In car insurance, as in most anything else, scams do exist. However, because your safety is at stake here, it is even more important to not only avoid such scams, but to do everything you possibly can to prevent yourself from ever coming into contact with a scam or a scammer.
Common sense is key here. It will be what keeps con artists from taking advantage of you.
The first thing you need to do is make sure you comparison shop for your car insurance. Getting quotes from a number of different car insurance companies, online and off, can help you get a lot of information as well. Information is knowledge and scams cannot work when you are knowledgeable.
You also need to make sure your insurance agent is legitimate. Check out licenses and credentials.
With any payment you make, you need to make sure you have proof.