D&O Executive Liability Insurance

Golf Master Tips, D&O Executive Liability Insurance - Since its inception about fifty years ago, D&O insurance has evolved into a family of products responding differently to the needs of publicly traded companies, privately held businesses and not-for-profit entities and their respective board members, officers and trustees.

Directors' & Officers' Liability, Executive Liability or Management Liability insurance are essentially interchangeable terms. However, insuring agreements, definitions, exclusions and coverage options vary materially depending upon the type of policyholder being insured and the insurer underwriting the risk. 

Executive Liability insurance, once considered a necessity solely for publicly traded companies, particularly due to their exposure to shareholder litigation, has become recognized as an essential part of a risk transfer program for privately held companies and not-for-profit organizations.

D&O Executive Liability Insurance

Optimization of protection is a common goal shared by all types of organizations. In our opinion, the best way to achieve that objective is through engagement of highly experienced insurance, legal and financial advisors who work collaboratively with management to continually assess and treat these specialized enterprise risk exposures.

Private Company D&O Exposures

In 2005, Chubb Insurance Group, one of the largest underwriters of D&O insurance, conducted a survey of the D&O insurance purchasing trends of 450 private companies. A significant percentage of respondents gave the following reasons for not purchasing D&O insurance:

• Did not see the need for D&O insurance, 
• Their D&O liability risk was low, 
• Thought D&O risk is covered under other liability policies 

The companies responding as non-purchasers of D&O insurance experienced at least one D&O claim in the five years preceding the survey. Results showed that private companies with 250 or more employees, were the subject of D&O litigation during the preceding five years and 20% of companies with 25 to 49 employees, experienced a D&O claim.

The survey revealed 43% of D&O litigation was brought by customers, 29% from regulatory agencies, and 11% from non-publicly traded equity securities holders. The average loss reported by the private companies was $380,000. Companies with D&O insurance experienced an average loss of $129,000. Companies without D&O insurance experienced an average loss of $480,000.

Some Common Examples of Private Company D&O Claims

• Major shareholder led buy-outs of minority shareholders alleging misrepresentations of the company's fair market value 
• Purchaser of a company or its assets alleging misrepresentation 
• Sale of company assets to entities controlled by the majority shareholder 
• Creditors' committee or bankruptcy trustee claims 
• Private equity investors and lenders' claims 
• Vendors alleging misrepresentation in connection with an extension of credit 
• Consumer protection and privacy claims 

Private Company D&O Policy Considerations

Executive Liability insurance policies for privately held companies typically provide a combination or package of coverage that includes, but may not be limited to: Directors' & Officers' Liability, Employment Practices Liability, ERISA Fiduciary Liability and Commercial Crime/ Fidelity insurance.

D&O policies, whether underwritten on a stand-alone basis or in the form of a combination-type policy form, are underwritten on a "claims-made" basis. This means the claim must be made against the Insured and reported to the insurer during the same effective policy period, or under a specified Extended (claims) Reporting Period following the policy's expiration. 

This is a completely different coverage trigger from other liability policies such as Commercial General Liability that are traditionally underwritten with an "occurrence" trigger, which implicates the insurance policy that was in effect at the time of the accident, even if the claim is not reported until years later.

"Side A" coverage, which protects individual Insureds in the event the Insured entity is unable to indemnify individuals, is a standard agreement contained within many private company policy forms. These policies are generally structured with a shared policy limit among the various insuring agreements resulting in a more affordable insurance product tailored to small and mid-sized enterprises. For an additional premium, separate policy limits may be purchased for one or more of each distinct insuring agreement affording a more customized insurance package.

Also, policies should be evaluated to determine whether they extend coverage for covered "wrongful acts" committed by non-officers or directors, such as employees, independent contractors, leased, and part-time employees.

Imputation of Knowledge & Severability

Coverage can be materially affected if an Insured individual has knowledge of facts or circumstances or was involved in wrongful conduct that gave rise to the claim, prior to the effective date of policy under which the claim was reported. Policies differ as to whether and to what extent, the knowledge or conduct of one "bad actor" may be imputed to "innocent "individual Insureds and / or to the Insured entity.

"Severability", is an important provision in D&O policies that is often overlooked by policyholders until it threatens to void coverage during a serious pending claim. The severability clause can be drafted with varying degrees of flexibility-- from "partial" to "full severability." A "full severability" provision is always most preferable from an Insured's standpoint. 

Many D&O policies, impute the knowledge of certain policy-specified senior level officer positions to the Insured entity. That imputation of knowledge can operate to void coverage that might have otherwise been available to the Insured entity.

M&A and "Tail Coverage" Considerations

The "claims-made" coverage trigger is critically important in an M&A context where contingent liability risks are inherent. In these contexts, it's important to evaluate the seller's policies' options to purchase a "tail" or "extended reporting period" for each of the target company's policies containing a "claims-made" trigger.

A "tail" coverage option allows for the reporting of claims alleging "wrongful acts" that occurred during the expired policy period, yet were not actually asserted against the Insured until after the policy's expiration, but instead were asserted during the "extended reporting" or "tail" period. An acquiring company's insurance professional should work closely with legal counsel's due diligence team to identify and present alternatives to manage contingent exposures.

What a Director or Officer Doesn't Know Will Hurt Them

Directors' & Officers' Liability insurance policies were originally created solely to protect the personal assets of the individuals serving on public company boards and executive officers. In 1992, one of the most prominent D&O insurers led a major transformational change in D&O underwriting by expanding coverage to include certain claims against the insured entity. 

Entity coverage for publicly traded companies is typically restricted to securities claims, while privately held companies and not-for-profit organizations benefit from more comprehensive entity coverage because they lack the public securities risk exposure of publicly traded companies.

The "Claims- Made" Coverage Trigger

D&O policies are universally underwritten on a 'claims-made' basis. This translates to an unequivocal contractual requirement that the policyholder report claims made against an Insured to the insurer during the effective policy period. 

The only exception is in the case where an optional reporting 'tail' is purchased which affords the Insured the ability to report claims during a specified "extended reporting period," as long as the wrongful act occurred during the effective period of the immediately preceding policy.

Defense

D&O policies issued to public companies generally contain no explicit duty to defend and some require the Insured to select from a pre-approved panel of pre-qualified defense counsel. In contrast, many private company D&O policies do contain a provision placing the defense obligation squarely upon the insurer, and still other policies contain options allowing the defense to be tendered by the Insured to the insurer within a specific period of time. 

Some D&O policies contain defense cost provisions that require an allocation or sharing of the defense costs between the Insured and Insurer, based upon a determination of covered versus non-covered allegations.

Settlement Hammer

D&O policies typically contain a "settlement hammer" provision. This clause operates to limit an insurer's obligation to indemnify in the event the Insured refuses to consent to a settlement that is acceptable to the insurer. Some policies may express the amount the insurer will pay for covered loss under this circumstance as a percentage of the ultimate covered settlement or judgment. Other D&O policies may limit their economic exposure to the amount for which the case could have historically settled, but for the Insured's refusal.

Regulatory Proceedings and Investigations

Most D&O insurance policies afford qualified protection against "regulatory and governmental" investigations, "administrative or regulatory proceedings," and criminal proceedings. Policies often require the proceedings to be directed against a natural person Insured, to be commenced and maintained in a manner specified in the policy, such as a 'formal' order of investigation, and only for policy-defined defense expenses incurred after the issuance of a formal order or an indictment.

D&O policies' definitions and other corresponding provisions and exclusions vary, and should be carefully evaluated to determine whether they encompass informal investigations from the time a subpoena is received, or from the time an Insured person is identified in writing as a person against whom charges may be filed.

Learning the A,B,C's and D's of D&O Coverage

The three main Insuring Agreements found in public company D&O policies, are typically referenced as "Side A, B, and C coverage". They are sometime supplemented with an optional Coverage D.

