Life Insurance - Money Saving Top Tips

More and more people are buying life insurance online and the numbers seem to be doubling every two years. The reasons are clear. Prices are lower on the Internet and life insurance is fundamentally a simple insurance product.

Despite the underlying simplicity of life insurance, most web sites channel their online clients through a telephone based help and advice service manned by experienced personnel. They represent your safety net so if a little technical knowledge is called for, help is at hand.

But it's always a good idea to have a few Top Tips in your back pocket when you're shopping online for life insurance. They'll help you ask the right questions and find the best policy.

1. Always have your Life Insurance policy "Written in Trust".

This means that in the event of a claim, the money goes directly and immediately to the person(s) you nominate when you first take the policy out. It also avoids all possibility of your estate having to pay Inheritance Tax on the proceeds of your policy and that could represent a 40% tax saving!

All you have to do is tell the online brokerage organizing your policy that you want your policy "Written in Trust" and the names of the people who the life insurance company pay in the event of a claim. They will then sort it all out for you. The extra good news is that this service is invariably free of charge. So it's a win win situation and there aren't many of those around these days!

2. In the early years a Reviewable Life Insurance Policy will be cheaper, but a Guaranteed Policy will work out a better buy in the longer term.

With a "Guaranteed Policy" the insurance company guarantees never to increase your policy's premium.

With a "Reviewable Policy" you agree that your insurance company can review the cost of your policy at regular intervals. But don't be kidded - in our experience a "review" is just another word for a price increase. After all, who's ever heard of an insurance company passing up a chance to charge you more! The review intervals are usually between 2 to 5 years, but this does vary between insurance companies. You will find the details of the review intervals on the documents sent to you before you accept the insurance - these are called The Key Features Documents.

So, comparing otherwise like for like policies, in the early years the premiums for a "Reviewable Policy" will undoubtedly be lower than the premiums for a "Guaranteed Policy". Thereafter, the premiums for a Reviewable Policy increase eventually catching up with and overtaking, the premium for a "Guaranteed Policy".

In our experience, you can expect the monthly premiums for a Reviewable Policy to exceed those of a Guaranteed policy in about 7 to 10 years and then within the following 10 years, more than double again. If your budget is currently tight, then by all means chosen a Reviewable Policy - after all, your salary may increase in coming years and ease the strain. On the other hand, if the premiums for a Guaranteed Policy are affordable, we think they represent your best buyer.

A footnote. Many insurance companies have stopped offering "Guaranteed" rates for standalone critical illness insurance policies. This because they have experienced much higher claim rates than they initially expected. However, you may still find a Guaranteed life insurance policy that also provides critical illness cover. As we have explained, "Guaranteed" rates are especially good value and if you can get a quote for a Guaranteed life policy that includes critical illness cover, you may have a real bargain.

3. Thinking about a Joint Life Insurance Policy?

A Joint Life Insurance policy is usually written on a first death basis. This means that the policy will pay out on the death of the first policyholder, subject to the policy being in force at the time. This leaves the second person uninsured and older. Older people can struggle to get life insurance at an affordable premium, so rather than a Joint Policy consider taking out separate policies now. Overall, it will work out a little dearer - but you get twice the cover and double the peace of mind.

4. Taking out a Life Insurance Policy? Now would be an ideal time to include Critical Illness cover.

Are you likely to need Critical Illness Insurance in the future? Yes? Then consider adding it now to the life insurance policy, you're arranging. Why? There are three reasons.

Firstly, a Life Insurance policy combined with Critical Illness cover will work out significantly cheaper than buying two separate policies. Secondly, as we have already explained in the footnote to Tip 2, you may be able to buy a combined Life and Critical Illness policy with a guaranteed premium. That could be a real bargain. Finally, premiums for critical illness cover increase rapidly as you get older - so the sooner you take it out, the cheaper it will be.

5. Don't confuse Terminal Illness cover with Critical Illness cover.

There's world of difference between Terminal Illness and Critical Illness cover so it's important to understand the difference.

Terminal Illness cover pays out the insured lump sum if a Medical Doctor diagnoses you with an illness from which the Doctor expects you to die within 12 months. Most good life policies automatically include Terminal Illness cover at no extra cost. It's basically an early, and welcome policy payout.

