PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (MarketWatch) -- Be careful about assuming that a bank, savings institution or credit union has U.S. government-backed deposit or share insurance. It may not.

More than 900 members of the Boise Fire Department Credit Union, in Idaho, have no insurance on their savings. Also without insurance: Private and corporate savers at Bank of North Dakota, Bismarck; 40 members of WRG Credit Union in Danville, N.H.; and depositors at The Bank of Nova Scotia, a Canadian bank with a branch in Puerto Rico.

It's tough finding out which financial institutions have no government-backed insurance on savings due to the lack of a national data base. So be sure to double-check before opening an account. Experts say that there likely are more credit unions without federal insurance than banks or thrifts.

The National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) says that only eight state laws allow for private insurance. Those include Alabama, California, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Nevada and Ohio. The majority of states require credit unions to have insurance through the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, administered by the National Credit Union Administration.

As of June 30, 180 of 3,410 state-chartered credit unions were insured by American Share Insurance, Dublin, Ohio, according to NASCUS. Licensed in Ohio as American Mutual Share Insurance Corp., the guaranty corporation has no traditional insurance company rating by A.M. Best or Standard and Poor's. It is dually regulated by the Ohio Department of Commerce and Department of Insurance.

American Share Insurance says its credit-union member accounts are not insured or guaranteed by any government or government-sponsored agency.

In addition, 133 credit unions are insured by the Corporación Pública para la Supervisión y Seguro de Cooperativas de Puerto Rico (Public Corporation for the Supervision and Insurance of Cooperatives of Puerto Rico). That insurer, also known as "COSSEC," is a public corporation created under state law.

COSSEC has a collateralized line of credit with the Department of Treasury of Puerto Rico.

The Bank of North Dakota, with $1.5 billion in assets, is owned by the state, explains its President Eric Hardmeyer. Largely, it's for the deposit of state taxes. With state ownership and backing, no other insurance is needed.

Boise Fire Department Credit Union Manager Jeff Higgins says he'd like to see insurance at his credit union. "At our annual meeting every year, it's voted upon," he said. "The membership votes not to."

Timothy Dunn, Boise Fire Department Credit Union treasurer, according to state records, says the membership has voted down insurance every year since 1940. "We do pay a better dividend and we've always been real sound," Dunn said. Insurance would mean less earnings on savings.

Dunn says 200 members typically attend annual meetings. Their decline of insurance is despite encouragement by state reps to consider it. Member quarterly statements, he says, disclose the lack of insurance on savings.

National Credit Union Administration records supplied to Callahan & Associates, Washington, indicate the Boise Fire Department Credit Union on June 30 had 948 "share" or savings accounts with $4.877 million. Nearly 60%, or $3.2 million, of the credit union's $5.1 million in loans were on used vehicles.

"They're a $5 million credit union that is 66 years-old," said Gavin Gee, director of the Idaho Department of Finance. "All the credit unions chartered in 1940 had no insurance. So it's one that's essentially grandfathered."

Gee admits that without federal insurance, credit unions are not subject to certain federal regulations. Exceptions: The Bank Secrecy (anti-money laundering) Act and the USA Patriot Act.

"We examine and regulate them like any other credit union we have jurisdiction over. It's not like they're escaping oversight." If the credit union failed, Gee's department would step in, close it and attempt either a liquidation or merger. There just would be no insurance funds as backup.

WRG Credit Union, an old agrarian credit union, has only $49,774 in assets, says the New Hampshire Banking Department. "It (WRG) stands for Western Rockingham Grange," reports New Hampshire Bank Commissioner Peter Hildreth. "These are probably all people who know each other."

In an August 2003 study, the U.S. Government Accountability Office reported that it paid unannounced visits to 57 privately insured credit unions. Required posted notices that they lacked federal insurance were absent in 37% of locations. The credit unions were in Alabama, California, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Yet, the National Credit Union Administration, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Federal Trade Commission all had objected to enforcing Federal Deposit Insurance Act rules mandating disclosures.

The recently adopted Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2006 is expected to improve disclosure rules and their enforcement for non-federally insured institutions. But final rules are pending from the Federal Trade Commission.

Spouses Gail Liberman and Alan Lavine are syndicated columnists. Their latest book is "Quick Steps to Financial Stability (Que/Penguin)." You can e-mail them at MWliblav@aol.com.

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By Gail Liberman and Alan Lavine

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