Archive for the 'Pre-Paid Legal Services' Category
ID Thieves Are Targeting Medical Information.
July 17th, 2008 Categories: Pre-Paid Legal Services
First (and still is ) personal ID theft. It graduated to stealing homes and now ID thieves are stealing personal medical information.
This article was re-printed in both the Star Duster Newsletter and L. A. Daily News but was originally published in the The Dallas Morning News. The writer is Pamela Yip.
When someone steals your identity, obtains loans in your name and then stiffs the lenders, the effects on your credit report can be devastating. It can take weeks, months or sometimes years – as well as plenty of frustration – to restore your good name.
Medical ID theft occurs when a thief uses some-one’s personal information – such as health insurance information – without the indiviuals’ consent to obtain medical services or goods, or to make false claims for medical services or goods.
Getting stuck with the bill for a medical procedure you never had is bad enough, but medical identify theft also has far more serious implications.
“Unlike purely financial forms of identity theft, medical identity theft may also harm its victims by creating false entries in their health records at hospitals, doctor’s offices, pharmacies and insurance companies,” said Pam Dixon, executive director of the World Privacy Forum, a nonprofit privacy-rights organization in Cardiff by the Sea (California).
Changes made to victims’ medical files and histories can remain for years and may not ever be corrected, or even discovered, which can have deadly consequences.
“Victims of medical identity theft may receive the wrong medical treatment, find their health insurance exhausted, and could become un-insurable for both life and health insurance coverage,” Dixon said. “They may fail physical exams for employment due to the presence of diseases in their health record that do not belong to them.”
Of the 8.3 million Americans who were victims of identity theft in 2005, three percent or 249,000, said someone had obtained medical treatment and services using their personal information, according to the Federal Trade Commission’s 2006 Identity Theft Survey Report, the most recent.
Now that medical ID theft is recognized as a type of identity theft, it is being reported more often, said Linda Foley, co-executive director of the Identity Theft Resource Center in San Diego (CA).
Elaine Anderson, senior vice president of compliance at Texas Health Resources, has seen evidence of that.
“Over the last three to four years, this has been something that’s been coming to my attention more frequently,” Anderson said. “We’ve taken it really seriously. Identity theft has become a real problem for our society.”
The most common way for consumers to discover that their personal information has been hijacked for medical services is when they receive a bill for a procedure they never received.
It this happens to you, contact the hospital, clinic or doctor who sent the bill and inform them of the error. Also, contact your health insurance company because the health care provider may have already billed the insurer.
To prevent medical identity theft, carefully study the “explanations of benefits” document that your health insurance company sends you detailing health services you obtained and their reimbursements.
Check to see that the dates and types of services match your records. If you spot anything suspicious – whether you owe money or not – call your insurer and health care provider immediately.
Guard your health insurance card as you would a credit card.
If you are checking in for an appointment and are asked for your Social Security Number, address and other personal information, make sure no one is lingering suspiciously near you.
The medical environment is a unique setting in which ID theft can take place.
When you are hospitalized, all types of employees can have access to your personal data. That includes employees in the billing department, nurses, doctors, and lab technicians.
The health insurance industry said that although several bills pending in Congress propose new data security requirements, insurers must remain vigilant about protecting patient health records.
If You Thin You Are A Victim Of Medical Identity Theft:
- Contact your health provider and your insurer. Most insurers have anti-fraud hot-lines staffed by experts who can talk you through what to do. Typically they will request a new insurance card for you and have a watch put on your old insurance card.
- File a police report. You may need this for health card providers and insurance companies.
- Correct erroneous and false information in your file. Sending copies of a police report to insurers, providers and credit bureaus may be a step in cleaning up the problem, though there is no guarantee that it will cure all the problems.
- Take detailed notes. Write down the name and contact information of everyone you speak to, as well as the date and what was discussed, in case you need to follow up. Also, make copies of letters and e-mails you send.
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If Your Personal ID Can Be Stolen Why Not Your Home?
June 22nd, 2008 Categories: Pre-Paid Legal Services
It was reported in the Sunday Los Angeles Times (June 22, 2008: author-Lew Sichelman) that homes and home equity are being stolen by identity thieves.
It appears that one goes hand in hand with the other. If a person can steal your identity why can’t they steal your home.
How is this being done?
By stealing your name, personal identifying information and credit history thieves can readily apply for a home line of equity on your home or re-finance your home. Of importance is that the information is being retrieved from businesses and not individuals (per the United States Secret Service).
As of November 1 the so called red flag rider to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (of 2003), will require financial institutions, creditors and others who handle personal identifying documents to develop a program to prevent identity theft.
But how can a con artist steal a house? In house stealing the con artist picks a home (say a vacation home) and assumes the owner’s identity to create fake identification, social security cards and whatever else is needed to perpetuate his disguise.
Then the con artist gets the required forms to transfer the property, forges the owner’s signature and files the papers with the proper authorities. Often targeted are empty homes but lived-in homes are exposed to this scam.
The Motor Vehicles Department is a prime source of getting information. When individual files a name change or address change (as is required in all states) con artist have access to this information.
