Archive for June, 2009

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Insurance Phoenix – The Amazing Umbrella Policy

Sunday, June 21st, 2009

Umbrella insurance protection is usually one of the last insurance products a consumer buys. I understand the reasoning. A family budget is stretched thin and we often feel “insurance poor”.

But what happens if you or a family member (such as a teen driver) is involved in an auto crash that injures others? Do you have high bodiliy injury limits under your auto insurance policy? What if the other person is disabled or killed? If you calculate a person’s worth on that basis, I bet 99% of insurance buying consumers have too little protection under their auto policy.

An umbrella policy goes hand in hand with an auto insurance policy and home insurance policy and costs about $350 or less annually for $1,000,000 protection. This premium varies bases on other factors (if you own rental properties, have recreational vehicles, teen driver’s).

If you have too little bodily injury protection under your auto policy, then what? Do you sell your home? Have 25% of your wages garnished for the next 15 years? Cash out a 401k, IRA or something else?

When you buy an umbrella insurance policy keep in mind that you are protecting your assets and income.

Be especially careful when you have teen drivers on your auto policy. Teenagers have more accidents than all the other age groups combined. Consider increasing your deductibles on your auto insurance policy and home insurance policy.

Consider if you have an auto insurance policy or home insurance policy with a $500 deductible and you have a $750 claim. Are you going to file a claim for the $250 difference or pay the entire $750 out of pocket to keep the claim off your record? Many people will pay it out of pocket. If this is you, consider increasing your deductibles.

Posted in Umbrella | No Comments »

How to Get Inexpensive Older Home Insurance

Thursday, June 18th, 2009

You may love the charm of your older home, but finding inexpensive homeowners insurance for it can be difficult. Insurance for older homes can cost as much as 25% more than insurance for newer homes. Here are some tips to help you get inexpensive older home insurance.

Raise Your Deductible

You often need to buy higher coverage amounts for older homes in order to cover the higher rebuilding costs. However, you can offset those higher coverage amounts by raising your deductible. The higher you raise your deductible, the lower your premium will be.

Request Homeowners Discounts

If you have an historic home, you want to retain as much of the historic flavor of your home as possible. In fact, if you live in an historic area, you may be limited as to what changes you can make to your home. However, by installing such modern amenities as deadbolts and alarm systems, you can take advantage of security discounts offered by insurance companies.

Ask your insurer what discounts you qualify for and take advantage of them.

Choose a Company that Specializes in Older Homes

Insurance companies often specialize in a particular type of home, including antique or older construction. By choosing a company that specializes in older homes, you can be sure you’re getting the right amount of insurance.

To find a company that specializes in older homes, you can:

* Ask your neighbors for recommendations

* Check with your city building department

* Check with your neighborhood or city historic district commission

Go Comparison Shopping Online

The best way to shop for insurance for your older home is to go comparison shopping online. By spending just a few minutes at an insurance comparison website you can get quotes from multiple A-rated insurance companies.

On the best insurance comparison websites you can also talk with insurance experts and get answers to all your insurance questions, plus get advice on lowering your older home insurance premium (see link below).

Posted in Home Owners Renters | No Comments »

Insurance and Risk Management for Small Business Owners

Tuesday, June 16th, 2009

Many small business owners truly believe that when they have a proper and comprehensive insurance
program for their business, they will be “fully protected” from financial losses. Setting aside the
grey areas on the fine print of most insurance policies, there are many losses that insurance cannot
be extended.

Some of the such losses that small business suffered after occurrence of accident; are lost of goodwill to customers due to failure to deliver merchandises on time; lost of faith from employees for not
providing a conducive working environment, and many more losses which do not have financial impact
initially but gradually translate into financially losses.

While insurance is important in indemnifying small business owners in case of fire damaging their
properties and/or accidents that causing injuries and loss of life thus downtime in productivity,
small business owners should practice risk management in order to create a more sustainable business
and have a competitive edge over their competitors to minimize their lost time hence cost.

The basic methods of risk management are

1.Avoidance of Risk

Simple procedures and things that most small business owners took for granted can have huge impact
when they resulted in accident. Always practice the maxim of “prevention is better than cure.”

2.Reduction of risk and losses

Be aware of the consequences of risk and accident, develop a loss prevention or reduction system to
minimize the occurrence of risk and losses when risk happened.

