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May30
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When it comes to the process of applying for auto and homeowners insurance your credit score could be the deciding factor. Unfortunately insurers compile their own insurance credit score based on a proprietary model they’ve created. According to Kiplinger.com there is a difference in how insurers and lenders look at your credit score. The director of consumer communications at TransUnion, Steven Katz, explained “insurers look a lot more closely at how you’ve managed credit over time rather than how much credit you’ve applied for recently.” There is a relationship between low credit scores and the frequency or likelihood a person will file a claim. The lower the score the more likely insurers will see a claim.  If you want to improve your insurance credit score you can take advantage of a service provided by TrueCredit. According to the article “The site provides separate scores for auto and homeowners coverage, which weigh the factors a bit differently, plus advice for improving your insurance score.”
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May29
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The Internet has not only changed the way we seek and find information but has also made buying goods and services faster and convenient. Finding insurance quotes online has become the norm for millions of people. An article in Eveningtribune.com...
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After much needling by other presidential hopefuls Senator Hillary Clinton and John Edwards Senator Barrack Obama has finally revealed his plan for the future of the U.S. health care system. To put it mildly I am less than thrilled at...
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The new governor of Florida, Charlie Crist has started off his first term by having a field day with the property-casualty insurance industry. A recent statement from Crist according to National Underwriter was “that Florida is ‘operating now on a...
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I would think that at least half of Louisiana homeowners would have flood insurance for their homes. As it stands today “only 31 percent of the state’s households are covered” according to Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon in a National...
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Depending on who you believe medical malpractice insurers are either charging too much premiums to doctors or are charging just enough. According to a National Underwriter article a report from the American Association for Justice “accuses medical malpractice insurers of...
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May28
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I was not aware that mold has not been scientifically proven to cause serious illness. I thought mold was already a proven culprit but apparently some scientists “have found an association between so-called ‘sick-homes’ and respiratory problems” according to an...
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It seems that more Hurricane Katrina and Wilma cases continue to end in settlements. The latest is in Florida where “A Florida court has approved a $6.8 million class action settlement for 12,000 State Farm Florida policyholders with hurricane claims...
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New Jersey auto insurance complaints have seen a dramatic decrease according to the 2006 Auto Insurance Consumer Information Report. In a National Underwriter article it was reported that, “initial consumer complaints have dropped from more than 6,000 in 2003 to...
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If you’re a life agent in Georgia you may or may not have received an email of fax solicitation regarding a “zero cost” or “zero payment” final expense insurance policy. According to National Underwriter “The Georgia Department of Insurance is...
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The slow lapping of the tides of mandatory/universal health care is permeating every part of our society. Florida State University (FSU) has decided to make health insurance mandatory beginning this fall for “the freshman class and other new or transfer...
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May26
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Have you ever filed a claim with your cell phone insurance provider? I have and I was none to happy about the $35 deductible I had to pay. I can only guess that cell phone insurers are receiving a lot...
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I posted on wedding insurance this month but the importance of general event insurance is not lost on those that have had to file a claim. If you’ve shelled out thousands of dollars for a big shindig and something goes...
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It has been almost six years since the World Trade Center attacks and after much ballyhooing by the insurers and Silverstein Properties an agreement has been reached. Suffice it to say that the insurance industry is ecstatic that this chapter...
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May25
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There are some openings in the state of Louisiana for people who’ve been rejected for health insurance as a result of health problems according to National Underwriter. This “high-risk health insurance pool” currently has 1,800 openings that are “available on...
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Almost two years after Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast and hit the coasts of Mississippi and Louisiana, big insurers and lawyers are still going at it. Now according to Pantagraph.com the Scruggs Katrina Group “which is involved in...
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I thought this was a powerful statement made by a privileged and wealthy person. Ohio Governor Ted Strickland has decided to forgo the state health benefits package in light of so many Ohio residents that have no health insurance coverage...
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If you are a resident of Louisiana and own a vehicle be aware of legislation that is on the cusp of becoming law. Legislation that would increase the minimum amount of insurance coverage in Louisiana was “unanimously approved Wednesday” according...
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YouTube is proving to be a valuable resource for insurance information. I found a short but very informative video about flood insurance. The video features an interview with Jeanne Salvatore, senior vice president and spokesperson for the non-profit Insurance Information...
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May24
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I know very little about plant facilities and the types of insurance used to protect the assets of the plant. One of the important types of insurance for a plant is business interruption (BI) insurance. BI insurance “covers the loss...
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Twelve days ago The Allstate Corporation (ALL) announced they would no longer offer homeowners insurance in my home state of California. Apparently the risk is just too high and they don’t think one million customers are worth the trouble. Not...
