Insurance & Protection

What You Should Know about Homeowners Insurance

isong — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 03:11:03 +0000

No one knows when they will need their home coverage because it’s really hard to predict anything like an earthquake, theft, flood or hurricane. And unless you plan doing some fraud with our insurance policy (which is, of course, not the smartest thing to do) you might never suspect that you really need it before something bad happens. That’s what insurance is for – it covers you against situations that are unpredictable. But what exactly are these situations that home coverage is designed for protecting against? The fact is that the list of such circumstances is very large and varies from one policy to another.

However, most insurance policies are designed to provide coverage against circumstances listed below. Each of them can’t be predicted. But sure has the potential to devastate your house and leave you without a home unless you have proper coverage.

Fire

Fire has the potential to turn your entire house into ash within minutes even before you can call for help. All that is needed is a small leak in your oven, a spark from the fridge or a forgotten candle to fire your house up, destroying all of your belongings in a very short time. Even if you’re fully confident about your appliances and devices, you aren’t fully protected from fire. A single cigarette butt thrown into your yard can be just enough to turn your precious house into a pile of burnt stacks. And taking into account that most fires happen when no one is at home and can’t control the disaster, the risk of leaving your house with respectful insurance is too high for you to assume. Most home insurance policies provide coverage against fire.

Flood

Flood poses a risk to many households, even those that aren’t situated near rivers, lakes or other bodies of water. Pipe problems, heavy shower and even a malfunctioning dishwasher are also considered as flood risk, and if you feel that your home might be subject to such a situation, make sure that you have flood coverage with your home insurance. If a main water pipe gets damaged somewhere beneath or near your house and you are not at home the damage can be as bad as in the case of fire. Of course, there is a chance that you will be able to restore some of your belongings, still it can be quite costly to repair the soaked house and buy new appliances that usually tend to get ruined by water. Not all policies cover flood damage, so you have to make sure your does if you need this type of coverage. Some companies offer flood damage insurance as a separate policy.

Earthquake

Earthquakes are certainly amongst the most disastrous and haunting of natural disasters because they are impossible to predict and you know there is one when your entire house is already shaking like cardboard construction. The damage delivered by an earthquake is usually very serious, making entire towns and cities impossible to live in. Even if your house has sustained an earthquake and is still standing, the structural damage can be so serious that the house should be demolished and built anew in order to be possible to live in. Most policies include this type of damage, however make sure to get as many home insurance quotes in order to get the best rates.

Tips on Decent Health Coverage & Conditions

isong — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 07:32:56 +0000

In case you are not familiar with the market of insurance in general and healthcare coverage in particular, it can be quite confusing at first. But do not worry, as it is far simpler than you may think. Here’s a short recap of the most important things to know when shopping for health coverage plans. Of course, it’s not that profound to make an insurance specialist out of you in a single read, but it sure will help you find a decent policy with good coverage and low price.

Your options

Individual health policies – it is the most obvious option for most people, especially when not provided with healthcare coverage through their employers. You can find many insurance companies providing individual health plans. There are different regulations in every state regarding individual health coverage so make sure to learn more about your state before actually getting the policy. The best source for this information is your state’s insurance department.

High risk pools – these specific pools are the best solution in case you have been denied ordinary individual insurance due to a pre-existing condition. Not all states have high risk pools, but if your state allows them you will want to look better into this option. They typically have higher rates if compared to usual individual coverage, but it’s far better than having no healthcare coverage at all.

HIPAA coverage – in case you have recently been canceled of a job-base group plan and all COBRA coverage does not apply to you anymore, there’s a thing called HIPAA coverage that may be useful to you. HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) coverage is available in all states and can be of a use for people who can’t get individual coverage due to pre-existing conditions. This way HIPAA coverage is a good option in states where high risk pools do not exist. But even if there are high risk polls in your state you should consider both possibilities. Consult with your insurance agent to see what’s more appropriate in your case.