3.Transferring of Risk

Transfer the risk to other parties like insurance company.

4.Keeping of risk and absorption of losses.

If transfer of risk is not possible, you may have to absorb some of the risk and/or losses. Some of
the insurance policies require the insured to bear a portion of the losses term as deductible or
excess.

Arranging a comprehensive insurance cover for small business is crucial for the survival, many small
businesses have overlooked or ignored the important of a proper coverage for their business, when
accident happens, they found themselves in a financial distress and thus loosing their customers to
their competitors.

It is thus advisable to seek professional advice for a proper insurance coverage and more importantly practice good risk management.

Posted in Commercial | No Comments »

Insurance For College Students – College Insurance Knowledge

Monday, June 15th, 2009

For many Florida teens, high school graduation day is an exciting time of new beginnings, of big plans ahead and the real start of taking on more adult responsibilities. Navigating the maze of health insurance options does not have to be one of those things that is intimidating, if you know how to make your way through the various options available to you. Understanding what choices you do have will make your choice that much easier to make as you plan for the next few years as a college student.

If you are already insured under your parents’ health care plan, then usually, until you are twenty five, you can remain covered. Asking your parents if they can continue to cover you and if their plan will allow that is always the first step if you already have coverage and will be one less thing to worry about in the coming years.

If you aren’t going to college, or you are a college student over the age of 25, looking into COBRA or Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act may be yet another way to maintain or obtain health care coverage. If your parents’ plan for whatever reason cannot cover you, this option can sometimes be a chance to continue coverage. Have your parents ask their insurance agent if this option may be right for you.

If COBRA isn’t an option, and you find that you are going to be working, another option is short term health care coverage. If you are someone who perhaps doesn’t usually see a doctor, but would like to make sure that in case of an emergency you are able to- choose a plan with a higher deductible and you can obtain fairly inexpensive and temporary coverage until employment or other options make a longer term solution available. Another way that many young adults obtain health care coverage is through an employer, so do not rule out the possibility of a group health care plan through a place of employment. While most require full time employment to qualify, some may have options that you can also buy into after a certain amount of time has passed, even under part time hours.

Failing all of those options, you may find yourself looking into individual coverage plans- these can sometimes come with rather steep premiums, however, shopping around can usually yield something comprehensive and at least within your budget. If you are again shooting for a higher deductible plan, you should be able to maintain fairly low rates, and even better so if you are a reasonably healthy, nonsmoker. These plans usually require some level of medical testing or disclosure to qualify, however, if you find yourself having to explore this option doing side by side comparisons can help you find what is right for you.

It does not have to be a confusing ordeal, working through health care coverage as a young adult, often, finding an agent who is willing to walk you through your options can also help to shed a little light on things.

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Orthodontic Dental Insurance For When the Kids Are Growing

Sunday, June 7th, 2009

Orthodontic dental insurance is one of the most misunderstood types of coverage available to consumers. There are many false assumptions where getting orthodontic care and how much it covers is concerned. Most visits to an orthodontist are very expensive, but a necessary part of life when your kids are growing up. Let’s take a look at a few facts of what you’ll face before you buy a policy.

#1. Standard dental insurance does NOT include orthodontic coverage. Orthodontic insurance must be purchased as a separate policy.

#2. As with all other types of policies, it does not cover any condition that is considered to be “pre-existing”. This means that if you already have a problem BEFORE you buy the insurance then you will not be covered right away. You’ll have to go through a mandatory waiting period of between 6-12 months and then you’ll be eligible for at least partial coverage.

#3. Most standard Orthodontic plans only provide a maximum of 50% coverage. This means that if your child needs braces that cost $4,000, you’ll have to pay $2,000 yourself, or half.

#4. Like other insurance policies, Orthodontic insurance policies have an annual limit on how much they’ll pay. This will be different for individual and family policies, with a family policy offering a bit higher annual coverage.

Orthodontic dental insurance isn’t cheap either. Unfortunately, that’s the case with most types of health plans. There are other ways that you may be able to save money on braces and other dental specialties, such as discount dental plans, possibly getting the work done by students at a college or university or, in extreme cases, you may be able to get state assistance, if money is an issue. It would be in your best interest to do some research and find out what’s available in your area before you spend any money on an expensive orthodontic dental insurance policy.

Posted in Dental | No Comments »

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