A Critical Illness policy pays out the insured lump sum if you are diagnosed with one of a wide range chronic illness and there is no life expectancy criteria. Indeed, with many of the insured illnesses you could expect to survive for many years. For example: certain cancers, heart disease, stroke, multiple sclerosis, loss of speech, sight or hearing, onset of Parkinsons or Alzheimers disease, third degree burns etc. Say you were an engineer aged 40 and you lost your sight. A Critical Illness policy would pay out immediately and that money could well be vital in helping you and your family through many difficult financial years ahead. If you just had Terminal Illness cover there'd be no chance of a payout.

So as you can see, Critical Illness cover is far more comprehensive than simple Terminal Illness cover and for that reason critical illness cover always costs you extra.

6:34 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Buying Life Insurance Online - Is it a Really Good Idea?

The advent of the internet has opened up the possibility of cheaper life insurance for all.

In years gone by, if you were considering life insurance you would probably have invited an insurance salesman from your favorite insurance company to meet you or alternatively gone to your local insurance broker. But rarely would you have been courageous enough to get competitive quotations. It just wasn't done. You trusted the salesman to do the best for you and surely you thought, life insurance is somewhat technical and requires specialized knowledge. All very cozy. All very expensive. How life has changed!

People now realize that life insurance is not that complicated. If on a scale of 1 to 10, buying car insurance online rates 9, life insurance must be a 7 or 8. This has opened up the Internet as a prime arena for cut-price life insurance. That's not to imply that life policies bought on the Internet are in any way substandard. No, you're most likely to end up with a policy from one of the UK 's big insurers like Norwich Union or Legal & General and they'll be exactly the same policies as you could buy anywhere else. It's just that the intense competition on the internet and efficiency and simplicity of the system, means that most online brokers decide to cut the commission and roll back the savings into lower prices.

Ah yes, I hear you saying, 7 or 8 implies that life insurance is more complicated than car insurance. Yes, it is - but that doesn't mean that it represents a problem. The companies selling life insurance online recognize that many clients feel that some level of personal advice is useful and indeed, necessary. They accommodate this with a mix of useful information on the web site and more often than not, with a short telephone conversation with a life insurance adviser prior to you buying. This provides reassurance and helps to ensure you really do get the policy options you need all at rock bottom prices.

Buying online certainly is a good idea.

6:32 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Buying Life Insurance? One Tip to Save You Thousands!

It's simple, always have your Life Insurance policy "Written in Trust". This may sound technical but it is easy to understand and it's so easy to organize.

"Written in Trust" ensures that in the event of a claim, the policy will pay directly to the beneficiaries you name on the policy when you first take it out. If you do not do this, the policy will pay out to your legal estate and this inevitably means that the money stays in your solicitors' hands for some time.

Yes, that implies legal delays and, of course, your solicitor takes a small cut!

Then, if the value of your taxable estate exceeds £275,000, and remember your home can easily account for the lion's share of the £275,000 limit without much difficulty, your estate will have to pay Inheritance Tax. This represents 40% of the estate's taxable value in excess of £275,000. So, if your estate has to pay Inheritance Tax and the proceeds of your life policy go to your estate, the taxman gets his hands on 40% of your life policy!

But it's so easy to avoid all these problems.

Simply get your policy "Written in Trust". Then the life insurance company pays out immediately, directly, and totally tax-free, to the persons you have named on your policy. All you have to do is tell the online brokerage organizing your policy that you want your policy "Written in Trust" and they will automatically sort it out for you.

This advice remains sound even if the Life Insurance policy is designed to pay off your mortgage. Rather than your estate using the insurance payout to pay off your mortgage, the policy can be written in trust and paid to your partner and then he or she can use that money to pay off the mortgage. The benefit? Well, if your taxable estate exceeds the IHT threshold the mortgage is effectively paid off tax-free.

The extra good news is that all the brokers we've met will arrange for your policy to be "Written in Trust" as a free of charge service. So it's a win win situation and there aren't many of those around these days!

6:29 PM   by Unknown ·   0

5 Steps to Cheaper Home Owners Insurance

Knowledge is power
When you are looking to make any major purchase or take out any long term insurance the first thing you should do is arm yourself with all the facts you need and this is by no means any different with your home owners insurance. Work out the value of your home and write up a list of the personal items in your home. This list should include absolutely everything that you would need to replace in the event of it being damaged beyond repair, stolen or broken. This itinerary will not only prove useful for calculating the level of cover you require but also for making a claim should the need arise.