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Running a small business can take 16 hours or more a day to maintain and grow, so who has time for dealing with purchasing insurance? Considering that workers comp insurance is mandatory in all states putting aside some time towards...
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Have you seen more interest from your clients about long-term care insurance products? John Hancock Financial Services Inc. (MFC) conducted an online survey of 400 members of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) about client’s interest in LTC insurance according...
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Large employers are going to be happy about a recent announcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of a new rule. The new rule is called “Distributions From a Pension Plan Upon Attainment of Normal Retirement Age” according to National...
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May23
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Have you seen the new iPhone and its hefty price tag? For $499 to $599 I’d imagine the Apple phone would not only cook breakfast in the morning but also clean up afterwards. Alas that is not part of the...
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If you can’t get insurers back into your state by pleading with them then why not offer them some cold hard cash. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco has been pushing for approval of “$100 million in incentives, which Blanco wants to...
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If you already have an auto insurance policy in place with Farmers and you’re a new parent then give your agent a call about their new discount. The savings will not be huge but every little bit helps, especially with...
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I posted before about the real time operating system and its usefulness for independent agents. A survey has been conducted to help bolster the image of the real-time software. IVANS of Stamford, Connecticut “released the results of 318 insurance agents...
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Sounding the already very loud alarm for homeowners insurance premium decreases along the Gulf Coast former president Jimmy Carter added his two cents. According to Fox21.com Jimmy Carter was helping Habitat for Humanity at two construction sites in St. Bernard...
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May22
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Recent college graduates are full of inspiration, joy and positive thoughts as they march into the “real world.” The possibilities are endless and the world is their oyster. However, there is the little matter of health insurance as graduates leave...
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While the Internet has been a boon for many insurers and agents nothing beats a little one-on-one face time. According to a survey from IBM of 1,000 consumers on National Underwriter “three-quarters of consumers are very satisfied with the service...
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Who would have ever thought that going to the gym at least 8 times a month could decrease your need to go to the doctor and therefore cut your medical expenses? Medica Insurance Company and Life Time Fitness Inc. joined...
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If anyone could tell me the language being spoken in this commercial I’d appreciate it. It seems that insurance commercials in non-U.S. countries generate some of the biggest laughs. Most insurance commercials in the U.S. are fairly serious, except of...
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If you own a business in Idaho you might want to consider attending one of the nine free seminars being put on throughout the state. The seminars are going “to provide employers information about how the state’s wage and hour...
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May21
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Some companies will take the smallest opportunity to try and get more money from people, especially a celebrity. During the shooting of the movie “Hide and Seek” in 2003 Robert De Niro visited his doctor and was diagnosed with prostate...
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I found this interesting article on Phillyburbs.com that follows and documents several Pennsylvania families through their 2006 dealings with health insurance. The families vary in size and age and some have insurance and some struggled to get covered. However, despite...
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Apparently the National Indoor Football League (NIFL) has had some issues with properly insuring its players for games. According to Fayobserver.com “Stephanie Fisher, a former assistant to NIFL operations director Cleveland Gary, and former Atlanta Thoroughbreds coach Chris Banks allege...
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If you currently work in the insurance industry as an agent, claims adjuster or a field rep then you know the strains and limitations of travel. I’m shocked more people working out in the field in the insurance industry aren’t...
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The demographics of the United States are slowly changing as baby boomers creep closer to retirement. Many communities might not be prepared to properly handle the amount of aging people and their specific needs. In light of this reality the...
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May17
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If you’re going to be shipping an expensive item across the country be sure and buy the correct amount of insurance. Also be aware of the fact that most shippers will include depreciation when calculating how much they’re going to...
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The march continues toward universal health care with more and more proof pouring in about our expensive and ineffectual health care system. Thanks to the Health Business Blog for posting about a recent article from the Detroit Free Press. The...
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Yes this video is hilarious at least it was to me. While the premise of the video is a bit shady the punch line is very funny. Basically if you’re going to travel in some other countries you might want...
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Apparently in Missouri title insurance fraud has become a popular undertaking by some. Because of this a new insurance bill that was recently passed in the legislature includes some improvements to the title insurance business. These improvements include “several consumer...
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May16
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Now this fraud scheme is what I call unbelievable. Every time I read something about an insurance fraud case I’m always amazed at what lengths so many people will go just for money. An article in the LA Times describes...
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It’s sad when one company can assist in giving an entire industry a bad name. An article on Kutv.com shows an example of a travel insurance company based in San Diego, C.S.A. Travel Protection that wasn’t providing the best of...
