WICHITA, Kansas, Mar 17, 2008 -- But stores aren't the only place you'll find impulse buys; you might find one in your mailbox. Open a credit card or mortgage statement and you will often find they want you to buy credit life insurance.

Credit life is insurance that pays off a specific debt if you should die, like a credit card debt or a mortgage. That sounds reasonable, which is why so many people sign up for it.

But credit life is a high-margin profit maker for insurance companies and normally a bad buy for you. Regular term life insurance is usually much cheaper in the long run.

Another popular, but bad impulse insurance buy is buying a life insurance policy on your children.

The purpose of life insurance is to replace lost income if the insured person dies. So, unless you're living off of your kid's income, it's normally not a smart buy.

While it's technically not insurance, rental car coverage is often unnecessary: Before you leave home, see if your car policy or credit cards cover you.

Specific disease insurance isn't normally worth what it costs, especially if you have decent health coverage.

The bottom line? You don't have to go to the store to find impulse buys. Understanding insurance is a good policy that helps insure you don't waste money.