Whom to address

Insurance agents – an insurance agent is the person that will connect you with the insurance company, so it’s better to ask him or her about your options. But before you ask questions, make sure the agent is licensed for providing health insurance in your state. To do so, you can address your state insurance department and check the status of the agent you’ve been talking too. If the person is licensed, their experience in the domain can help you find good health coverage.

Department of insurance – besides giving information about state regulation and agents’ license, your state insurance department can also be a very valuable source of information on the whole health insurance market in your state. Don’t expect any recommendations to be made, though, as the workers are restricted from making any commercial claims. Use the department as your info source to know what companies are working in your area and then contact them directly.

Websites – there are many websites dedicated to health insurance out there and they can be a very good source of information to use. Many sites also provide free online quotes and state-specific data so you won’t have any problems with finding the right deal from a local provider.

To Question Premium Hikes

isong — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 15:32:42 +0000

There are times when you get an overview and then it hits you, “Somethings just don’t add up.” Well, you remember Wellpoint, don’t you? This is the friendly company that, around January or February, announced it was going to increase premium rates by up to 39% in a number of states around the Union. President Obama got himself all worked up, citing them as the real reason why all the Democrats in Washington should band together and take a stand against the insurance industry. Then, sure as eggs is eggs, there was a stampede to get the healthcare reform bill to the President for him to sign it into law. Those Democrats sure did have fun beating on Wellpoint. So the big question is what happened next? Here’s one of the largest corporations in the insurance market demanding premium increases. Did it get its way?

The answer starts off in California where the maximum rate of 39% was due to take effect. The state referred the proposed increase to independent auditors for an opinion. The answer came back negative. It seemed Wellpoint couldn’t add up. Well, that’s oversimplifying things a little. But the reality is that the numbers Wellpoint offered to support their premium increases were based on some very shaky mathematical assumptions. When news of the report became public, Wellpoint withdrew the proposed increase. Acting on this, Kathleen Sebelius who is Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services sent out a letter to all state insurance commissioners encouraging them to review every proposed premium increase. This is the first sign that the balance of power is shifting against the insurance industry and in favor of the consumer. For too long, insurance companies have hidden behind complicated mathematical explanations and gamed the system. With the Affordable Care Act now law, Sebelius is encouraging every state to give itself the power to approve rate increases. The first sign of continuing good news for consumers comes out of Connecticut where Attorney General Blumental forced an audit of Blue Shield and Anthem Blue Cross, both Wellpoint subsidiaries. Connecticut’s Insurance Commissioner Sullivan rejected these companies requests for increases last year. It seems likely the same thing will happen this year.

By moving so quickly to encourage states to review all proposed rate increases, Secretary Sebelius is demonstrating one of the key advantages now available to the Federal Government under the new laws. That the interests of the consumer will be put before the interests of the health insurance industry. This means every state should be going through a routine of analysis every time premium rate increases are proposed. The assumptions, evidence, claims histories and trends asserted should all be rigorously tested. If there are any problems, the increases should be denied. The aim should always be to ensure affordable individual health insurance plans are available to the majority of people living in the US. For too long, the insurers have been allowed to bamboozle regulators with math and complicated explanations. With independent audits now coming into play, the kind of success enjoyed by the citizens of California should be felt around the US.

Watch out for Deductibles & Co-Payments

isong — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 06:18:40 +0000

Perhaps this is an unnecessary statement of the obvious, but the point of insurance is to give people a financial safety net. Should an emergency or disaster strike, money you would struggle to find is paid out by your insurance company. But the squeeze has been on for the last decade as medical costs and the prices of essential drugs have been rising fast. In fact, so fast that the insurers cannot pass on all the increases to their policyholders. It was hard to raise premium rates while the economy was doing well. It became impossible to raise premiums when the recession hit without there being investigations by each state’s Commissioners for Insurance and complaints from everyone else. There comes a point when the insurer cannot get any more blood from the stone and has to sacrifice profits. This has left the medical profession, the hospitals and clinics in a winning position, while the pharmaceutical industry’s profits have continued to rise despite the recession. At the other end of the spectrum, the patients are the losers. There are some who discover the small print in their policies denies cover for the very illnesses they have. There are others whose savings are not enough to pay the deductibles and co-payments. And then there are those whose policies are cancelled when they make a claim for a chronic disease or disorder.

