FDIC is short for Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The FDIC is an independent agency of the federal government charged with protecting bank deposits in the event of a bank default. The FDIC insures certain types of savings deposits in banks and savings associations. FDIC insurance is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government.

Not all banks are covered by the FDIC and FDIC coverage is only available to specific savings institutions and accounts. The FDIC insurance limit is $100,000 for individual accounts and $250,000 for retirement accounts. It you have $150,000 in a bank CD, only $100,000 is guaranteed by the FDIC. If the bank fails, the excess $50,000 is not covered.

You can spread the risk of loss in bank deposits by holding CD’s under different ownership categories and by limiting the amount held in any specific bank. The FDIC was formed in 1933 and no insured depositor has lost as much as a penny. Historically, the FDIC has paid claims within a few business days of a default, but the punctuality of the payment is not part of the guarantee. The following types of accounts are not covered by the FDIC.

	Credit Union Accounts
	Some State Banks
	Money Market Funds
	Mutual Funds
	Individual Stocks & Bonds
	Annuities& Life Insurance Policies
	Contents of a Safe Deposit Box
	Deposits with Brokerage Houses (unless specifically designated as an FDIC covered CD that includes the name of the bank and the type of account)

For additional information on the FDIC visit www.fdic.gov

NCUA is a federal agency, that provides FDIC type services to credit union deposits. The coverage and limits are similar to those of the FDIC. NCUA was formed in 1970 by an act of congress and like the FDIC, has a perfect record of protecting its deposits. For additional information please see www.ncua.gov

SPIC, Securities Investor Protection Corp, offers insurance protection of up to $500,000 per customer ($100,000 in cash) for securities missing when a stock or bond brokerage firm is liquidated. The SPIC, however, does not protect depositors from fraudulent investments. Since its creation in 1970, the Securities Investor Protection Corporation has advanced over $585 million to investors awaiting final liquidations. Since the mission of the SPIC is different than that of the FDIC or NCUA, do not expect the timeliness of its payment to be similar.

Insurance State Guarantee Funds - Deposits to, and the policy cash values of, life insurance and annuity policies are not guaranteed by any agency of the Federal government. However, every state has established a guarantee fund to protect moneys held in annuities and other life insurance products. The operation and the limits of coverage vary greatly from state to state

These underlying guarantees normally range from $100,000 to $500,000 per person. The precise amount of protection provided varies from state to state and is highly dependent on the type of policy and/or benefit being guaranteed. Please consult your state insurance department for exact details specific to your situation. The following link is to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) web site, which has links to each individual state regulatory department.

http://www.naic.org/state_web_map.htm

Note: In some states, insurance agents are prohibited from providing specific information about the coverage provided by their state insurance guarantee fund. It is therefore the responsibility of the consumer to understand their rights under the plan of their respective state.