Archive for December, 2010

General Insurance Keys For Individuals

December 31st, 2010


Currently, there are many kinds of insurance coverage available for purchase in the US. The industry provides policies for multiple kinds of life insurance for a wide array of budgets, as well as general coverage many kinds of losses. When considering purchasing a new policy, it is important to review your family or personal needs in order to understand what kinds of insurance will best suit your situation.

Health care coverage can help with sickness, hospital visits, injuries and even some preventative care. Employers often offer some sort of health benefits to their workers as part of their coverage. Self employed individuals, and people who do not receive benefits through work may need to investigate other possibilities with another agency. No one ever plans to get hurt or have serious medical needs, but it still happens. Medical costs to the uninsured are huge; therefore, it is vital to have recourse to some kind of health coverage.

Life insurance has a range of possible uses as well. It can be arranged to cover a person’s final expenses, like left over debt and funeral arrangements. It can also be used as a source of income support for the family of the one who has died. This kind of coverage becomes somewhat less necessary as people age and become more financially stable, but it is an invaluable resource for young families who could face hardship at the loss of a main source of income.

A third kind of insurance, general coverage, can offer protection against losses incurred from fire, natural disasters, theft, and many other kinds of incidents, as defined by the policy itself. Car insurance, homeowner and rental coverage, and liability and business coverage are all examples of this kind of general or property coverage. The main goal of these policies is to help with any monetary loss so that starting over is a possibility for the individual.

Coverage for your car is something most people are familiar with. It protects you in the case of loss or damage as well as injury cost due to being hit in an accident. This is relevant especially when the other party isn’t insured. Car policies can also help protect the other party when you are considered to be responsible for the accident. Mortgage and renter’s coverage helps protect your personal items so that they can be replaced if need be. It also can provide liability coverage for accidental harm to someone else’s property or to another person.

There are many kinds of property, or general policies to choose from, and they can cover nearly any occurrence. If you have a loan on a car or home, you may, in fact, already need to have a protection. Living near the ocean or in a flood plain may require hurricane and home owner’s coverage or flood coverage. There truly is coverage for nearly everything.

The role insurance plays in a person’s financial stability cannot be over stated. It is necessary that all consumers be knowledgeable about their choices for coverage, and choose wisely when determining what will best suit their needs.

By: Edward T. Richards

About the Author:
For more information on the importance of general life insurance, health insurance, and other individual insurance policy types visit Ed online. He can be found online at the Life and Health Guru writing about selling annuities, life insurance, and other general insurance topics.



Review of Nationwide Auto Insurance Company

December 30th, 2010


Nationwide Car Insurance Company is the sixth largest automobile insurer based on the total number of premiums written by this company. The auto insurance company is just one of many types of companies provided by the Nationwide Corporation. They also have a large financial services network.

Nationwide auto insurance is similar to most major auto insurance companies as they offer their customers a large variety of auto, property and personal coverage options to choose from when they are selecting their insurance policy.

Nationwide auto insurance offers general liability coverage in the area of bodily injury protection. This type of coverage will cover bodily injury to other parties involved in an accident where you are at fault. The medical expenses coverage that this auto insurance company offers covers any medical expense you may incur in an accident no matter if you are at fault or the other party is at fault. Nationwide also offer income coverage to help pay for lost wages whenever you are forced to miss work due to auto accident related injuries.

The comprehensive and collision coverage options provided by this company in the area of property damage will repair or replace your vehicle when you are involved in an accident with another auto that does not carry insurance or when your auto incurs damage from accidents other than with another auto. These would include damage caused by falling rocks, tree limbs, items that have fallen off a truck and are unavoidable by your vehicle, etc.

Nationwide also offers options for coverage for towing and roadside labor when you need assistance unexpectedly for things such as tire changes when you don’t have a jack, battery jumps if your auto suddenly dies and there is no one around to assist you, and also for a locksmith when you inadvertently lock yourself out of your car and you don’t have an extra key. The cost for this type of coverage is usually minimal and can save you a lot of unnecessary stress.

Another type of coverage that Nationwide offers is auto rental when your auto is in the shop being repaired for damage caused by an auto accident. If you’ve ever rented an auto you know that this coverage can save you hundreds of dollars. It can also provide you with peace of mind knowing that if you are in an accident and you auto is not drivable you will still be able to get to work, take your children to school, etc.

There are also many types of discounts offered by Nationwide. Some of these are multi-car insurance, good driving record and years of driving experience. Another factor would be if you also selected Nationwide for one of their other types of insurance such as insurance covering your residence or life insurance.

By: Otto Ingrid

About the Author:
Otto Ingrid is an enthusiast of automobiles alike. He is determined to provide everyone with loads of information about auto insurance. If you’d like to find out more about this topic, please visit Madison Auto Insurance or Mesa Auto Insurance and find out everything you want to know.