There is a new piece of research from the Commonwealth Fund, an independent, non-profit body. In 2007, it carried out a detailed survey among 2,600 people aged between 19 and 64. When their coverage was analysed, 20% were found significantly underinsured. Why was this happening? Because they were already spending more than 10% of their income on health coverage, whether as premiums, deductibles or both. When the underinsured were added to the uninsured, this represented 42% of adult Americans. Like the uninsured, this forces the underinsured to think twice before they have treatment with more than half either refusing treatment or struggling with debt because of treatment.

In the push for healthcare reform, the focus has been on the uninsured. But this fails to recognize the injustice suffered by the underinsured. No one should be forced to choose between refusing needed treatment and potential bankruptcy. It is therefore going to be an interesting year in prospect as the reform slowly comes into force. Both the poor and the middle class need access to cheap health insurancewith reasonably comprehensive coverage. This will further squeeze the insurance industry because it will be denied the right to refuse coverage to those with pre-existing conditions and will be forced to establish group health insurance for those who have struggled to find affordable plans. In all of this, the key to success will be the ability of government and the insurers to impose more control over costs. President Obama has negotiated with the pharmaceutical industry and there is some agreement to hold down prices for those in Medicare and Medicaid. The for-profit healthcare industry also sees some self-interest in moderating its price increases and has given undertakings to the Administration. If some of the pressure is removed from the insurance industry, premium rates will stabilize and the reforms should offer a more fair system to all with a health plan. We can only hope for the best while we wait and see what happens.

Saving the Right Way

isong — Mon, 31 May 2010 03:31:34 +0000

Insurance companies are known to cost lots of money. They make your face pale just with one thought. But hey, brighten up! It doesn’t have to be a nightmare. It can be pricey but without driving you totally nuts.

We all were born to believe that good things don’t come free when it comes to purchases. We hate to break it but this is not so. You can save pretty much on anything you want nowadays without making yourself to regret this thing. How come? This is only because the market is bombarded with companies that want to compete for people like you. They know the chain reaction works well here. What do we mean by that? Let’s take a look at the following example. You come in without any clue about what you need.

The clearest of it all in such case has to be the price comparison between different companies. You need to do this thing in order to find out your possibilities and options with various insurance providers. With the help of online quotes you can do it easily and hastily. But, remember not to rush such moments. You have been waiting long enough without any insurance plan so it is better to take an extra day or two to sort the situation out.

There are many sites that will give you a list of companies, their best offers and rates. Consumer buying guides that compare premiums from different insurers together will the feedback from different costumers – this is what some independent insurance sites have in store for you.

Keep in mind that every detail counts. When you have chosen the company to trust, it is important to fill in the application the right way. We would like to advice you not to lie in your application. Lies are always punished in the end. Fill it in frankly, without making it seem too good or too bad. When you fill in the line about your expectations – please let the company know that you would like to take advantage of any discounts that you are eligible to and let them think you are interested in the decrease of your payments. If you are a part of a certain group of people – for example veteran or a teacher, if you are a student as well, be aware of discounts coming your way as very often these categories and people that are a part of those have a right to a discount.

If there is a possibility for you to pay your whole premium in one go, please do so. But know that most carriers charge some additional money for those of us who pay on installments. Don’t let something go wrong with your payments. It is important to be updated with what you have to do at the right time before the situation gets out of control.

If you are the owner of an ordinary car, these advices were suitable for you. If you are about to get yourself a brand new car, take into consideration the fact that expensive cars demand high premiums. Simply make sure everything is the way you can afford it to be.

Your auto insurance is one click away from you. Once again we would like to advice you to be considerate in everything you do, get some car insurance quotes and keep them in mind for you might make a mistake having the lack of information in certain domains. And the last, but not the least – don’t forget that cheap auto insurance will find those that know how to find it the right way.