Calculating your cover
Home owners insurance is a little different to other insurance. Car insurance uses the book value of your car, the insurance company being safe in the knowledge that you will be able to replace your car should the unthinkable happen. Going out and buying a house is a little! Different to this. There isn't a set value on a house and you can't just buy the house itself. In order to come up with a value on your home, you need to find out the market value of similar houses in a similar area. In order to reduce the cost of your monthly premium you should seriously consider excluding a small amount of the money because while you need to insure the building and outbuildings you don't to insure the surrounding or housing land.

Shopping around
This is the key aspect to gain cheaper home owners insurance and is a step that has been made much easier with the introduction of the Internet. Comparison sites are regularly available that will allow you to get quotes from a large number of home owners insurance companies. This will give you a much better picture of the type of price you should expect to be paying and will let you decide which policy has the best cover combined with the cheapest price.

Selecting your home owners insurance policy
Once you've got your list of quotes in you should be able to tell pretty quickly which of the offers appears the best. Check it over to make sure it offers exactly what you are looking for and if it does you are onto a winner. If there are a couple of quotes around the same price look them all over to see if any have outstanding extra services that may make you give them slight preference over the others.

Renewal time
You will need to renew your policy or change insurance provider on an annual basis and when this time comes you should check that the policy you are applying for still has everything you need. By doing this you will be able to stay on top of the prices you are paying and the coverage you are receiving.

10:33 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Getting the Best Life Insurance Quote

Your life insurance quote is primarily dependent on a number of personal factors, namely your health, family history, lifestyle and age. It's not possible to physically change any of these factors and you definitely shouldn't lie about any of them when applying for a life insurance quote. However, there are ways you can ensure that you get the best deal out of your life insurance quote. It is important to remember, though, that we aren't talking about the cheapest life insurance quote. This is because the easiest way to get the cheapest life insurance quote is to exclude a number of factors from your policy. This may not give you the coverage you require so you should be aiming to combine the best price with the best coverage for you.

What coverage do I require?
This is a very important question and that you shouldn't answer on the spur of the moment or without careful consideration of your circumstances. By taking out a cheap life insurance policy that offers you very little in the way of coverage you are putting your family and their livelihoods at risk. Of course, nobody can answer the question properly except you. You know, or can work out, how much money your family will need to bury you and to replace your lost income. You know how much money your family needs to live on and how much the mortgage and bills cost. You should carefully consider all of these before deciding how much coverage you really need.

Getting your life insurance quote.
By this point you should have all the information you need regarding the level of coverage and other factors. This information is what your life insurance quote will be based on so you need to double check everything to make sure you are going to get exactly what you want and exactly what your family need. If you aren't the money earned, or one of the money earners in your house and you don't have young children then you only really need to cover the cost of being buried whereas being the care of young children of being the principle wage earner will necessitate a much larger level of coverage and, therefore, a more substantial payout.

When you have the answer to all of these questions, you should shop around as much as possible. Clearly express exactly what you want from your policy and make sure that this is what is being offered. If it isn't, then the life insurance quote you are getting is not for the life insurance policy you need. Always compare your quotes on a like for like basis or you are unlikely to be getting the best deal you can.

10:30 PM   by Unknown ·   0

The Advantages of Term Life Insurance

There are two main types of life insurance that are available to everyone; there is whole life insurance and term life insurance. Many people are unaware even of the existence of term life insurance, which is a shame because term life insurance is usually much cheaper than the whole life insurance equivalent. If you are a shrewd investor then term life insurance could be just the option you are looking for. It can work out thousands of dollars cheaper every year, giving you that extra money to invest yourself. Insurance companies are normally very conservative when investing your money; some people like this while others prefer a more risky but greater return investment opportunity.

Cost
The obvious advantage of taking a term life insurance policy over a whole life insurance policy is the cost. Often a term life insurance policy will cost you hundreds of dollars a year, but a similar whole life insurance policy can cost as much as thousands. In fact, there are some term life insurance policies that will cover you to the value of $100,000 over a ten year term that cost less than ten dollars a month. Obviously, similar factors are taking into consideration when applying for term life insurance as they are when applying for whole life insurance; factors such as health, family history, lifestyle and age.

Flexibility
Term life insurance offers you a greater level of flexibility over, it's whole life insurance counterpart. For less money you are able to take out short 10, 20 or 30 year plans and you are able to determine the exact level of cover that this offers. You may have a 4-year-old son and a partner who has opted to stay at home and look after him. Right now he is dependent on your earning money to feed, clothe and care for him, but in twenty years he will have finished school, finished college and hopefully got himself a job. This means he is no longer your dependent and you may not need to make financial allowances for him in your life insurance. Alternatively, your mortgage may expire in ten years. You won't need to pay to cover your mortgage once it has been fully paid up.

