Know Insurance Articles: November 2008

Monday, November 24, 2008

How to Make an Insurance Claim

Buildings and contents insurance is designed to protect you from all sorts of dangers and unanticipated events. If you have suffered a theft, damage or vandalism, it can be an extremely distressing experience, and many people will want to get their money back immediately. Your first point of call, however, should not be your insurance company but rather to the police. This will ensure that the theft or vandalism has been officially noted and may help with your claim.

Another thing you must do, from the outset of getting your policy, is know exactly what it covers. If there is anything missing from your policy you should contact your insurance company and make sure that you have the protection that you require. You may have several different types of insurance: buildings, contents, or home insurance and you should be clear as to which items, and what eventualities, are covered by which policy.

If you are not sure which policy to claim under you should contact your insurers as they will be best placed to help you. Many insurers have emergency telephone numbers for policyholders, and will also be able to find you good tradesman in case you need immediate repairs. It may prove easier to use one of these insurance company tradesmen if it comes to having work that you will later claim for.

Your insurance company can provide you with a claim form when it comes to making your claim, complete it as soon as possible, and where possible return it with estimates for the cost of the repair, or the specific items that you have lost, with any proof of their value if you have it. If you are unable to value estimates - in case you have suffered extensive damage -make sure that the claim form is sent in as soon as possible and tell the company that you will give them the estimates as soon as you can.

If you have items that have been damaged by vandalism, fire, or flood for example, you should make sure that you keep them, whether it be in the house or your garage, because the insurance company may wish to make an assessment themselves.

Once the insurance company gets your estimates it will either immediately pay your claim, or if there is any doubt, arrange for a claims inspector to call on you. The claims inspector will arrange with you the basis on which your claim will be settled. Another option might be to send a loss adjuster who will handle the whole claim for you. Loss adjusters are independent experts, and are more likely to be sent in specialised cases. There is no need to appoint anyone to act on your behalf, and if you do you will have to pay the fees yourself.

For most people their home is the most valuable item that they own and it is important to make sure that it has proper protection.

by Ramond Verde is author of this article on house insurance.

The Surrender Value of Life Insurance

Life insurance policies are very long-term commitments, premiums usually have to be paid for at least ten years and the money is often invested in order to reduce future premiums and to add to the cash value of your policy. However, this can mean that if the policy is cashed in early it may lose some of its value, there are a few options you could explore if you think you may have to cash in a policy early.

Your insurance company may be able to grant you a loan rather than surrendering the value of the policy, and more often than not the rate of interest will be competitive. You should remember that it is not necessarily in the insurance company's interests to cash in your policy early, and they probably will do their best to help you out. Alternatively, if you are suffering difficult financial times you may be able to make the policy 'paid up' this means that you will stop paying premiums in the short term, but still may experience the benefit of the policy in the future, although obviously at a lower level.

If you have to cash in a policy you might be able to sell it off in a specialist auction. The cash-in value will be lower than the payout at the end, and therefore it might be possible to get more money from selling it than you would from cashing it in. This can be a risky business, and therefore it might be best to check with a professional before you choose to go ahead with it.

If there really is no alternative apart from to surrender your policy you should discuss it with your insurance company or financial adviser. Always make sure that you get a written quotation of the value from the insurance company before you make a final decision. Another thing that you should be wary of is if you are recommended to surrender a policy with one company and take one out with another company. This is a type of insurance fraud called 'churning' and usually involves you making a financial loss somewhere along the line.

If you do choose to surrender your policy your insurance company will have to cover all of its costs. These can be quite expensive, and have to be met whether you keep the policy for its full span or if you surrender it early. If you surrender early in the lifespan of the policy you will get back a little or a lot less than the premiums you have paid, and sometimes there may be a caveat in the contract that nothing at all is payable to you if you surrender the policy very early.

Due to the fact that you continue paying premiums throughout the lifespan of a policy, the surrender value can change depending on when you choose to cash in the policy. Insurance companies have to be sure that they can meet their commitments to policyholders, and therefore have to plan ahead, when they don't there can be high profile collapses. It is not unusual for insurance companies to change surrender values, both because of the value in the policy, but also because they have to balance their assets with their liabilities and an early surrender definitely classes as a liability.