Rent A Car & Purchase the Insurance

isong — Sat, 29 May 2010 14:25:22 +0000

If you were building a time machine, you need only find a way of travelling back two years to find a land of plenty. Remembering how good it was almost brings tears to your eyes. Every week a bank, credit card company or finance company would mail you their latest offers. Cheap overdrafts, reduced interest with expanding credit limits or yet another way of converting that positive housing equity into cash for spending. There seemed no possibility of this coming to an end. Yet suddenly the price of gas was up to $4 and more a gallon. That proved just a passing straw in the wind. A month or so later came the bank failures, the credit crunch and a full recession with major problems of unemployment. Comfortable lives disappeared. Family budgets suddenly had to pay for debt reduction. Everyone was looking for ways to save money.

Lives must go on but the problem was how to stay mobile. During the good times, towns and cities had exploded. Gone where the high density housing developments close to workplaces. In their place came suburbs and then exurbs. People were organizing their lives around private transport and expecting to commute further and further to get anything done. What do you do when you find you cannot afford to replace your current vehicles but live too far away from work, schools and convenient shops? There is no private transport so, as a first response, you are looking at constantly patching up your old vehicles to keep them moving. But small repairs become major repairs, particularly if your mileage is high or you get into a traffic accident. You look around the neighborhood for carpools. This can work for routine journeys, but it ties you to other people’s timetables. That leaves renting.

If you decide to drive other people around and take payment, you need to check whether your existing policy covers you. The majority of insurers believe taking money makes you a taxi business and they want a higher premium. As with all insurance, use the online search engines to find affordable cover. But, in some parts of the US, it’s now economic to give up ownership. There are new rental systems allowing you to take a vehicle from a local pick-up point as and when you need it. Booking online, you only pay for the vehicle for the hours you use it. Economists have calculated the average yearly spend on car ownership is about $8,000. The average hourly rental rate is $15. That’s 533 hours a year in a rental car before you pay more than an owner. But here comes the warning. The rental car always comes with cheap auto insurance, but the companies are only interested in protecting their capital. You are usually asked to pay more to top up on cover against medical expenses for your own injuries. But even with this extra premium, it’s often significantly cheaper to rent as needed. Even better, you do not pick up from local offices where sales agents pitch extra options. Pick-ups and drop-offs are in local garages with no formalities. Check out what services are on offer in your area. If the cheap auto insurance terms are right, you will save to go down this road.

The Cheapest Rate: Maine or Louisiana?

isong — Sun, 16 May 2010 20:32:43 +0000

Recently, the political parties were arguing over whether you should be allowed to buy your health insurance across state lines. As part of the healthcare debate, the GOP was strongly in favor of dismantling the current state monopoly. For once, and some would say for good reason, the Democrats were the party of “No”, and insurance companies are still to be regulated by Departments of Insurance in individual states. Obviously, this does not prevent you from moving between states so here, at last, is a national survey telling you where to pitch your tent to get the cheapest premium rates for insuring your vehicle.

With the arrival of internet search engines, it is easy to collect and compare data state-by-state. For these purposes, the research team agreed a standard set of answers to the questionnaires used by the search engines. The sample covered ten zip codes for each state and assumed a single male driver with a short distance to commute to work. He accepted a $500 deductible on comprehensive and collision coverage, and limits of $100,000 for injury to one individual, $300,000 for all injuries arising out of a single traffic accident, and $50,000 for property damage. Prudently, our hypothetical male also asked for uninsured coverage. This approach distinguishes the survey from that undertaken by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC monitors the actual premium rates and takes an average from the gross revenue figures submitted by the insurers in each state. This survery’s sole intention was to find the cheapest average insurance available for one class of driver.

The most expensive state by a country mile was Louisiana with an average premium of $2,510. The cheapest was Maine with an average of $902. It may be appropriate to treat Louisiana as a “special case”. Ignoring Hurricane Katrina which has no obvious effect on vehicle premium rates, there is a unique court system which encourages settlements of claims just under $50,000. Because judges are elected, they prefer to be generous to keep the voters happy. For some unexplained reason, this makes litigation a popular hobby and the number of claim rates is higher in this state than in any other state. By contrast, Maine has only a small number of drivers in a rural state. This makes for significantly fewer accidents. Add in the fact that there are more than 30 insurance companies competing for the business and you get the lowest rates.