"Side A "Coverage - Individual Insured Coverage

"Side A Coverage," also known as the "Non-Indemnifiable Loss Insuring Agreement," provides coverage to individual officers and directors against claims for their policy-defined wrongful acts in their official capacities, under fairly rare circumstances in which the Insured entity either cannot or will not provided indemnification.

The policy's "Side A" coverage for non-indemnifiable claims against directors and officers, almost universally provides that no retention is required to be paid by individual Insureds. A separate "Side A" limit may be available in addition to the traditional D&O policy's aggregate limit of liability. "Side A" excess D&O policies have become more commonplace in the past several years, and certain "Side A" excess policies may also offer "difference in conditions" ('DIC') coverage that generally provides a feature of 'dropping down' to respond to claims either not paid by the primary or underlying D&O policy insurer, or in the event indemnification is unavailable from the Insured entity, the underlying limits are eroded by covered claims against the entity, or the underlying D&O insurers deny coverage to the directors. 

Some Side A policies are underwritten as non-rescindable by the insurer. Purchasers of this coverage should also consider, if available, an option for reinstatement of policy limits for the outside directors, in the event of premature policy limit exhaustion.

"Side B" Coverage - Corporate Reimbursement Coverage

This insuring agreement reimburses the Insured entity for covered loss under claim circumstances where the corporation is indemnifying its directors and officers. This provision does not afford any coverage to the Insured entity for its own potential liability, and is subject to a self-insured retention ("SIR") that must be paid by the Insured entity before an Insurer will make any payments. It's important to note that many Insureds do not realize they are contractually obligated to obtain the insurer's prior consent to incur costs and expenses, and only those costs and expenses approved in advance by the insurer will be deemed to have satisfied the Insured entity's SIR obligation. It's important for policyholders to understand they run a serious risk of losing some or all of their otherwise available coverage, if they incur legal expenses prior to reporting the claim, or if they enter into negotiations or reach a settlement agreement in principle without the insurer's prior knowledge and consent.

"Side C" Coverage - Entity Coverage

This insuring agreement affords coverage to the publicly traded Insured entity only for it own liability and is typically restricted to coverage for securities-related claims. "Securities Claims" is a policy-defined term, encompassing only claims arising from the Insured entity's own securities. Privately held companies and organizations are afforded substantively different coverage under this insuring agreement.

"Side D" Coverage - Outside Entity Insured Person Coverage

This insuring clause is available as an option on most D&O policies. It provides coverage to designated "Insured Persons", for their liability as a result of their membership on an "Outside Entity" board. 

This coverage applies on a "double excess" basis, meaning it is triggered after the exhaustion of any indemnification provided by the Outside Entity to the Outside Entity director, as well as any insurance coverage available from the Outside Entity. Traditional D&O policies typically extend automatic coverage to insured Individuals who are designated by the policyholder to participate as a board member of a not-for-profit organization.

Some Additional Considerations

In addition to the topics highlighted earlier, D&O insurance purchasers should gain familiarity with how their policies may respond under bankruptcy situations, potential coverage issues arising from a Special Committee's investigative activity, potential issues involving priority of payments among Insureds, hidden D&O insurance program design flaws that can render excess D&O policies unresponsive to catastrophic claims, and the changing requirements of international D&O coverage to remain compliant with local country regulations. These topics will be covered in a future article.

This article provides general information and is neither intended to provide any legal advice nor to provide any advice with regard to the specific interpretation or operation of any insurance policy. Any insurance policy's applicability is highly fact specific. Qualified legal counsel should be consulted regarding laws that may apply with respect to policy coverage interpretation in the state in which the policy will be interpreted. (James J. Ilardi)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

Do You Know, How Insurance Works?

Logic Insurance, Do You Know, How Insurance Works? - Have you ever completely forgotten everything you were doing because you were in the heart of a conversation along with your insurance adviser? Have you ever tried to read insurance coverage and as an alternative fallen asleep while using boring record of doom resting with your stomach? 

Should you have, it's hardly surprising - because insurance will be boring. If you find yourself lulled in to a state involving not caring on account of the boring nature involving insurance subsequently there's just one prescription which could get you back focused: You need to make insurance exciting.

Do You Know, How Insurance Works?

Instead of thinking about how insurance works, think about what and also. A residence insurance or flood plan may completely cover the rebuilding of your dwelling after the insurable incident. A residence, flood or renter's insurance cover may replace on-line epidermis property you have at home. 

An vehicle insurance policy may get you a whole new car when yours will be totaled or stolen. Liability coverage at home, auto in addition to renter's insurance cover can keep you from coughing up the healthcare expenses of your injured specific. The directory things insurance accomplishes proceeds and upon.

The important things about insurance are the key towards the product's enjoyment factor. So as to put in which into viewpoint, look around, you - see everything stuff? If it's insured, it might be replaced within the right predicament. Oh, and find out your checking account balance? Beyond spending money on deductibles in addition to anything in excess of your limitations, that will be preserved because your insurance plans spend money so you don't need to.

Insurance policies frequently have benefits you don't even realize they have got. Finding most of these benefits could make insurance exciting mainly because it opens up a whole new earth of chance of use. 

As an example, have you checked your well being insurance policy to discover if it includes any fringe health advantages such because massage or acupuncture? As well as, did you understand that you just might borrow on the cash value you could have insurance plan without having to pay taxes within the loan? Along with, if you do have a variable plan or indexed policy, did you already know that you may follow the market industry and change your life insurance policy's subaccounts to aid the funds value increase more?

Occasionally, the most brought up benefits of insurance coverage are not by far the most exciting. Look at the policies - even when you have to use toothpicks to maintain your eye open throughout the process - and actually study what your gains are. You are paying for the product of course, you may also understand what you will get out of the usb ports.

Have you ever recognized how a thing as boring as trips to market becomes exciting if you are hungry and have food in the home? Well, insurance is no different. Among the best ways to generate insurance exciting is usually to see how we would feel in the event you didn't have it. Go in advance and take a moment to picture the worst type of - and suppose it transpires without the advantage of an insurance cover to cause you to be financially whole following the potentially destructive loss. 

Imagine you have no car, no home without money. Imagine how that will affect your life, and subsequently remind yourself you have insurance and allow the nice feeling involving relief to be able to flow via your blood vessels. Exciting, zero?

Insurance doesn't have to be an dazzling product to become a necessary in addition to useful just one. Sometimes, insurance will be the protective car or truck that allows you to indulge within your thrill-seeking side while restraining the fiscal consequences, including when you acquire travel medical insurance with the adventure sports activities rider. Because insurance isn't designed to be an exilerating journey alone, insurance made to make ones life's stimulating journey a bit easier and more financially seem.

Baca Artikel Lengkap

The Principle Auto Insurance (Part 2)

Logic Insurance, The Principle Auto Insurance  - In contrast, similar principles are routinely violated in health insurance. To demonstrate this, let's return to the same suburban mother from the opening paragraph. 

She's busy working, driving to and from work, and driving her kids to school and activities. She ends each day exhausted, sitting on the couch with fast food. She's obese, has a sedentary life, a bad diet, and hasn't taken the time to go to the doctor in years. 

After a simple injury doesn't heal for weeks, she turns up at the emergency room and learns she has type II diabetes. Although type II diabetes is controllable, changing diet and exercise habits and properly tracking her condition takes time and effort and she's never quite successful in implementing the necessary lifestyle changes.

The Principle Auto Insurance (Part 2)

So the initial emergency room visit is only the first of a long list of health care related to non-controlled diabetes and other problems associated with obesity. Whether she has individual or group insurance, her insurance pays for each episode of care, without singling her out for a premium increase, and without charging her any more cost sharing than is charged to the healthiest and most medically diligent insureds. 