General Liability Insurance For Contractors – 4 Tips to Avoid Coverage Surprises

December 30th, 2010


General liability insurance is one of the first types of policies you will need if you are starting a new business.?At Clinard Insurance we are seeing many new small business startups.??Starting your own company is popular these days with the layoffs we are seeing in our economy.?The best choice is often to pursue something that you love doing and so we are seeing lots of people starting new businesses around their building skills.?But just because you love to build things doesn’t mean you know the best way to protect yourself and your company from lawsuits.

Here are some tips for pitfalls that you should avoid when buying general liability insurance.
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Choosing the right agent.?The first place people generally go for their business insurance is the insurance agency that handles their home and auto insurance.?In some cases this will work out well.?But the risk is that your current agent may be licensed to sell you general liability insurance on your new company while really possessing very little experience in evaluating the hazards and risks of your specific type of company.?I would suggest that you go out there and look for an agent that specializes in insuring other small businesses like yours.?Ask your competitors who they used.?At Clinard Insurance we have a niche specialty in small contractors and we speak their language and understand their needs.?If your agent doesn’t specialize in your business, I suggest you find one who does.
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Claims Made or Occurrence Policy Type:?Construction claims made policies became popular in the mid 1980’s and have been around ever since.?The promise of these policies were lower rates, but at what long-term damage??In some instances there is no cost savings.?Claims made polices for a contractor are the worst possible policy you can buy.?Let me explain:?Claims made policies allow you to make claim on your policy only during the year they are in force.?Contractors have claims down the road, not always just in the same year as the project is built!? Also, if you want to leave that company and go to another company, you will have to purchase additional insurance to cover you for the next 10 years… that’s right, 10 years!?Why??Because the law allows customers to file a lawsuit for construction problems for up to 10 years after the project was completed.
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An Example:
You build a new room addition, everything goes well and you and your customer are very happy with the final outcome…?4 years later your customer calls you and says that the roof is leaking and water came in the house and ruined his new $25,000 grand piano.?He expects you to repair the roof, the drywall, wallpaper, carpets and, of course, replace the grand piano….
A claims made policy will not allow you file a claim 4 years later unless you stayed with that same company the whole time.?If you intend to change companies after you have had a claims made policy, you must make a decision.?If you want to have protection for any claims that have not occurred yet, but will in the future, you will have to purchase “tail” coverage.?This coverage will extend the time in which you can file a claim.?And tail coverage is not cheap.?
If you decide not to buy the “tail” you will not be able to report a claim against the claims made policy.?And to make matters worse, some companies do not offer the 10 year extension.
So…. When your claims made policy comes up for renewal, you must decide:
Do I leave the company and pay the additional insurance for coverage for the next 10 years, or go without protection. Do I stay with the same company??Their prices on the new year may stay the same or go up sharply. Do I switch to another company who has better rates and coverages?

This limits the marketplace available to you, and makes it harder to accept a better bid from another insurance company.?Claims made policies may work in other industries, but for Contractors they are a disaster.?Take time after reading this report to see if your current policy is either an occurrence form or a claims made form…..
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Insurance Company Rating?It is up to you to do the due diligence and ask your agent about the financial health of the company from whom you are buying your general liability insurance.?As the previous tip implied, sometimes the claims may be very much delayed and you need to know that your company can pay a claim for you 10 years from now.?Use only A rated or higher insurance companies to protect your business.
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Exclusions,?Understand Them Clearly?? Be sure to take the time to ask your agent about the policy exclusions and what they may mean for you.?Here are some exclusions that contractors should consider when purchasing a general liability insurance policy:
Pesticide, Herbicide and Fungicide Exclusion, Employment Practices Liability Exclusion, X.C.U exclusion, Contractors Warranty Exclusion, Professional Liability Exclusion, Asbestos, Independent Contractors.?If you don’t know exactly what these mean for you on your policy, contact your agent and get the help you need to understand it clearly.?This may change the way you run your business.
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Subcontractors?? Be sure that you understand just how your policy treats subcontractors.?Are you covered if they have no insurance or not enough for the loss? ?How much coverage should you require of your subcontractors??How often should you obtain certificates of insurance??How can you be sure that the certificate of insurance is legitimate.?(I have seen fraudulent certs for sale on ebay before).?If you are not clear about the answers to these questions vis-?-vis your business and your general liability policy, you should call your agent right away and get the answers you need to sleep well at night.
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As you can see buying general liability insurance is not a simple as calling your agent and asking for a quote.?You need an experienced professional that understands the policy forms and your business.?At Clinard Insurance we specialize in helping small contractors navigate the dangerous waters of the insurance world.?If we can help you further, or if you would like more information about Clinard Insurance Group, please visit our web site.

By: Wake Clinard

About the Author:
Wake Clinard, CPCU, is an insurance professional operating and living in North Carolina. He is the owner and president of Clinard Insurance Group Inc. He is dedicted to helping small contractors with their insurance needs and to visit him on the web go to http://www.thecontractorshelper.com.