Obviously, it is difficult to justify the expense of moving to another state just to find cheap car insurance but, with 18 states offering our male driver insurance at less than $1,300, the savings will mount up over time. The moral of all this story seems to be that premium rates are low in states which have two features. Firstly, their populations are relatively small. Secondly, there is a reasonable level of competition between the insurers licensed to sell policies. If we ignore the unusual legal issues in Louisiana and Michigan which has a particularly generous personal injury system, the highest rates tend to be in the more urbanized states where car ownership and the risk of an accident are high, and there are only a few insurance companies. If you cannot move, get as many car insurance quotes as possible to find the best deal.

Be Prudent with the quotations

isong — Fri, 14 May 2010 19:02:16 +0000

The year long fight over whether to pass a bill reforming the healthcare industry has just come to an end. President Obama has signed it into law. Now all we have to do is sit back and wait to see whether it will deliver a better and fairer service to more of the population. At this point, a little honesty is in order. The US healthcare service has been broken for some time and anything that improves it is to be welcomed. The GOP do, however, have legitimate concerns about cost. We are just starting to recover from a deep recession. Unemployment is still at a record high. Public debt is mounting as big government tries to keep the banks afloat and encourage business to start hiring again. So, if this reform pushes up debt, the cost may come to outweigh the benefits. The various supposedly independent government agencies claim the reforms will actually reduce public debt. Unfortunately, guessing what will happen in the future never produces reliable results. All we can do is wait and see.

One of the key selling points for reform has been the number of people without insurance. The Democrats have been standing up for social justice – the idea that the state should provide health care for the maximum number of people. Various numbers have been thrown around. There are apparently some 45 million uninsured adults. About 31 or 32 million of these people may now get some kind of coverage. Where do all these numbers come from and how reliable are they? We start of with the census. That is supposed to tell us how many people there are in the US so the government can make sensible plans to provide all the services and amenities they need. Unfortunately, the census data is now old and not completely reliable. Not everyone wants to be counted or, if cornered, not everyone tells the truth. But it does give us a starting point. We exclude children and seniors already in Medicare. This is the number of adults who could have health plans. The insurance companies report the number of policy holders and of those enrolled in employers’ plans. A subtraction sum gives us an estimate of the uninsured. So who will be entitled to coverage? Well, big government is expecting some 24 million people to buy coverage through the new insurance exchanges. A further 16 million are expected to join Medicaid. More children whose parents do not qualify for aid will join CHIP. Except no one actually knows for certain who these people are. The only clear cut assurance that has been given is to ensure illegal adult immigrants will not be allowed into the health market.

Put simply, none of the numbers you see in the news media can really be explained or justified. Everyone who wants access to affordable health insurance coverage will just have to stand up and agree to be counted. If they meet the criteria on income and do not have insurance provided by their employer, they are potentially eligible for assistance. If the healthcare costs can be controlled, more people will no doubt be brought into cheap health insurance plans. It will still be short of universal coverage but, in a capitalist country, we do not want anything so socialist. There must always be losers so the rest of us count as winners.

Care for Your Employees – All around?

isong — Fri, 14 May 2010 02:44:02 +0000

It is totally true that it is not easy to find an insurance that would suit your business criteria when your business is small. It is not easy but you can surely find what you want if you know how to search. Let’s imagine you run a small company and you need to get health insurance for everyone. It may take several weeks until you start getting it all together. Here is some good advice on how you can obtain health insurance for your business.

It may seem like trying to find a needle in a haystack, but your prayers will be heard once you sort everything out for yourself. Remember that you do not only search for a good price but you also want to receive good quality for the services you are craving for.