Investment
A term life insurance policy costs you hundreds, even thousands, of dollars a year less than a whole life insurance policy. This means that you can invest your money yourself instead of relying on the insurance company to do so. Insurers are typically very conservative when investing your money, so by taking a term life insurance policy you are able to be a little less strict over the type of investment you choose affording you a greater potential to make more money.

10:28 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Car Insurance - How can you lower your premiums?

Many factors influence the premium for your Motor insurance policy. Your insurer will have asked you many questions whilst producing your quote - some of which will affect your premium and some will not. Below we discuss the key variables that are within the policyholder's control.

Consolidating policies
By insuring a number of vehicles with the same insurer, or by trying to take out home and life insurance through your car insurer, you may be able to secure a 'bulk buy' discount.

Location
A big influence on the cost of your car insurance is where you live. The chance of your car being broken into or stolen is a key concern for the insurer. More urban areas traditionally facing greater risk of theft and therefore tend to be more expensive than countryside locations.

Excess
By agreeing to pay a greater excess on each claim you can reduce your car insurance premiums. This is because you are reducing the liability of the insurer and therefore in return they are able to offer you a lower premium.

Your Vehicle
The cheaper and slower your vehicle the lower your premiums are likely to be. If you are looking to buy a new vehicle, make sure you fully consider the cost of insurance - you may be able to buy the car but can you afford to run it?

Mileage
You can control your insurance premiums by restricting your annual mileage. However, be aware that if you exceed the restricted number of miles you'll then become uninsured!

Parking
Where you park your vehicle overnight is also very important to the insurers. If it is kept in a locked garage, you should be offered a lower premium than if you leave it unattended in the street.

Security
Security devices that prevent or hinder theft may also reduce your premium. Common examples include alarms and immobilisers, however, be aware that as we improve the quality of our security devices the thieves just become better at bypassing them.

No Claims Discount
Save up your no claims discount by avoiding making small claims upon your policy. After a set number of years, 4 or 5 typically, you'll often be offered the option to pay an additional small premium to protect your no claims bonus. This can prove very helpful if you subsequently end up having an accident.

Advanced driving skills
By taking an advanced driving course you may also be able to reduce your premiums. The Institute for Advanced Motorists and the Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents each offer membership which provides you with discounts for both the cost of driving courses and your car insurance premiums.

Two key variables NOT within the policyholder's control.

Your Sex
Women are statistically less likely to have an accident and, if they do, it's less likely to be serious. Because of these statistics women benefit from lower premiums. It is also worth noting that if you represent one half of a couple you should consider having the female as the primary driver with the male as the second driver.

Your Age
The older you are, the less likely you are to make a claim. As a result insurance companies charge lower premiums for more mature drivers.

One final piece of advice.
A large percentage of car insurance is now sold on the Internet. That's because it's convenient and cheap. Many insurers now give a further 10%-15% discount if you buy online.

10:25 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Life Insurance and Life Assurance are not the same!

The average man in the street assumes that Life Insurance and Life Assurance are names for the same form of insurance. How wrong they are! But don't hang your head in shame, many financial commentators get it wrong too! Life Insurance and Life Assurance perform different financial roles and are poles apart in cost - so it helps to surf for the correct product.

Life Insurance provides you with insurance cover for a specific period of time (known as the policy's "term"). Then, if you were to die whilst the policy is in force, the insurance company pays out a tax-free sum. If you survive to the end of the term, the policy is finished and has no residual value whatsoever. It only has a value if there is a claim - in that context, it's just like your car insurance!

Life Assurance is different. It is a hybrid mix of investment and insurance. A Life Assurance policy pays out a sum equal to the higher of either a guaranteed minimum underwritten by the policy's insurance provisions or its investment value. The value of the investment element is then a reliant on the Insurance Company's investment performance and length of time you have been paying the premiums.

Each year the insurance company adds an annual bonus to the guaranteed value of your life assurance policy and there is normally an extra "terminal bonus" at the end. Therefore, as the years go by your life assurance policy increases in value as the investment bonuses accumulate. The value of these bonuses is then determined by the insurance company's investment performance. Once investment value has been assigned to the policy, you can cash it in with the insurance company. However, most people get a far better price for their life assurance policy by selling it to a specialist investment broker rather than cashing it in with the insurance company.