Her coverage continues until she voluntarily changes insurance companies and/or employers or becomes eligible for Medicare. If she's covered under group insurance she may not even pay any premium. Her insurance continues unabated, even though the disease was caused by neglecting her body and she maintains her poor lifestyle even after the disease becomes known.

This just wouldn't happen in auto insurance. This scenario is the auto insurance equivalent of guaranteed access to low-priced auto insurance that takes care of every possible repair, including damage already done, until the day the car falls apart so completely it's unsalvageable (death) or reaches 200,000 miles (Medicare), regardless of whether she even changes the oil (takes care of herself) in the interim.

As a society, we don't expect this in private-market auto insurance, but we expect it in private-market health insurance. Furthermore, there's a chorus of national and state interests, which continuously pushes us further away from the auto insurance principles.

The current private health insurance market isn't sustainable. Prices have been consistently increasing faster than inflation for decades. Each year, insureds use more health care than ever before and more people have no insurance at all. Most actuaries and other people in the private health insurance market don't want national health insurance with its bureaucracy and one-size-fits-all benefits. Yet, we're trying to sustain a private insurance system, which violates the very principles we know are necessary for private insurance markets.

Yes, health insurance involves the sacredness of human life and is therefore different from auto insurance. But if we're to sustain a private-market solution to health insurance, actuaries need to explain to the larger society, in terms that society understands, the rationale for the following principles:

• As sacred as health care is, it's still an economic transaction that has to be balanced by individuals and societies, against other economic choices. It can't be unlimited. Sometimes it will be secondary to other choices. On a given day, for example, the mother in our scenario may value her car more than her health.
• Insurance premiums should be paid by the individual and tied to controllable risk factors. This will provide the best incentive for the control of risk factors.
• Although it's hard to draw the line between abuse, neglect and ignorance, self-abuse shouldn't be insured and we need to draw that line somewhere.
• The private market can't provide unlimited, self-directed health insurance.
• Routine care and ongoing treatments of chronic conditions can be pre-funded, can even be subsidized, but they don't constitute "insurable events."
• Insurance can't be expected to keep every human body in pristine condition. No amount of health care will prevent everyone's ultimate death.
• Comprehensive, unlimited, non-subsidized private-market coverage isn't possible for people with severely impaired health.
• The private health market can provide limited non-subsidized health insurance, such as protection from accidents, to even health-impaired individuals.
• Individuals who can afford to do so and who take good care of themselves should be able to "buy up" to better coverage. People have the option of buying up for everything else in life.

Discussion of these principles is lacking from most of the current health insurance debate. If society can intuitively understand how similar principles apply to health insurance, then they should be able understand the principles in the health insurance context. We need to initiate the debate. (Patt Carpenter)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

The Principles of Auto Insurance (Part 1)

Logic Insurance, The Principles of Auto Insurance -Many Americans rely on their automobiles to get to work. No automobile means no job, no rent or mortgage money, no food. A single parent, struggling to make ends meet in the suburbs with 100,000 miles on the odometer, would presumably welcome the guaranteed opportunity for low-priced insurance that would take care of every possible repair on her auto until the day that it reaches 200,000 miles or falls apart, whichever comes first. Especially if the insurance is valid regardless of whether she even changes the oil in the interim.

So why aren't the auto insurance companies writing such coverage, either directly or through used auto dealers? And given the importance of reliable transportation, why isn't the public demanding such coverage? 

The Principles of Auto Insurance

The answer is that both auto insurers and the public know that such insurance can't be written for a premium the insured can afford, while still allowing the insurers to stay solvent and make a profit. As a society, we intuitively understand that the costs associated with taking care of every mechanical need of an old automobile, particularly in the absence of regular maintenance, aren't insurable. Yet we don't seem to have these same intuitions with respect to health insurance.

If we pull the emotions out of health insurance, which is admittedly hard to do even for this author, and look at health insurance from the economic perspective, there are several insights from auto insurance that can illuminate the design, risk selection, and rating of health insurance.

Auto insurance comes in two forms: the traditional insurance you buy from your agent or direct from an insurance company, and warranties that are purchased from auto manufacturers and dealers. Both are risk transfer and sharing devices and I'll generically refer to both as insurance. 

Because auto third-party liability insurance has no equivalent in health insurance, for traditional auto insurance, I'll examine only collision and comprehensive insurance -- insurance covering the vehicle -- and not third-party liability insurance.

The following are some commonly accepted principles from auto insurance:

• Bad maintenance voids certain insurance. If an automobile owner never changes the oil, the auto's power train warranty is void. In fact, not only does the oil need to be changed, the change needs to be performed by a certified mechanic and documented. Collision insurance doesn't cover cars purposefully driven over a cliff.
• The best insurance is offered for new models. Bumper-to-bumper warranties are offered only on new cars. As they roll off the assembly line, automobiles have a low and relatively consistent risk profile, satisfying the actuarial test for insurance pricing. Furthermore, auto manufacturers usually wrap at least some coverage into the price of the new auto in order to encourage an ongoing relationship with the owner.
• Limited insurance is offered for old model autos. Increasingly limited insurance is offered for old model autos. The bumper-to-bumper warranty expires, the power train warranty eventually expires, and the amount of collision and comprehensive insurance steadily decreases based on the market value of the auto.
• Certain older autos qualify for additional insurance. Certain older autos can qualify for additional coverage, either in terms of warranties for used autos or increased collision and comprehensive insurance for vintage autos. But such insurance is offered only after a careful inspection of the automobile itself.
• No insurance is offered for normal wear and tear. Wiper blades need replacement, brake pads wear out, and bumpers get dings. These aren't insurable events. To the extent that a new car dealer will sometimes cover some of these costs, we intuitively understand that we're "paying for it" in the cost of the automobile and that it's "not really" insurance.
• Accidents are the only insurable event for the oldest automobiles. Accidents are generally insurable events even for the oldest autos; with few exceptions service work isn't.
• Insurance doesn't restore all vehicles to pre-accident condition. Auto insurance is limited. If the damage to the auto at any age exceeds the value of the auto, the insurer then pays only the value of the auto. With the exception of vintage autos, the value assigned to the auto goes down over time. So whereas accidents are insurable at any vehicle age, the amount of the accident insurance is increasingly limited.
• Insurance is priced to the risk. Insurance is priced based on the risk profile of both the automobile and the driver. The auto insurer carefully examines both when setting rates.
• We pay for our own insurance. And with few exceptions, automobile insurance isn't tax deductible. As a result, the fear of increasing insurance rates due to traffic violations and/or accidents changes our driving behavior and we sometimes select our automobiles based on their insurability.

Each of the above principles is supported by solid actuarial theory. Although most Americans can't describe the underlying actuarial theories, most everyone understands the above principles of auto insurance at the intuitive level. For sure, as indispensable automobiles are to our lifestyles, there is no loud national movement, accompanied by moral outrage, to change these principles. Please continue to The Principles of Auto Insurance (Part 2)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

How to Purchase Auto Insurance for Mexico

Logic Insurance, How to Purchase Auto Insurance for Mexico - Congratulations - you are embarking on an exciting road trip adventure to Mexico. You have your vehicle tuned and all of your gear packed, and now it is time to purchase your Mexican tourist auto insurance. Your Mexican auto insurance coverage decision could be the most important decision you make, but unfortunately it is often one of the most rushed and least researched decisions that many Mexico travelers make. 

Do not make the mistake of assuming that all Mexican insurance is the same, because the differences in insurance coverages and benefits can vary tremendously between Mexico insurance companies. Even though researching insurance coverage is not very exciting for most people, this article will show you how 5 to 10 minutes of research on the internet could save you thousands of dollars and many frustrating hours if you were to actually need to use your Mexico insurance to pay for a loss.