Life insurance does not have to be an expensive commodity, and even if you are operating off a tight budget at the moment the provision that a good life insurance policy can make for your nearest and dearest could offer invaluable peace of mind.

by Ramond Verde

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Top 10 business insurance FAQs

Business Insurance has been developed to provide essential cover in the event of claims arising from loss or damage to property and injury to persons in the course of carrying out your business activities. For businesses with a professional service, protection from claims arising from professional errors and omissions is very important. If you value your business and livelihood then you should have effective insurance cover in place. Claims against your Business could potentially result in not just substantial cost to the company but to you personally - even Director's of Limited companies are at risk - which is why Directors and Officers liability cover is also becoming crucial.
Here are the 10 ten most Frequently Asked Questions about business insurance:

1.DO I NEED TO TELL THE INSURERS EVERTHING ABOUT MY BUSINESS?
Your Insurers need to be aware of all the facets of your business in order to asses the risk and meet the needs and demands of your insurance requirements to ensure you are fully protected. Failure to advise your insurers of a material fact could invalidate your cover!

2.WHY DO I HAVE TO REVEAL MY WAGE ROLE?
Your Insurers need this information assess the size of your company and the potential liability you may have to other parties.

3.DO I HAVE TO TAKE OUT LANDLORD INSURANCE TO INSURE MY LANDLORDS PROPERTY?
This depends on the terms of your lease. If the landlord assumes responsibility for the insurance of the buildings you occupy then you do not need to insure these yourself. However you should ascertain exactly what the lease specifies. If for example your lease makes you responsible for the insurance of existing fixtures and fittings, shop fronts, etc... then you must insure these. You will no doubt decorate and improve the risk with your own fittings. These must also be insured as the landlord will not insure them.

4.DO I REALLY NEED PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE?
In this litigious age every business needs to protect itself from claims from third parties for damage to the their property or for injury. The cover will protect the business from claims dealing with the legal costs and if necessary paying the damages awarded. Even defending a no win - no fee attempted claim, costs can run into thousands of pounds, which this cover will provide for.

5.I PUT UP DISCLAIMER SIGNS AND HAVE PEOPLE SIGN DISCLAIMERS SO DO I NEED LIABILITY INSURANCE?
Unfortunately yes. Signs may dissuade some claims but in law they have very little sway. The person injured may be blind or illiterate and cannot read the signs. They may well still attempt a claim even if they have signed a waiver on the basis that they did not know what they were signing and this claim would need to be defended.

6.I ONLY EMPLOY MY FAMILY DO I HAVE TO HAVE EMPLOYERS LIABILITY INSURANCE?
The Employers Liability Act 1969 does exempt family members from cover but if you trade as a limited company then you are legally required to have cover as per the Act.

7.I DO NOT HAVE MUCH STOCK SO CAN I ONLY INSURE MY LIABILITES?
Yes of course, but in protecting your business and continuing to trade you must consider the other aspects of cover that most business insurances provide. Business interruption (loss of profits), money cover, damage to fixtures and fittings, leased equipment, etc... Under the terms of most leases you are liable for these.

8.I SELL PRODUCTS TO THE PUBLIC, IF THEY CAUSE INJURY DUE TO SOME DEFECT BEYOND MY CONTROL AM I INSURED?
Public Liability policies can include liability arising from products supplied.

9.WILL MY PUBLIC LIABILITY POLICY COVER CLAIMS AGAINST ME FOR ERRORS AND OMISSIONS OR DEFECTIVE WORKMANSHIP?
A public liability policy will only cover injury to the public or damage to their property caused by negligent acts. Errors or Omissions such as wrongful advice is protected by professional indemnity insurance. With regard to defective workmanship, a public liability policy is not a guarantee that you know how to carry out your trade so defective workmanship is excluded.

10.WHY DOES MY BUSINESS POLICY RESTRICT THEFT COVER TO THEFT BY FORCIBLE AND OR VIOLENT MEANS?
As you can imagine, if the public are allowed unlimited access to business premises such as shops, offices, hotels, etc. then theft is very easy for the opportunist thief. Some restrictions have to be imposed hence the requirement for forcible entry.

by Arthur Savage
Insurance is an independent professional insurance advisor you can trust. We have been providing low-cost insurance and a quality service for more than 70 years.

All You Need To Know About Full Insurance

This is a perfect online guide for all your insurance needs like car insurance, life insurance, and health insurance and an article on insurance rates. We definitely have you covered.
Insurance refers to a contract wherein a person gets financial reimbursement from an insurance company in case of losses. Insurance comes in many types such as casualty insurance, disability insurance, health insurance, life insurance, property insurance, liability insurance, credit insurance, car insurance, financial loss insurance, kidnap and ransom insurance, and purchase insurance. Believe it or not, there is even pet insurance.
Getting financial reimbursement is not that simple. Since nothing is free in this world, you have to pay a premium in order to be insured. The premium is highly based on the risk of loss. Aside from the premium, there are other factors affecting insurance. It is best if you take time understanding insurance, insurance policies, and everything in between before actually getting one.

by Jizmack Baraceros
http://www.fullinsurance.info