Estimates show that as many as 10,000 people nationwide may have been duped by Association of Independent Managers (AIM). Nancy Stowe is one of them, according to WBTV. She was looking for affordable healthcare coverage online and contacted the North Carolina Department of Insurance for a reference before completing a purchase. “They had nothing that made me think this wouldn’t be a good purchase,” Stowe told WBTV. So she went ahead and purchased coverage from AIM, but now she’s out thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills. “I am going to testify in this cease and desist order being put up against this company by the state of North Carolina,” Stowe told WBTV.

Stowe thought she was getting a good deal– paying hundreds less for coverage for her and her husband. She checked out AIM’s website and membership materials and moved forward with her purchase. Her premium was more than $400 a month, but then Stowe’d doctor told her all of her medical bills were being denied by her insurance company. “It was so frustrating because I owed thousands of dollars, plus all of those monthly premiums my boss had reimbursed me for,” Stowe told WBTV.

WBTV offered some tips to help others from going through what Stowe went through. Their tips include:

• Always remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• Deal only with licensed agents and companies.
• If you have any doubt, call your state’s Department of Insurance, Consumer Services Division.
• If the agent you are dealing with starts becoming vague or hard to reach, consider canceling.
• Do NOT sign any blank application or claims forms.
• NEVER pay premiums in cash.
• Keep all your records and proof of payments.
• You can always call your insurance company (the company who has the policy) to confirm your policy exists and is what you think it is.

Some scams to look out for when it comes to insurance include:

• Companies that try to look and act like licensed insurance companies when they’re not. They offer low rates regardless of your health history, but then claims are either paid slowly or not paid at all. These companies typically operate under different names.
• Web sites that look like companies you are familiar with, but that are actually stealing your information.
• Pyramid schemes where insurance companies offer incentives for paying a membership fee or recruiting more members.