a dependent. The twenty-somethings can also be married or unmarried.

Health and Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius estimates that 1.2 million people currently without health insurance coverage will have it because of this new rule. According to a report in the New York Times, the health department estimates that it will cost $3,380 in 2011 to cover each new insurance customer and $3500 in 2012. In 2013 it will cost about $3690 for this coverage. This equates to about a one percent increase in family premiums, according to government officials.

These new rules will begin to take effect September 23, but there are some exceptions. Companies are allowed to exclude adult children of their employees until 2014 if the children already have access to their own insurance through their employee. Some companies are offering this additional coverage now, and they aren’t waiting until the upcoming deadlines. Under the new rules, employers must give young adults a 30-day enrollment window for signing up under their parents’ coverage.

Some people feel the rules or too lenient. “Regulatory agencies may have stretched their authority in writing these rules. Adult children can live 2,000 miles away from their parents, be married and not have spoken to Mom and Dad in a year, and they could still be added to the parents’ employer-sponsored health plan just like any other child,” said James P. Gelfand, director of health policy at the United States Chamber of Commerce, to the New York Times. However, according to the Chicago Tribune, other companies are getting a jump on the new rules. Trustmark, an insurance provider to more than two million people across the US, started offering the coverage My 1. “This early implementation will ensure graduating college students maintain health insurance coverage without falling into the ranks of the uninsured,” said John Anderson, the company’s senior vice president . “This ultimately closes the possible gap in coverage that would have occurred until this fall.”

New information released by The Labor Department says that new claims for unemployment benefits have dropped for the fourth week in a row. It’s a sign, some experts say, that the job market is showing improvement. The unemployment claims dropped by 4,000 last week, according to Yahoo! Finance. The four-week average for unemployment benefit claims fell by 9,000 to 450,500. Last year’s peak was 651,000. The number of people receiving unemployment benefits increased by 12,000 to 4.6 million. Another 5.4 million are receiving extended benefits, which is down 200,000 compared to the week prior.

Employers are beginning to hire again, but slowly. “We expect claims to continue to move lower over the coming weeks and will feel more comfortable about the prospects for sustainable job creation when claims drop below the 400,000 mark,” economists at RDQ Economics said in a note to clients, according to Yahoo! Finance. US employers added about 290,000 jobs in April which is the most in a single month in four years. But experts say a lot of ground needs to be covered to make up for the more than 8 million estimated jobs lost during the recession.

Cisco Systems, Inc is one of the companies that’s hiring. CEO John Chambers said this week that they hired 1,000 new people in the first quarter, a pace he expects to pick up, according to Yahoo! Finance. Other companies are still downsizing. Dean Foods Co, the company behind Horizon Organic milk, announced it plans to eliminate at least 350 jobs. The company already let 150 people go this year.

Wondering what the best minds in money are tweeting about? Every other Tuesday we’ll fill you in on the conversation with Tuesday Money Tweets. You’ll get the 140 characters (or less!) of the financial wisdom you crave from around the Twitterverse.

@CarrieCheap: I think probably the biggest mistake you can make when it comes to planning for retirement is starting to plan when you’re 59.

@krystalatwork: Wearing an Anthropologie shirt that I found at a used clothing store.

@Keepingitrich: I’m seriously going to fix my budget to hire a house cleaner, seriously!

@ForbesWoman: As the recession wanes, men are gaining jobs but women are still losing them.

@ramseyshow: Blake: “Some people dream of success… while others wake up and work hard at it.” – Dave

@cgchamberlain: OH Treasurer K. Boyce, “69% of teens report they learn finances from their parents who spend $1.22 for every $1 earned.”

@ThomasJStanley: Only 20% of millionaires believe that their high school teachers would have labeled them as “most likely to succeed.”

On June 8 California voters will decide what they think about Proposition 17, but until then the debate continues. Supporters say it will help more than 80% of the state’s residents because they could keep their continuous coverage discounts with them when they switch car insurance providers. Drivers say as much as $250 a year with these benefits, but currently the benefits are lost when you switch to a new insurance carrier according to an LA Times report.

