Shopper's Guide to Long-Term Care Insurance. Weiss Ratings, Inc. Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. 2004.

Price: $49 -- click on book to order.

One of the risks in purchasing long-term care insurance is that you will choose a financially shaky insurance carrier that later goes belly up. Another danger is that you will select a policy that proves unaffordable, forcing you to let the policy lapse after paying thousands of dollars in premiums.

A publication by Weiss Ratings can help you avoid both pitfalls.

Weiss is one of the major firms that rates the financial stability of insurance companies and banks. Weiss's hallmarks are independence and toughness: unlike certain other rating agencies, it accepts no compensation from the companies it rates and does not give companies the opportunity to preview its ratings.

Among the companies Weiss rates are providers of long-term care insurance, and its new Shoppers Guide to Long-Term Care Insurance can help consumers determine which company in their area has the combination of the best financial safety rating and the lowest rates.

Each report is customized for the consumer's age and state of residence. That is, you tell Weiss how old you are and where you live, and they'll produce a Guide that compares the long-term care policies available in your state, along with premium rates offered to policyholders of your age. In addition, you get the Weiss Safety Rating for each company to help you identify those insurers that are most likely to be around when you need them.

The Guide also offers chapters that answer basic questions about long-term care insurance, offer tips on selecting the best policy, and explain Weiss' ratings and what goes into determining premium rates.

For more on the Shoppers Guide to Long-Term Care Insurance, click here.