Purchase Mexican Tourist Auto Insurance

The vast majority of Mexican auto insurance is now purchased directly from the internet. There are a number of websites that sell Mexico insurance, and buying your insurance from the internet makes a lot of sense for the customer. 

Would you rather wait till the last minute to buy your insurance at the border, or would you prefer to buy your insurance from the convenience of your own computer before you leave on your trip to Mexico? Most customers prefer to get their insurance taken care of ahead of time.

The best websites to buy your Mexico insurance from are ones that offer multiple Mexico insurance companies. This allows you to do comparison shopping through one website instead of filling out multiple quotation forms on multiple websites. One good Mexican insurance website with a comparison insurance rater will save you a lot of time and confusion.

Which websites can be trusted?

Before getting your insurance quote, make sure to look for a valid insurance license and contact information. Also, you may want to look for a 'Surplus Lines Broker' license number. A surplus lines broker is an insurance broker who has a direct contract with the Mexican insurance companies and is licensed to sell foreign insurance coverage within the United States. 

A surplus lines broker license is a good sign that the website is run by a company who specializes in Mexico insurance. If the insurance license is not a surplus lines broker license, this means the website is most likely run by an insurance agent who is selling through a surplus lines broker. 

This does not mean the products on the website are not valid, but you may not receive the same level of customer service as you would from a surplus lines broker who specializes entirely in Mexican insurance. You may also want to look for a Better Business Bureau listing and some sort of internet security approval such as Hacker Safe or McAfee Secure to ensure that your information will be secure during your internet transaction.

Mexico insurance coverage to look for

Once you have selected a website that sells Mexico tourist auto insurance, you will fill out the quick insurance quote form. Within a minute, you should be able to get a firm quote and begin researching the benefits of the insurance products offered. Remember, this will be a much quicker and streamlined process if you use a website that offers multiple competing insurance companies all under one quoting system (a comparative quote rater).

Look for a chart below or above the insurance prices that clearly explains exactly what the Mexico insurance limits are and what is actually covered. In this chart, you will want to look at the following categories:

Deductibles: The best Mexican insurance policies will offer fixed deductibles, meaning the deductibles will be locked at a set amount regardless of what the value of your vehicle is. Some of the less expensive policies will base deductibles on a percentage of the vehicle value. If the vehicle's value is less than $20,000, percentage based deductibles may be fine, but when vehicle values get up in the $30,000 range or higher, the percentage based deductibles can get very high. If the website does not specifically list the deductibles, you should not use that website!

US Hourly Labor Rates for Repairs Made in the US or Canada: In the old days, most Mexican auto insurance companies tried to make customers repair their vehicles in Mexico. Repairs made in Mexico instead of the US were often much less expensive for the Mexican insurance companies, and many customers were unwilling to leave their car in Mexico, so the company got out of paying these claims. 

Today, many of the better Mexico insurance programs allow you to fix your vehicle in the US or Canada if you wish. The catch is that some of the less expensive Mexican insurance programs will only pay a limited hourly labor rate for repairs made in the US (some as low a $20 per hour). 

This means the customer would have to pay the difference in hourly labor rates out of their pocket. The best Mexican insurance programs will pay very high US labor rates such as $70 per hour or state that they will pay whatever the current US hourly labor rate is. These policies could significantly minimize your out of pocket expenses in the event of a claim. If the Mexico insurance website does not specify if repairs in the US are allowed or what the hourly labor rate is, do not use that website to purchase your Mexican insurance!

Vandalism and Partial Theft Coverage: Vandalism and partial theft (meaning only part of the car is stolen such as the tires, door panels, etc) is typically not covered by standard Mexican auto insurance. In the past few years the higher quality Mexican insurance programs have started to offer this coverage in their enhanced coverage programs. If you want to protect yourself against as many types of losses as possible, you should look for this coverage.

Liability Limits: This is the portion of the Mexican insurance policy that pays for damages you cause to third parties. This coverage is essential when traveling in Mexico. Most people in the industry feel that $50,000 worth of liability insurance is probably the minimum you should consider. Some of the best Mexican insurance programs will go up to $300,000 combined single limit (a lump sum for property damage or bodily injury damages), but it will also increase the insurance premium. Some customers wish to carry these higher limits to work in tandem with their US umbrella liability policies. You may want to ask your US insurance provider if your umbrella insurance will recognize your Mexico auto insurance as a primary coverage.

Medical Payments: This is the portion of the Mexico insurance policy that pays for medical costs for you and your passengers (people inside your vehicle). $2,000 per person with a total of $10,000 per accident is the lowest limit you should consider, but many policies will offer much higher limits. Some of the better policies will also increase this amount if you are hit by an uninsured motorist who is at fault. 

You may want to check with your US or Canadian health insurance provider to make sure they will cover you for medical costs incurred while traveling in Mexico. If not, you may also want to research an international health insurance plan - but that is a different subject.

Legal Service: Make sure your Mexico insurance includes legal service or legal assistance. This coverage will pay for any court costs, attorney fees, or bail payments that are a result of a traffic accident in Mexico. 

The service will also dispatch a legal representative to hold your hand through any legal procedures. This coverage is absolutely essential, so do not purchase any Mexico auto insurance that does not include this coverage!

Road Assistance: Most of the better Mexico insurance companies will include some level of road assistance that will cover towing expenses, flat tires, locksmith, and other services. This is a great coverage to have, so make sure this is included with your Mexico insurance policy.

Medical Evacuation: As the market for Mexican insurance becomes more competitive, many Mexico carriers are now bundling in extra special coverages to make their products stand out. When medical evacuation is automatically included with your Mexico auto insurance, it is an incredible value and convenience. 

This coverage will coordinate and pay for air or land ambulance services in the event of 'grave illness or injury'. This means life threatening or very serious illnesses or injuries. Purchasing a medical evacuation program on your own will often cost hundreds of dollars per year, and can often have many limitations. 

The quality Mexico auto insurance programs that bundle in the medical evacuation coverage will usually cover multiple people in your travel group automatically up to four or more people. Make sure to look for how many people are covered by the medical evacuation. 

If the amount of people covered is not listed in the insurance quote details, you can assume that the medical evacuation may only cover the driver. Other websites do exist that specifically cover 4 or more people in your travel group, so it is highly recommended that you look for websites that offer this broader medical evacuation coverage.

Plane Tickets Home: Another great benefit that many of the better Mexico insurance websites are offering is plane tickets home in the event that your car is stolen or not drivable. This can save you thousands of dollars, and alleviate the nightmare of needing to coordinate your transportation back to your home from Mexico. 

If this benefit is offered, make sure to see for how many people the policy will provide plane tickets home. If plane tickets home is not listed, or the website does not specify how many people are covered, you should check a different website. A few websites do offer coverage for four people or more in your travel group.

When in doubt, call the website customer service phone line for help

The reputable Mexico insurance websites will encourage you to call their customer service departments if you have questions about the Mexico insurance. If nobody answers the phone, or does not call you back within a few minutes (during normal business hours), you may not want to purchase your insurance from that website! Most Mexico insurance websites are like ATM machines. 

The website is there for your convenience if you want to write the policy yourself, but you are also welcome to call the website customer service insurance agents and have the agents write the policy for you over the phone.

If you check for each of these insurance coverages and website features while shopping for Mexican auto insurance on the internet, you are guaranteed to purchase the best insurance for your situation. 

Five to ten minutes of research could save you thousands of dollars and hours, if not weeks, of headaches in the event that you need to file a Mexican insurance claim. Be safe, and have fun in Mexico! (Jeff Nordahl)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

Important Insurance Terms You Should Know

Logic Insurance, Important Insurance Terms You Should Know - some of important insurance terms below you need to know, happy reading.