Those against Proposition 17 say it will drive up costs, especially for people who gave up driving because of various reasons ranging from military service to medical conditions. Those against the legislation say new drivers and those with bad driving records would also face higher costs. Both sides have been lobbying hard, with insurance companies spending millions of dollars on ad campaigns in the weeks before the vote.

Business groups are largely backing the proposition because of its added freedom for changing insurance providers because they believe it would add more competition. Others say the new law would undermine an old on that strengthened the link between insurance costs and the risk certain drivers hold, according to Richard Holober of the Consumer Federation of California. “It is discriminatory against people who are down on their luck and serving their country,” Holober said to the LA Times. Holober says that drivers who suspend their insurance for more than 90 days because they’re not driving would then have to pay surcharges to reactivate their car insurance coverage.

A surcharge like that would impact drivers like Ben Gartner, a teacher who stopped driving for a year and a half when gas prices soared. Gartner worries he’d have to pay a huge surcharge if Proposition 17 passes. “I would feel it was very unfair if I had to pay more for insurance because I wasn’t driving. I didn’t have anything negative on my driving record. I did it to save money,” he said to the LA Times. But supporters say that won’t happen. “California is the most highly regulated insurance market in the country, with significant consumer protections, and our opponents know darn well the Department of Insurance would never approve rates with the surcharges they allege would occur,” said Mike Darrell to the LA Times, executive director of the Sacramento-based Alliance of Insurance Agents and Brokers.

Clean up efforts continue in Nashville after record rainfall destroyed homes and created an estimated billion dollars in damage.Many residents are now waiting on word from FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to find out what aid they’ll receive. USA Today interviewed some of the homeowners living in the worst-hit areas near the Harpeth River.

Twenty-seven-year-old Tiffany Wiggers says she doesn’t have flood insurance and, in fact, she paid $15,000 extra to be closer to the river. “Everybody on this side of the street, we paid lot premiums to be near the river: $15,000. You have to laugh to keep from crying,” Wiggers told USA Today. She says she and her  husband questioned the real estate agent, builder, lender and an insurance agent about flood insurance, but all said it wasn’t necessary. “They all said, ‘You’re not in a flood plain, so you don’t need it,’ ” recalled Wiggers for USA Today, who was taken from her home via rescue boat. “I was like, ‘FEMA and the bank said we won’t need it, so we’re in the clear.’ ”

In this area the Harpeth River, usually a gentle stream, rose to 27.3 feet. That’s three feet higher than the record which was set in 1948. Tennessee’s governor Phil Bredesen told CNN that many people don’t have flood insurance. “A lot of people who didn’t have flood insurance, because they never thought floodwaters would ever come anywhere near their home, are really looking at a total loss of their home,” Bredesen said to CNN. “It’s very tough on a lot of people right now.” President Obama has declared ten Tennessee counties disaster areas. Thankfully the forecast for this area is dry.

A 43-year-old stripper is charged with insurance fraud after collecting worker’s compensation checks while dancing in a Pennsylvania club. Authorities say Christina Gamble claimed she fell while working in a Red Robin restaurant three years ago. Gamble claimed she hurt her back, making it difficult to stand or change positions. But authorities say Gamble was well enough to work as a stripper at CR Fanny’s Gentleman’s Club and Sports Bar according to the Associated Press. Now she’s facing two counts of insurance fraud.

According to newspaper reports, Highmark Casualty Insurance Co has paid Gamble nearly $23,000 in disability benefits and another $4000 in medical expenses. The company received a tip and started investigating. During the investigation, the company was able to get video of Gamble working as a dancer. She has been charged with two counts of workers compensation insurance fraud, a felony charge.

Here are some statistics on insurance fraud from the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud:

• Nearly one of four Americans say it’s ok to defraud insurers, says a survey by the consulting firm Accenture Ltd.
• About one in 10 people agree it’s ok to submit claims for items that aren’t lost or damaged, or for personal injuries that didn’t occur.
• Two of five people are “not very likely” or “not likely at all” to report someone who ripped of an insurer.
• Nearly one of 10 Americans would commit insurance fraud if they knew they could get away with it.