Archive for March, 2008

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It is good to shop around by comparing premium costs. Most insurance companies can provide you with quotes on condo insurance. Go to an advice insurance center to receive a quote online. Keep in mind that rates may vary considerably, so make sure you are comparing the same coverages and the same deductibles. Here’s an example : Don’t compare premium costs for replacement coverage with another company’s cost for actual cash value (the value of your property at the time of loss). Compare company costs using the same deductible amount. Inventory your belongings in the same manner as you would for any homeowners insurance and compare costs for the same amount of personal property coverage.

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Condo associations usually have a master insurance policy that covers the outside of the condominium building and all common areas such as the pool, club house and tennis courts. But the master policy does not cover the inside of your condo, so any damage to your ceiling, floor, walls, furniture, or other belongings is your responsibility. So is personal liability—if a visitor should fall and be injured because of your wet floor, your insurance is on the line. Carefully review your master policy to see what’s covered as there may be gray areas, such as the hallways and balconies, where you would expect coverage, but in fact, it may not exist. Keep that in mind.

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Would you rather lower your home insurance or suffer from it?

It helps to make your home insurance cut the costs. You have to be resourceful in getting all the information that you might need when it comes to deals about your home insurance. This includes anything that you think might help you to increase your deductible. Just stick to one insurer instead of contacting different persons for your insured properties if possible. Make an effort to make sure your home is secured from any crimes or disasters like fire, floods, earthquakes or anything that can damage your lovable home. Lastly, read and understand what is stated in your home insurance policy.

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Now that you’ve confirmed that the insurance company you are eyeing is not a ‘scam, it’s time to take a look at the financial strength of the insurer. Make certain that it maintains sufficient reserves in order to pay claims in the event of large catastrophic disasters. There are also insurance rating services that rank the financial strength of insurance companies .

It also advisable for you to ask your neighbors. You may find that a lot of your neighbors insure with a particular company that has a good track record with respect to payment of claims, and generally has decent premium rates for your neighborhood.

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When looking insurance companies, there are several questions that you will want to ask before purchasing — in addition to price of the home policy package, quality of service, speed in settling claims, and differences in coverage.

First and foremost, the insurance company must be licensed to transact business in your state. Check with your state department of insurance to make certain that the company offering you insurance is an “admitted” insurance company in your state. An un-authorized insurer may come into your local area offering insurance without a license, offering cheap rates but not being legally allowed to offer insurance.

by: Christine Zafra

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The promise of getting something in return if you invest in home insurance policy blinds us of the negative aspects of these policies. It is true that you will have something and you will not be totally broke if something unexpected happens to your house. But the process of getting it is not that easy. In order to claim it, companies require you some proof, showing the worth of your property. But what if your list or video or pictures got burned too? What will happen to you? What will they ask from you now? Testimonies of people who have visited your house/apartment/condo stating all the properties you have in that structure? Buying the policy is easy, but claiming it is not.

Photo taken from http://aggiefamilypack.ucdavis.edu

by: Christine Zafra

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A person might not have a problem with home insurance company itself but he/she may have conflicts/issues with its staffs, particularly its brokers. Brokers are the ones who directly communicate with potential buyers. They may be good at entertaining you at the start of the transaction but once you have completed your payments and the broker will not get anything from you anymore he/she may disappear and will not have any interest of accommodating your questions or demands. Brokers, receiving low commissions for upgrading a certain insurance policy, lack the interest of going to you and offer latest policies that might give you more benefits. At the end of the day, the name of the home insurance company will not solely determine the quality of service you will receive, it is still up to the brokers/staffs that are directly transacting with you.

Photo taken from http://www.yourofficehere.com

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It seems like none of us like to think that we may need nursing home care one day, but according to government statistics just over 50% of all Americans do need special care at some time in their lives. The problem with nursing home care is the cost - and the cost of nursing home insurance is going up almost every week. Fortunately there are several things you can do to lower the cost of your monthly premium and there’s one very simple thing you can do - a deep, dark little secret that your broker hopes you’ll never find out about - that will cut the cost of your coverage by approximately 30% in less than 30 minutes!