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With Microsoft’s recent release of the Windows Vista operating system there are many people unsure of whether to use it or not. If you own a PC and have been working with Windows 2000 and then XP you know the...
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If you are a woman living in Alabama and are between the age of 19 and 44 you might qualify for free family planning insurance coverage. According to Emaxhealth.com the name of the plan is Plan First and also requires...
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A study conducted by Focalyst.com reveals the brand loyalties of the baby boomer generation. Considering that the survey was done on 30,000 plus adults born between 1946 and 1964 according to the Insurance Journal I’d say the results are telling....
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May15
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I can’t really wrap my mind around this despicable situation. How could a mother take the money from her deceased son’s life insurance policy that was intended for her own granddaughter? According to Nbc5.com “Janie Lee Espinoza is accused of...
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The results from a life insurance study commissioned by Country Insurance & Financial Services were not too surprising. Women know the importance of having life insurance but appear to have “less coverage than men” according to a press release on...
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Did I get your attention? When I saw the National Underwriter headline that homeowners could possibly save that much money if Congress decides to “create tax-advantaged catastrophe funds” I was interested to know more. This number comes from a study...
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If you’re 25 or younger and live in Idaho then you’ll be happy to know that starting July 1 “Idaho will start to enforce a mandatory increase in dependent age limits” according to an article in National Underwriter. So if...
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There seems to be a large divide between what many people in the U.S. think about disability coverage and the reality. According to a National Underwriter article citing America’s Health Insurance Plan (AHIP) statistics “About 58% of Americans believe that...
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May14
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It’s truly unfortunate that a bill like the one recently passed in Raleigh North Carolina was even created. It proves that too many dog owners either don’t know how to raise a dog so they’re not aggressive or they raise...
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I thought I would venture off the beaten path today and search for YouTube videos related to homeowners insurance. Lo and behold 15 search results popped up including the following video, which was made by the Insurance Information Institute. Considering...
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There seems to be insurance for every conceivable thing in this world and now we can add Birthday Insurance to the mix. Thanks to a post over at InsureBlog I found out about a truly unique idea for grandparents to...
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Reading over the transcript for a Public Radio broadcast of the program Marketplace from yesterday about health insurance and small businesses I was shocked at a particular business. The reporter Steve Tripoli used as an example a business near Boston...
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Sponsored Review The informational portal NewRetirement offers, “personalized, comprehensive and unbiased retirement information and services” according to their website. Just taking a cursory glance at their site I can see that they do offer information on a variety of different retirement...
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May13
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The California Public Employees Retirement System is the largest pension fund in the nation. They currently cover around 170,000 people with long-term care insurance according to an article on Cbs5.com. With that many people covered by LTC it’s understandable why...
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It goes without saying that dealing with an insurance claim can be one of the most frustrating experiences in the modern world. Insurers want to do everything within their power to not have to pay the claim and you just...
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Legislation that was snaking its way through the Senate has finally been approved in Delaware. However, the approved legislation doesn’t quite resemble the original intention of the backers. Initially the bill “would have banned insurers from using credit information to...
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I wasn’t aware of this type of coverage that’s available for most homeowners. In light of the recent storms in the Northeast and subsequent flooding many people have had to face sewer-backup head on, with no help from their insurer.According...
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What a shocker this research study is. According to National Underwriter the results of a LIMRA International study of 2,000 U.S. employees reveals that most of them aren’t saving for retirement in large part due to the high cost of...
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May12
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It depends on several factors including which company you decide to go with and how much coverage you need. Apparently wedding insurance policies are becoming more popular, especially in certain areas of the country. According to an article on Tylerpaper.com...
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The cost of a four to five year college education is growing at 6 to 7 percent every single year with little light at the end of the tunnel. Even a public college can be $40,000 over a four plus...
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This is a sad case of a behemoth company not caring enough about one individual in a very serious situation. Tara Sadler sustained whiplash after “her husband hit the brakes to avoid a van fleeing police” according to Seattlepi.com. It...
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I had no idea that so many tornados had hit the U.S. in 2006. National Underwriter reported that in 2006 there was “more than $8 billion in insured losses – the worst year on record, according to A.M. Best.” The...
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I don’t mean to belabor the point but the U.S. health care system is in need of some serious changes. I’m not the only one who thinks this way according to a study done by Catholic Healthcare West of San...
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May11
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I found another amusing Youtube video about health insurance. A few weeks ago I posted a video called “Health Insurance Sucks in the U.S.?” A woman was going around interviewing people on the streets of New York about health insurance. ...
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Our economy continues to grow and expand but there are always people caught in the undertow of layoffs. Oftentimes employees loose their job unexpectedly for a variety of different reasons and are forced to settle for a lower paying job. ...
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