As many as 1,000 motorists who purchased car coverage policies in the Detroit metropolitan area may actually be uninsured, the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation (OFIR) announced earlier this week.
A press release from state regulators (OFIR) released Monday advised consumers that an agency called Ethos or Ethos Insurance and agent Don Diamond “were selling bogus policies purporting to have coverage through legitimate insurance companies.” Diamond was licensed to sell
auto insurance in Michigan, according to the OFIR, but the protection plans in question were the result of unlicensed activity.
Drivers who purchased coverage from either of those two entities have been urged by the OFIR to contact regulators to determine the validity of their protection and to get a legitimate policy. The regulatory office said the issue was brought to their attention after policyholders said they were lacking documentation that should have been supplied by the seller of the policies.
The issue highlights a major concern for consumers: the need to take the time to vet insurers and agents before deciding to purchase a policy. Michigan and most state regulators have tools on their websites that allow drivers to check whether agents and agencies have currently valid licenses to operate in the state. The one caveat, which is underscored by the Michigan case, is that licensed sellers of policies could still be participating in unlicensed activities.
To learn more about this and other Michigan car coverage issues, readers can go to
http://www.onlineautoinsurance.com/michigan/ where visitors will have access to informative resource pages and be able to comparison-shop for a protection plan by using the site’s free rate-generation tool.
