Over at Dolans.com, we've been getting more and more questions about the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and how it protects your money in the event of a bank failure. Of course, with just about every day bringing another report about shaky banks, it's no wonder people are getting worried.

And on top of that, just yesterday there was a story in Bloomberg about how the strain bank failures are putting on the FDIC Reserve Fund is going to lead to higher insurance premiums for banks. A story like that might make you a little nervous. That's what makes it more important than ever for you to know what is and is not covered by the FDIC in the event that your bank fails.

Know the rules and follow them, and you won't be risking even a single penny of your money. Get all loosey-goosey about limits, and you could find yourself singing the blues. Just ask the estimated 10,000 IndyMac customers who received 50 cents on the dollar for their uninsured assets. Devastating. (For more on the banking crisis, see "AIG's House of Falling Cards ").

Simple Steps to Protect Your Money

Step one: Make sure your bank is FDIC insured. You can do this by visiting the FDIC website or by calling them at 1-877-ASK-FDIC. Worried about your bank's stability? The FDIC maintains a watch list of potentially troubled banks, but they won't share it. Services like Veribanc will rate your bank for a fee.

Step two: Know what is and is not covered by FDIC insurance. The only assets that are covered are cash and cash equivalents. So, CDs, money market accounts, checking and savings accounts will be covered up to $100,000.

Not covered: Money market mutual funds, or any mutual funds, for that matter. Neither are stocks, bonds, annuities or life insurance investments. Many people don't realize this, but safe-deposit boxes are not covered either. You may want to check with your homeowner's insurance company to see if they cover your safe-deposit box contents. (By the way, banks are now offering customers a new type of investment vehicle called...