It is becoming mandatory for individuals to secure insurance (such as pre-paid-legal-services) for the nominal $ 11 to $ 12 per month to make certain that their identity is not being stolen. This fee is cheap if you stop someone from stealing your identity and home.
No one loves you more than yourself. Protect yourself with a little insurance and be happy that you did. The consequences are not very pleasant.
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Pre-Paid Legal. What IF……
May 20th, 2008 Categories: Pre-Paid Legal Services
First and foremost let me state at the beginning that I am a real estate broker. So why (do you ask) am I writing about Pre-Paid Legal or pre-paid anything.
I came in contact with Pre-Paid Legal because I had to make out a Will.
Certainly one can do the same thing on-line with an array of choices but I recall someone telling me that if you screw things up it can be difficult to make it right.
So for me I needed the assurance that the Will was done right. Most people will feel the same way. Knowing that you have access to an attorney is comforting and there is the knowledge that the Will is done correctly. As a member of Pre-Paid Legal you will have an immediate discount of 25% for such legal services. Every bit of savings counts.
But as I continued to checked out Pre-Paid Legal I found another item that was of extreme importance to me and that was Identity Theft. This is a horrible on-going problem happening everyday to many unaware people.
Just imagine buying a home (buying anything) and finding out that your identity is being shared (of course without you knowing). You will be tasked to get everything cleared before the close of escrow and the likelihood of that happening is very small. You will have to put your life on hold, pass on the home purchase and clear your identity.
We periodically read all of the stories and the hardship faced by people whose identity was stolen. It is a heart wrenching, traumatizing violation of them as a person. And it is always surprising. How did it happened? Why did it happened? What went wrong? Who did this?
I know of a man who had his identity stolen. He is different today. Don’t get me wrong he is still a very nice person but he has changed. He is extremely cautious. He changed because of this event and it makes him angry.
Banks and credit card companies first look and listen to people of identity theft and then treat them as though it was just a story and are of limited help. It’s your problem; not theirs.
People who suffer with ”identity theft” are in no-man’s land. They are tasked with getting everything cleared up and usually they are on their own.
These people are extremely mad (my friend was mad everyday as well as he/they should) and then they find that they are viewed not as a person violated but as something else. It is a situation in which they are tasked with proving themselves innocent while the institutions view them as guilty.
With Pre-Paid Legal an individual has options.
The first is that one can choose a restoration which with the help of a designated company steps will be taken
- to assist in organizing the details;
- educate you on the process;
- immediately contacting fraud centers within the Social Security Department (if needed), the Post Office, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
In addition a review of public records, credit accounts and a sundry of items is undertaken none of which any of us know about until we have to do it ourselves.
Imagine getting assistance
- with law enforcement;
- check clearing houses;
- Department of Motor Vehicles;
- notifying work and collection agencies;
- contacting all of your creditors;
- and find out if these credit card companies extended you more credit based on the misuse of your identity information.
I personally would not know where to start but having a service that is in my corner is helpful. But most certainly it does not take away the pain and time to get everything resolved.
A further review of Pre-Paid Legal indicated that while Will preparation and Identity Theft were options, there were other items that could be considered such as:
- contracts and document reviews;
- get phone calls or letters written on your behalf for any subject matter;
- legal consultation;
- IRS audits;
- trial defense if you or your spouse are named in a civil or criminal action filed in court;
- motor vehicle services and host of other items which can be had at reduced rates.
Most of us will instantly say “we don’t need any of these things”. And that is true UNTIL we need them. For instance:
- How many people today need a Will or need a Will updated?
- How many people have signed a contract wishing they had somebody that could review the contract before signing?
- How many people have had problems with an insurance claim?
- How many people have had trouble with a warranty on a product?
- How many people need help to collect child support?
- How many people paid a bill they knew wasn’t theirs or thought unfair and belatedly inflated?
- How many people are there they have received an inaccurate credit rating?
As mentioned in the beginning I am a real estate broker and the protections that one can get from Pre-Paid Legal are certainly items that can save real estate buyers and others from surprises.
Another facet that I like about Pre-Paid Legal is that an individual has an option of using this venue as an income source by becoming an affiliate.
I mentioned Identity Theft and to be sure today one hears advertised services by just mentioning someones name such as Rush Limbaugh or Hannity or whom ever.
These most certainly should be reviewed and compared.
But the thing I liked about Pre-Paid Legal is that the person that talked to me about Pre-Paid Legal is close by. I could physically see them and listen and become educated of the process.
Your personal and family requirements are the most important factors that have to be considered.
I am not an insurance person but when a young man or woman tells me that they are going to buy life insurance I ask why? Mind you I am not against life insurance but when a person is very young I would think that disability insurance would be the more important to the individual and the family.
The chances of getting hurt is higher than passing away. The same is true for the services from Pre-Paid Legal. We don’t need them now but later we are glad to have them.
Visit Pre-Paid Legal and find out for yourself the protection that your can buy or the income option that can help you in your daily lives.
Simply click on www.prepaidlegal.com/hub/johnduffner and you are on your way.
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