Insured

A person or a corporation who contracts for an insurance policy that indemnifies (protects) him against loss or damage to property or, in the case of a liability policy, defend him against a claim from a third party.

Named Insured

Any person, firm or corporation specifically designated by name as an insured(s) in a policy as distinguished from others who, though unnamed, are protected under some circumstances. For example, a common application of this latter principle is in auto liability policies wherein by a definition of "insured", coverage is extended to other drivers using the car with the permission of the named insured. Other parties can also be afforded protection of an insurance policy by being named an "additional insured" in the policy or endorsement.

Important Insurance Terms You Should Know

Additional Insured 

An individual or entity that is not automatically included as an insured under the policy of another, but for whom the named insureds policy provides a certain degree of protection. An endorsement is typically required to effect additional insured status. The named insureds impetus for providing additional insured status to others may be a desire to protect the other party because of a close relationship with that party (e.g., employees or members of an insured club) or to comply with a contractual agreement requiring the named insured to do so (e.g., customers or owners of property leased by the named insured).

Co-Insurance

The sharing of one insurance policy or risk between two or more insurance companies. This usually entails each insurer paying directly to the insured their respective share of the loss. Co-insurance can also be the arrangement by which the insured, in consideration of a reduced rate, agrees to carry an amount of insurance equal to a percentage of the total value of the property insured. An example is if you have guaranteed to carry insurance up to 80% or 90% of the value of your building and/or contents, whatever the case may be. If you don't, the company pays claims only in proportion to the amount of coverage you do carry.

The following equation is used to determine what amount may be collected for partial loss:

Amount of Insurance Carried x Loss

Amount of Insurance that = Payment

Should be Carried

Example A Mr. Right has an 80% co-insurance clause and the following situation:

$100,000 building value

$ 80,000 insurance carried

$ 10,000 building loss

By applying the equation for determining payment for partial loss, the following amount may be collected:

$80,000 x $10,000 = $10,000

$80,000

Mr. Right recovers the full amount of his loss because he carried the coverage specified in his co-insurance clause. Example B Mr. Wrong has an 80% co-insurance clause and the following situation:

$100,000 building value

$ 70,000 insurance carried

$ 10,000 building loss

By applying the equation for determining payment for partial loss, the following amount may be collected:

$70,000 x $10,000 = $8,750

$80,000

Mr. Wrong's loss of $10,000 is greater than the company's limit of liability under his co-insurance clause. Therefore, Mr. Wrong becomes a self-insurer for the balance of the loss-- $1,250.

Premium

The amount of money paid by an insured to an insurer for insurance coverage.

Deductible

The first dollar amount of a loss for which the insured is responsible before benefits are paid by the insurer; similar to a self-insured retention (SIR). The insurer's liability begins when the deductible is exhausted.

Self Insured Retention

Acts the same way as a deductible but the insured is responsible for all legal fees incurred in relation to the amount of the SIR.

Policy Limit 

The maximum monetary amount an insurance company is responsible for to the insured under its policy of insurance.

First Party Insurance

Insurance that applies to coverage for an insureds own property or a person. Traditionally it covers damage to insureds property from whatever causes are covered in the policy. It is property insurance coverage. An example of first party insurance is BUILDERS RISK INSURANCE which is insurance against loss to the rigs or vessels in the course of their construction. It only involves the insurance company and the owner of the rig and/or the contractor who has a financial interest in the rig.

Third Party Insurance 

Liability insurance covering the negligent acts of the insured against claims from a third party (i.e., not the insured or the insurance company - a third party to the insurance policy). An example of this insurance would be SHIP REPAIRER'S LEGAL LIABILITY (SRLL) - provides protection for contractors repairing or altering a customer's vessel at their shipyard, other locations or at sea; also covers the insured while the customer's property is under the "Care, Custody and Control" of the insured. A Commercial General Liability policy is needed for other coverages, such as slip-and-fall situations.

Insurable Interest

Any interest in something that is the subject of an insurance policy or any legal relationship to that subject that will trigger a certain event causing monetary loss to the insured. Example of insurable interest - ownership of a piece of property or an interest in that piece of property, e.g., a shipyard constructing a rig or vessel. (See BUILDERS RISK above)

Liability Insurance

Insurance coverage that protects an insured against claims made by third parties for damage to their property or person. These losses usually come about as a result of negligence of the insured. In marine construction this policy is referred to an MGL, marine general liability policy. In non marine circumstances the policy is referred to as a CGL, commercial general liability policy. Insurance policies can be divided into two broad categories:

First party insurance covers the property of the person who purchases the insurance policy. For example, a home owner's policy promising to pay for fire damage to the home owner's home is a first party policy. Liability insurance, sometimes called third party insurance, covers the policy holder's liability to other people. For example, a homeowners' policy might cover liability if someone trips and falls on the home owner's property. Sometimes one policy, such as in these examples, may have both first and third party coverage. 

Liability insurance provides two separate benefits. First, the policy will cover the damage incurred by the third party. Sometimes this is called providing "indemnity" for the loss. Second, most liability policies provide a duty to defend. The duty to defend requires the insurance company to pay for lawyers, expert witnesses, and court costs to defend the third party's claim. These costs can sometimes be substantial and should not be ignored when facing a liability claim. 

Umbrella Liability Coverage

This type of liability insurance provides excess liability protection. Your business needs this coverage for the following three reasons:

• It provides excess coverage over the "underlying" liability insurance you carry. 
• It provides coverage for all other liability exposures, excepting a few specifically excluded exposures. This subject to a large deductible of about $10,000 to $25,000. 
• It provides automatic replacement coverage for underlying policies that have been reduced or exhausted by loss. 

Negligence 

The failure to use reasonable care. The doing of something which a reasonably prudent person would not do, or the failure to do something which a reasonably prudent person would do under like circumstances. Negligence is a 'legal cause' of damage if it directly and in natural and continuous sequence produces or contributes substantially to producing such damage, so it can reasonably be said that if not for the negligence, the loss, injury or damage would not have occurred.

Gross Negligence 

A carelessness and reckless disregard for the safety or lives of others, which is so great it appears to be almost a conscious violation of other people's rights to safety. It is more than simple negligence, but it is just short of being willful misconduct. If gross negligence is found by the trier of fact (judge or jury), it can result in the award of punitive damages on top of general and special damages, in certain jurisdictions.

Willful Misconduct 

An intentional action with knowledge of its potential to cause serious injury or with a reckless disregard for the consequences of such act.

Product Liability

Liability which results when a product is negligently manufactured and sent into the stream of commence. A liability that arises from the failure of a manufacturer to properly manufacture, test or warn about a manufactured object.

Manufacturing Defects

When the product departs from its intended design, even if all possible care was exercised.

Design Defects

When the foreseeable risks of harm posed by the product could have been reduced or avoided by the adoption of a reasonable alternative design, and failure to use the alternative design renders the product not reasonably safe.

Inadequae Instructions or Warning Defects

When the foreseeable risks of harm posed by the product could have been reduced or avoided by reasonable instructions or warnings, and their omission renders the product not reasonably safe.

Professional Liability Insurance

Liability insurance to indemnify professionals, (doctors, lawyers, architects, engineers, etc.,) for loss or expense which the insured professional shall become legally obliged to pay as damages arising out of any professional negligent act, error or omission in rendering or failing to render professional services by the insured. Same as malpractice insurance.

Professional Liability has expanded over the years to include those occupations in which special knowledge, skills and close client relationships are paramount. More and more occupations are considered professional occupations, as the trend in business continues to grow from a manufacturing-based economy to a service-oriented economy. Coupled with the litigious nature of our society, the companies and staff in the service economy are subject to greater exposure to malpractice claims than ever before.

Errors and Omissions 

Same as malpractice or professional liability insurance.