Here are four major points to consider:

First of all, you have to do some real research. It we do not mean 20 minutes of Google, we mean comparing offers, finding new companies and thinking about their suggestions. With the help of Internet you can save time on driving around town looking for companies, meeting people. It doesn’t have to bother you with anything. Sit back, relax and write down everything you have to write in order to figure out the best possible option for yourself. The offer may look attractive and tempting, but don’t let your first impression ruin your life. Find out more about the company, so that you don’t have any doubts. Of course, you can trust your decision to somebody else, but please keep in mind that it is only your responsibility to choose the right thing, as nobody will be interested in this more than you should be.

Internet is always a good way of searching but please do not pay attention to scams. They are very appealing and bright, but they are a mistake. Once you fall for them, you will see what we mean. The most important thing to know is that is something sounds like almost a lit, it probably is that. Use your common sense and make sure you don’t get trapped.

Small business insurance deals change a lot. If you think you have the best offer for today, it doesn’t mean it will always stay that way. You have to do some research from time to time and check on various deals and what other companies have to offer. Don’t think of it as of something bad. You have your right to stay focused on your interests and assure yourself you are a part of the best deal out there. But don’t change insurance companies and deals too often. This may draw the ire of your employees, especially when they have to change their doctors every second week.

Health insurance is very important to employees even if it is delivered through small business insurance. People understand they are cared about and thought about when they are covered. If the plan is good, employees are grateful, they appreciate what you do for them and the reward doesn’t keep waiting for itself for too long. This is a rope that has you and your employees on different ends of it. You must advice your employees; show them that they are a part of your decision as well. Keep them informed about anything you are about to do especially if you are to change something in the plan. But at the same time it is important that they realize what you do for them as good insurance plans for small business companies usually costs quite a lot. It is your time to be a real team in this matter. Take your chance and show people they deserve what you are willing to do for them. This is the only way any prosperous business survives.

Individual health insurance following the reform bill

isong — Thu, 06 May 2010 17:24:10 +0000

Now that President Obama has signed the healthcare reform bill into law, the dust kicked up by the battle is now slowly starting to settle. There is still fighting, but it has moved on to different ground. In this time of calm, we have the chance to reflect on what has been achieved and to speculate on how the insurance market will change. As we set out on this brief survey, we should remember it was the insurers raising their rates that gave the final encouragement to the lawmakers. Without that, they might have lost their nerve in this year of the midterm elections. The new insurance exchanges are to be in place by 2014. Once they are in operation, the premiums people pay will be capped. For those who earn less than four times the poverty level (at current dollar values, this is $88,000 for a family of four) the maximum will be 9.5% of their income as a premium. For those on or below the poverty level, the maximum will be 3% of their income. The government will subsidize people above their capped level of payment. This creates an interesting dynamic. With the government paying the difference, will the insurers try to hike the premium rates?

The answer is difficult. The premium is supposed to cover the medical costs, run the business, and leave a reasonable profit for the investors. In theory, the Administration has made a deal with the pharmaceutical industry to keep down the cost of drugs. Groups of hospitals have also promised some restraint. This should stabilize the medical costs. Now it all comes down to controlling the insurers’ greed. This is attempted through a few rules. Insurers cannot charge older people more than three times the rate for younger people. The insurers must give rebates if they spend more than 20% of your premiums on non-medical costs. And there are reviews of premium increases with states having the power to exclude health plans where the increases are not justified.

Why is the answer difficult? Because no matter what it says on paper, we have to wait to see it working in the real world. Naturally, the President expects premiums to be stable or fall over time. But the insurance companies have never been completely rational when it comes to pricing their cheap health insurance plans. Their philosophy has been to maximize the profit from both group and individual health insurance. Indeed, their greed was all too clearly on display early this year with major premium increases announced. Ironically, this proved a misjudgement because the President used these increases as a justification for pushing through the reform measures. If the insurers had held off or only asked for modest increases, the Democrat lawmakers might have lost their nerve and the bill would have failed. This opens the possibility the insurers might continue an aggressive policy to increase premiums and challenge the government to intervene. Since the Administration has been slow to take on the bankers over their bonuses, the politicians may be similarly reluctant to take on the investors in health insurance companies. In Ancient China, the words, “May he live in interesting times” was a curse. Sometimes, we seem to be living in interesting times today.