8 Types of Protection Not Worth Paying For

By Angela Colley

Imagine you’ve flown into town to attend a friend’s wedding. You’re driving down the highway in a rental car, dog by your side, chatting on your cellphone.

Insure all that and it’s possible that you and your friend have wasted hundreds of dollars.

Do you buy travel insurance? Rental car insurance? Pet insurance? Cellphone insurance? And did your friend buy wedding insurance?

Life has risks, and paying to protect yourself makes sense – health insurance to cover big hospital bills, for example, or homeowner’s insurance to cover catastrophe. Money Talks News founder Stacy Johnson knows there are many types of protection you shouldn’t buy, at least without careful consideration. Read on for some insurance and warranty products that often aren’t worth the money …

1. Identity theft insurance
Identity theft insurance doesn’t protect you from becoming a victim of the crime, or sometimes even replace money lost. The insurance covers only some of the expenses you accrue dealing with identity theft – like the cost of mailing letters to your creditors and maybe some legal fees. And it costs $20 to $100 per year – plus a $100 to $1,000 deductible, according to MSNBC.

Instead of paying for extra insurance, see if your credit card company offers identity theft recovery services. Some companies, such as American Express, help you free of charge.

If your card doesn’t come with it, you can still protect yourself. The Federal Trade Commission has a list of steps to take if you’ve been victimized by identity theft on its website – like placing a fraud alert on your credit report and canceling affected credit accounts.