Hold Harmless Agreement

A contractual arrangement whereby one party assumes the liability inherent in the situation, thereby relieving the other party of responsibility. For example, a lease of premises may provide that the lessee must "hold harmless" the lessor for any liability from accidents arising out of the premises.

Idemnify

To restore the victim of a loss, in whole or in part, by payment, repair, or replacement.

Idemnify Agreements 

Contract clauses that identify who is to be responsible if liabilities arise and often transfer one party's liability for his or her wrongful acts to the other party.

Warranty 

An agreement between a buyer and a seller of goods or services detailing the conditions under which the seller will make repairs or fix problems without cost to the buyer.

Warranties can be either expressed or implied. An EXPRESS WARRANTY is a guarantee made by the seller of the goods which expressly states one of the conditions attached to the sale e.g.,"This item is guaranteed against defects in construction for one year".

An IMPLIED WARRANTY is usual in common law jurisdictions and attached to the sale of goods by operation of law made on behalf of the manufacturer. These warranties are not usually in writing. Common implied warranties are a warranty of fitness for use (implied by law that if a seller knows the particular purpose for which the item is purchased certain guarantees are implied) and a warranty of merchantability (a warranty implied by law that the goods are reasonably fit for the general purpose for which they are sold).

Damage or Loss 

The monetary consequence which results from injury to a thing or a person.

Consequential Damages 

As opposed to direct loss or damage -- is indirect loss or damage resulting from loss or damage caused by a covered peril, such as fire or windstorm. In the case of loss caused where windstorm is a covered peril, if a tree is blown down and cuts electricity used to power a freezer and the food in the freezer spoils, if the insurance policy extends coverage for consequential loss or damage then the food spoilage would be a covered loss. Business Interruption insurance, extends consequential loss or damage coverage for such items as extra expenses, rental value, profits and commissions, etc.

Liquidated Damages 

Are a payment agreed to by the parties of a contract to satisfy portions of the agreement which were not performed. In some cases liquidated damages may be the forfeiture of a deposit or a down payment, or liquidated damages may be a percentage of the value of the contract, based on the percentage of work uncompleted. Liquidated damages are often paid in lieu of a lawsuit, although court action may be required in many cases where liquidated damages are sought. Liquidated damages, as opposed to a penalty, are sometimes paid when there is uncertainty as to the actual monetary loss involved. The payment of liquidated damages relieves the party in breech of a contract of the obligation to perform the balance of the contract.

Suborgation 

"To stand in the place of" Usually found in property policies (first party) when an insurance company pays a loss to an insured or damaged to the insureds property, the insurer stands in the shoes of the insured and may pursue any third party who might be responsible for the loss. 

For example, if a defective component is sold to a manufacturer to be used in his product and that product is damaged due to the defective component. The insurance company who pays the loss to the manufacturer of the product may sue the manufacturer of the defective component.

Subrogation has a number of sub-principles namely:

• The insurer cannot be subrogated to the insureds right of action until it has paid the insured and made good the loss. 
• The insurer can be subrogated only to actions which the insured would have brought himself. 
• The insured must not prejudice the insurer's right of subrogation. Thus, the insured may not compromise or renounce any right of action he has against the third party if by doing so he could diminish the insurer's right of recovery. 
• Subrogation against the insurer. Just as the insured cannot profit from his loss the insurer may not make a profit from the subrogation rights. The insurer is only entitled to recover the exact amount they paid as indemnity, and nothing more. If they recover more, the balance should be given to the insured. 
• Subrogation gives the insurer the right of salvage. 

In its history of providing insurance services to its clients for over thirty years, (Nausch Hogan & Murray)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

The Best Mexico Insurance Solution

Logic Insurance, The Best Mexico Insurance Solution - For the bold and adventurous RV enthusiast, Mexico can be an RVers paradise. There are hundreds of incredibly scenic and not too crowded RV parks up and down the shores of the Baja Peninsula and Mexico's Pacific coast. 

The weather is nice, the sport fishing is great, the surf is always up somewhere, and the free-spirited culture makes for a friendly and entertaining community. But before the fun begins, you need to make sure your beloved travel companion, your RV, will be protected with the proper insurance in Mexico.

For those of you not familiar with the rules about Mexican auto insurance, here is your crash course. Mexican authorities, meaning the Mexican police and the Mexican court system, do not recognize US or Canadian vehicle insurance. At a bare minimum, you must get a Mexican liability auto insurance policy to pay for damages you might cause to third parties. 

If you do not have liability insurance that is underwritten by a Mexican insurance company, you could face a real nightmare if you were involved in a traffic accident. If you are in a traffic accident in Mexico and you can not prove that you can pay for the damages you caused to a third party with a Mexican insurance policy, there is a good possibility that your vehicle will be impounded and you will be detained until you come up with the funds to pay for the damages. 

All of this hassle can be avoided if you have a Mexican liability insurance policy that demonstrates your ability to pay for the damages. So always purchase a Mexican insurance policy before you drive your vehicle into Mexico.

OK - So now that you understand that you must get a Mexican RV insurance policy, you are now probably wondering where to purchase this insurance, and what coverage do you actually need. This article will give you a road map of how to shop for your Mexico RV insurance.

Is your RV registered in the US or Canada?

This actually can make a huge difference in the options available to you for insuring you RV in Mexico. Many US RV insurance companies have recently introduced special RV insurance programs which actually extend physical damage and theft insurance coverage in to Mexico. 

Sorry Canadians, at this time there are no Canadian RV insurance companies who extend any type of RV insurance coverage into Mexico, but perhaps this will change in the future. Until then, this portion of the article only applies to US registered RVs.

Some US RV insurance carriers extend physical damage and theft coverage in to Mexico.

So if your RV is registered in the US, you may want to seriously consider getting your US RV insurance through a US RV insurance company who extends physical damage and theft coverage in Mexico. 

At the time of this article, these companies include Progressive, National Interstate, and AIG. If you go with one of these US carriers, you will only need to purchase a Mexican liability insurance policy instead of a Mexican full coverage insurance policy. 

Because these US carriers will pay for damages to your RV while it is in Mexico, this alleviates the need for you to also purchase any type of physical damage and theft coverage through the Mexican insurance carrier. A Mexican liability only policy is much cheaper than a Mexican insurance policy which includes physical damage and theft coverage.

Example of cost savings when you have US RV insurance that extends physical damage and theft coverage in to Mexico:

• Cost of your US RV Policy for an RV worth $80,000: $800 per year
• Cost of your Mexican liability only policy for 6 months: $125
• Total Cost: $925

Example of your cost if you have a US RV policy that does NOT extend physical damage and theft in to Mexico.

• Cost of your US RV Policy for an RV worth $80,000: $800 per year
• Cost of your Mexican full coverage policy (liability and collision / theft) for 6 months: $700
• Total Cost: $1,500

As you can see, you can save a considerable amount of money by going with a US RV insurance policy that extends physical damage and theft into Mexico. It becomes a two for the price of one insurance policy.

Tips for shopping for US carriers who extend into Mexico: Make sure to ask how far into Mexico their coverage will extend. Some US companies only extend coverage 25 miles into Mexico, so make sure to ask specifically about this. Only buy a policy that covers your RV for the entire country of Mexico.

If your US RV insurance extends into Mexico, you will still need to purchase a Mexican liability insurance policy for your RV. Do not forget to purchase your Mexican liability policy!

Mexican insurance for Canadian registered RVs

As stated previously, there are currently no Canadian insurance companies who offer RV insurance programs that extend coverage into Mexico. So if you want to physical damage and theft coverage for your RV while it is in Mexico, your only option is to purchase the physical damage and theft coverage through the Mexican insurance carriers. This is not a terrible option, but you will need to do some careful shopping to make sure you are getting quality Mexican insurance for your RV. This option also applies for US registered RVs that are insured with a US company who does not extend physical damage and theft coverage into Mexico.

Where to purchase your Mexico RV insurance

Although you could wait till the last minute to buy your Mexican insurance at the Mexican border, most RVers choose to plan ahead and purchase their Mexico RV insurance through a US or Canadian insurance broker well in advance of their Mexico trip. The internet is the best place to find a company who sells Mexico RV insurance.

Not all Mexico RV insurance is the same!

When shopping for Mexico RV insurance on the internet, you can either get a quote directly off of the website or you have the option to call to get a quote over the phone. This process usually takes only a few minutes. Many of the internet websites for Mexican insurance offer multiple Mexican insurance carriers, so you will be able to compare prices and insurance coverages in order to select the best plan for your situation.

When comparing Mexico RV insurance, make sure to research the following coverages and benefits. Deductibles: Make sure to understand your deductibles. Some Mexico RV insurance deductibles are based on a percentage of the value of your RV. For rigs valued over $50,000, these deductibles can get really high. Some other companies offer fixed deductibles which will lock in your deductible at a fixed amount regardless of the value of your RV.

Labor rates for repairs made in the US or Canada: Make sure to look for Mexico RV policies that allow you to repair your RV in the US or Canada, and check to see what the hourly labor rate is that the Mexican insurance company will pay for these repairs. Some of the less expensive Mexico RV policies will only pay $20 per hour for US repairs, while some of the better Mexico RV policies will pay $75 per hour or whatever the current US labor rate is. This is obviously the preferred choice.

Liability Limits: With insurance, higher liability limits are always better. It is recommended to get a minimum of $70,000 worth of liability insurance in Mexico, but many policies will go as high as $300,000

Legal Service: All of the quality Mexican insurance brokers will include legal services at no extra charge. Do not buy a Mexican insurance policy that does not include legal service coverage.

Medical Evacuation, Plane Tickets Home, and other Travel Assistance coverages: Some of the better Mexican insurance vendors will also bundle in these travel assistance coverages at no extra charge. These are excellent coverages to have, so it is highly recommended to find a Mexico RV policy which includes these extra travel assistance insurance coverages.

If all of this information has your head spinning with questions, you can always call a Mexican insurance broker and let their customer service people answer your questions. If the vendor has a website, make sure they have a valid insurance license listed on their website, and they should also have links to their Better Business Bureau statistics available. Unfortunately, there are some vendors who are more professional than others, so do some research to make sure you are working with a quality insurance broker who has a solid reputation.

Armed with this information, you should be on your way to properly insuring your RV while in Mexico. Once the Mexico RV insurance is secured, you can then focus on having a fun and exciting RV adventure in Mexico. (Jeff Nordahl)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

How to Get the Best Online Insurance

Logic Insurance - How to Get the Best Online Insurance - Online insurance is rapidly taking over the world, replacing the old traditional measures which in the past seemed to be the right way for obtaining insurance.

Online insurance is growing, as IT is becoming increasingly important and outsourcing is being seen as a sensible option to deal with the challenges of the market in the future. It is simply about what you are willing to pay out of your own pocket as against what you want the insurance company to provide.

How to Get the Best Online Insurance

Term Life Online insurance

Term life insurance, also referred to as `temporary` lifetime insurance, safeguards a person against loss of life and covers a specified time, known as the `term`. Benefits of Term on line life insure. Almost all policies allow you to convert your Term insurance contract to a Permanent one. 

You have the option to terminate or give up the life coverage online insurance agreement anytime you`d like to, so that you can utilize the cash surrender value on whatever you want (or need) to. To help determine which type of lifetime online insurance is best suited to your needs and circumstances, it may be worthwhile to be familiar with some of the fundamentals of a permanent life insurance agreement:. Get the best rates with a term life insurance quote online.

When you purchase a short-term life insurance plan, you are getting insurance coverage for a definite time period. If in case you expire within the specified time period in your short-term life insurance plan, the insurance company will have to give your beneficiaries the par value of your policy. Moreover, unlike other kinds of lifetime online insurance, short term coverage accrues no cash value.

Auto Online Insurance

Auto insurance is something that you must have. Getting a car insurance quote and buying an auto insurance policy is fast, convenient, and affordable. With in moments you can get your insurance quote and view comparison quotes from other auto insurance companies. 

Whatever the situation, it`s nice to understand some of the basics of insurance coverage online prior to deciding on acquiring a certain plan for your automobile.

Liability coverage generally insures the named insured on the insurance policy, the named insured`s spouse and children, any blood family member of theirs by marriage, and everybody driving the automobile with the insured`s permission.

Crash coverage insures motorists for the damage done to their own automobiles by an accident that they were responsible for. Collision coverage insures drivers for the damage occurred to their own autos by an accident which they caused.

Drivers willing to disburse a higher premium could get online insure plans that will cover the substitute costs of the auto.

When your automobile is leased, you`ll most likely need to carry gap insurance, which reimburses the difference between what your insurer pays and what you owe your creditor, in case your vehicle is a total wreck.

Online auto insurance is one of the greatest ways to find the auto insurance that you need. This is the ideal way to learn just how much you are going to pay for auto insurance and to determine just which of the auto insurance carriers will offer you specifically the lowest of rates. There are different laws inside every state, so while searching for auto insurance, look for these websites that verify insurance at each country.

Health Online insurance

Health insurance is a type of insurance whereby the insurer (private or government organization) pays the medical costs of the insured i. There are number of insurance companies offering affordable and cheap health insurances. 

Buying online health insurance is easy and convenient rather than visiting insurance agents or companies personally. By searching different health insurance websites, buyers can learn all about the health insurance; get free online health insurance quotes, compare health plan prices, and benefits side-by-side.

Travel Online insurance

If you are planning your holidays abroad, then it will be good to consider buying holiday insurance. During holidays, there are the possible chances of someone getting injured or ill, stolen baggage, lost baggage or any other issues. 

In order to learn additional info, it is best to look for the holiday travel insurance rate keyword with a well-liked search engine, for instance Google and also Yahoo. Buying online holiday insurance is much better as it is efficient, convenient and time saving procedure.

Online insurance is rapidly taking over the world, replacing the old traditional measures which in the past seemed to be the right way for obtaining insurance. Online insurance is a competitive market too, so you can be confident you're getting a fair shake. online insurance is simply about what you are willing to pay out of your own pocket as against what you want the insurance company to provide. (Sani Ali)

Baca Artikel Lengkap

Life Insurance for Mortgages

Logic Insurance, Life Insurance for Mortgages - So let's get on to a mortgage insurance discussion. It's a unique name given to normal, ordinary life insurance, couched under a very nice sounding name - which makes a whole lot of difference to people wary of "life insurance." 

So, they're not buying life insurance-no, no, they're buying mortgage insurance. I wish there were many more such unique names for good old Life Insurance which would persuade people to buy life insurance and protect their loved ones and their estates.

Apparently, people do not want to talk about death; so life insurance is the last topic for discussion unless you get a close call from the Creator, by way of a heart attack or stroke. Mortgage insurance is not mandatory at your bank, or anywhere for that matter. 

Logic Insurance

Life Insurance for Mortgages

All you have to do is sign a waiver and you're off to the races. The waiver releases the lending institution of its obligations to offer you a plan that would take care of your family in the event you had a premature death.

Let's get back to the statistics. Out of 1,000 people aged 30, 125 will die prior to the conclusion of a 25 year mortgage. And surprisingly, despite having this fantastic name to this very important plan there are thousands of families lacking protection and leaving their dependent families open to the risk of losing their homes. 

I am certainly glad that due to the plans aggressively marketed by the banks, many families are protected. Or else, there would be thousands of unprotected families who would end up homeless.

If a mortgage is not paid immediately, in the event of your death, it will become a huge liability to the family.

Choices: Let's visit the choices your family would have to make in such a situation.

• Will the surviving spouse/partner carry on the entire burden of the mortgage and will the bank accept the risk? If two incomes together found it difficult to make both ends meets, how can one income possibly be adequate?
• The family could sell the house, relocate or rent somewhere else. Will there be a buyer for the house? What about the cost involved in selling the house? Will there be enough money after selling or will the family owe the bank?
• Sell the house and move in with the relatives. Not the best alternative and how many people have philanthropic, generous relatives willing to take in another family? Not many, I can bet.
• It's an accepted fact that for most people their house is their most valuable asset and they protect it by way of mortgage insurance.

By the way, I'm sure you have heard this statement from a friend saying that someone they knew had died and that the surviving family does not have any money. You can immediately conclude that those folks did not have insurance and must have probably snubbed many insurance advisors like me. If one truly loves his or her family, a mere $15.00 a month can prevent such an eventuality.

Why take advice from a bank official, whose experience is not insurance?

Before we discuss the nitty-gritty of the plans marketed by the banks and other lending institutions, let's get one thing straight. Would you go to your dentist if you are ill? Or, would you go to your family doctor? True, both are doctors, but their lines of specialty are totally different. Why, then, would a person take advice from a bank official (whose expertise is banking and NOT insurance) to purchase protection of his/her most valuable asset?

Don't get me wrong-bank officers may be extremely knowledgeable in the financial aspects of banking related issues, but insurance issues are far beyond their scope. They are only doing their duty by offering the mortgage plans available.

Therefore, getting advice and signing an extremely important document which can affect your entire family's financial future is something you have to take really seriously. An Insurance Advisor, on the other hand, is qualified to give you better advice on insurance related issues.

Plans offered by an Insurance Advisor provide coverage that remains level for the term you select.

Mortgage insurance plans offered by banks relate to your mortgage balance, and obviously as your mortgage drops so does your insurance coverage. In this case, if you are happy about reducing your mortgage, remember that the insurance company is equally happy because this reduces their liability.

Individually acquired plans are tailor made for you personally and so, if you are healthy, you get a better rate. Unfortunately, the plans that banks recommend are group plans. It does not matter how healthy you may be compared to others in the group.

Plans we offer have premiums guaranteed and cannot be changed by the insurer.

As you might be aware, group plan premiums are generally not guaranteed. Mortgage insurance plans are group plans.

Individual plans do not reduce their benefits and so the premium remains the same.

Mortgage insurance plans offered by banks relate to your mortgage balance, and as your mortgage drops so does your insurance coverage, as mentioned previously. However, the premiums that the bank charges you remain the same. Does this seem fair?

Most bank plans leave the insurance carrier with loopholes to decline your claim.

Individual plans will require complete medical check-ups done by qualified medical professionals, at the time of application, which will save your beneficiaries from problems later. It also protects your interests and the interests of your beneficiaries at a later date. Qualified Insurance Advisors will coach you on most medical questions so that your answers are accurate and appropriate.

Most bank plans can be set up with a few condensed medical questions-which leaves your bank's insurance carrier with loopholes to decline your claim.

Our plans do not require you to pay additional PST. The premium offered is the final figure, no PST surprise.

Premiums quoted by group insurance plans do not include Provincial Sales Tax. Therefore, just like the rest of your regular purchases PST sneaks in silently to add to your total. So, when you shop for a price, please take this into consideration. A PST of 8% could buy you a lot of additional insurance coverage OR reduce your cost significantly.

With our plans, the premium offered is the final figure-no PST surprise.

The plans offered by an Insurance Advisor insure both spouses separately, and so, insurance is paid on both deaths, for instance in a disaster where both the insured die, two separate death claims in the same amount will be paid, thus doubling the benefit.

Bank mortgage plans are "first to die" plans-i.e. the plans pay and cease when one person of the two insured dies. Obviously you would agree that that's the purpose of this insurance. Sure. However, wouldn't you prefer a better option?

For example: a 45 year old male and a 42 year old female insured for a mortgage of $250,000 "first to die" would pay $49.50 per month. By insuring them separately for two amounts, the cost would be about $52.00 per month. Wouldn't you agree that it's worth an additional $2.00 month to double the coverage, so that the beneficiaries receive $500,000? That's the advice you will receive from a qualified insurance professional.

The plans an Insurance Advisor offers can generally be converted to a permanent plan, without the necessity for further medical evidence. So if you develop a medical condition which would disqualify you for insurance, this feature would be of great importance in the continuation of your insurance policy, thus protecting your family.

Bank mortgage plans are strictly rental (term) plans and that's about it. You do not have a choice.

Our plans are traditional life insurance policies, the proceeds of which go to a named beneficiary tax free. The insurance policies are creditor proof, thus totally negating undue expenses such as probate fees.

When insurance proceeds from a bank plan are paid towards a property, those proceeds may be open to probate or creditors.

With traditional life insurance plans, the choice of coverage amount is always yours and does not require mortgage documentations.

Again, as the coverage of bank plans relates to your mortgage balance, you do not have a choice. For instance, if you wanted an extra amount of coverage to protect your family, you would need to purchase it from elsewhere and unnecessarily end up paying an additional amount of money by way of policy fees.

With the plans an Insurance Advisor offers, the choice of using the benefit amount anyway you choose is yours, and you can make any changes as and when you need. For instance, when you die, your spouse has the option of whether he/she wishes to pay off the mortgage in its entirety or not, as per the spouse's needs at the time.

With a bank policy the bank is the beneficiary; your family has no choice.

Our plans are portable. They are not tied to any property. They are based on your life-not your house or any other asset.

When you purchase a mortgage insurance plan from a bank, you are confining the coverage to a particular property; hence, the moving to another property requires another contract.

Refinancing does not affect the insurance plans that an Insurance Advisor will offer.

Refinancing alters your mortgage balance and so the contract of a bank plan stands void. There will be a rate increase in line with your current age, with additional underwriting. You in fact may not be able to get insurance again as your health conditions may have changed.

We offer you choices of coverage ranging from 5 to 21 critical illnesses with the flexibility of purchasing the amount of coverage that you can afford. Also, you can claim two benefits separately-i.e. if the insured gets a critical illness and claims, then dies after the claim is paid, the death benefit also gets paid.

Some institutions generally add the critical illness benefit to your life insurance coverage, giving you no choice with regard to the amount you may wish to purchase according to what you can afford. It also does not allow you to claim two benefits-i.e. if you collect a claim on a heart attack which is a critical illness benefit and you survive, then the contract ends. Also, the number of critical illnesses covered is limited.

A qualified Insurance Advisor can draw out a plan which allows you the option to stop paying premiums and still continue your policy.

Bank mortgage insurance plans are term products which have no cash values, and so, if you stop payments, the policy will immediately lapse.

Most insurance agents will service you effectively and most of all take care of a claim, personally assisting your family when in dire need. Most Insurance Advisors' actions will definitely speak better than bank TV commercials. They will assist you in the creation of an estate and certainly will meet you one-on-one and at your choice of venue or at your home. Basically you have hired the services of a professional in this line for the rest of the term of the plan you have purchased.

Can you recall any bank making personal contact with you such as sending you a birthday card, a calendar, newsletters, or even making a courtesy call, etc.? The only time you would hear from them is possibly at the time of renewal, which would mean an additional sale for them.

It's worth noting that traditional life insurance policies from an Insurance Advisor offer a discount of approximately 9 per cent if the premium is paid annually, thus reducing the cost significantly. This discount factor does not arise with a bank's mortgage insurance plans, which are generally paid on a monthly or biweekly basis.

I hope that when it's time for you to consider "mortgage insurance", that I have been able to shed a little light on the subject to help you with a better solution. (John Kovats)

Baca Artikel Lengkap