If you were to die during a Life Assurance policy's term, the policy pays out the higher of either the guaranteed minimum sum or the accumulated value of the annual investment bonuses. However, if you are still living when the policy terminates, you usually get a bigger payout. This is because with most insurance companies, an additional terminal bonus is awarded.

There is a also a specialized form of life assurance called "Whole of Life". These policies remain in force for as long as you live and as such, have no preset term.

There is also a practical difference for the internet user. Whereas you can buy life insurance online, the Financial Services Authority view life assurance as fundamentally an investment product. As such, they believe it is best suited to being sold by a Financial Adviser with advice based on the Advisors full understanding of your personal details. Therefore, you will be unable to buy life assurance online. However, you can use the internet to find a suitable financial adviser with whom you can meet and discuss your requirements.

What are Life Insurance policies and Life Assurance policies used for?

Life Insurance is usually a focal point of the family's financial protection. It is ideally suited to ensure that known debts such as a mortgage, are repaid in full in the event of the policyholder's death.

When it comes to providing a lump sum for general use in the event that the policyholder were to die whilst the policy was in force, either life insurance or life assurance can be used. The differences are that with life insurance the size of payout would be preset whereas with life assurance it would depend on the guaranteed minimum and the insurance company's investment performance. But remember, at the end of the policy's term life insurance is worthless, whereas life assurance should payout a sizeable investment sum. In this context Life Assurance seems far more worthwhile but in practice more people elect for life insurance. Why? It's a matter of cost. Life Insurance is considerably cheaper than Life Assurance. Furthermore, in recent years, investment returns on Life Assurance policies have fallen significantly and many insurance companies have placed penalties for cashing in policies early. This has adversely affected the resale value of Life Assurance policies.

Finally, if you want a product to provide a lump sum on your death whenever that is with a minimum payout guaranteed, you'll probably elect for Whole of Life insurance. It's really a form of lifetime investment with the benefit of a guaranteed minimum. They're particularly useful for Inheritance Tax Planning.

10:23 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Life Insurance and the Law. A layman's introduction.

There are no laws in the UK that require a person to have life insurance. It's an entirely voluntary insurance. About 40% of the UK's working population are covered by life insurance either through their own policy or via an arrangement through their employer.

So the simple things first. You have to be a UK resident in order to buy a life insurance policy from a UK based insurance company. This is not a requirement laid down in UK law, but UK laws and tax arrangements make it impossible for a UK based insurance company to offer insurance to anyone other than a UK resident. But be aware that if, having taken out life insurance, you later live abroad, your policy will be invalidated. Naturally, invalidation does not apply if you are on holiday but if you have a short-term work assignment abroad, you are well advised to inform your insurance company before you go.

All UK Insurance Companies are subject to UK Corporate Laws. However, there are special regulations that only apply to insurance companies. These control the value of the risks the companies take on in relation to their financial reserves. These regulations are designed to ensure that your insurance company will be in a position to pay if you claim.

The Data Protection Act 1998 is concerned with the way all UK businesses store, safeguard and use the data they collect about people. This is particularly important within the life insurance industry as the companies store significant amounts of very personal information about you - including your age, health record and life style. One of the key provisions of the Data Protection Act says that if a business wishes to pass on your information for marketing purposes, the business collecting the data must tell you of its intention and give you the opportunity of refusing permission for your data be used in that way. Incidentally, all reputable web sites selling life insurance will have a "Privacy Statement" which tells you how they handle your information and how it is used.

The Financial Services and Markets Act (2000) are the most important piece of legislation affecting the promotion of financial services in the UK including life insurance. The Act is highly complex, but is primarily concerned with protecting you the customer. The implementations of the Act are overseen by the Financial Services Authority (FAS). The FAS regulates all forms of the promotion of financial products and services including the activities of financial and mortgage advisors in the UK. Their aim is to ensure you receive clear professional advice that reflects your personal circumstances. They also ensure you have a route to compensation should it be proved that you received inadequate or poor advice.

For the layman, the FSA's biggest impact is reflected in the advisors they talk to. The FAS seeks to ensure that all financial advisors are trustworthy and competent which includes being well supervised and well trained, and that any advice is given in your best interests. The FAS also ensures that you are given full and accurate information about the products you are being advised to buy both before and after you have bought them. They also closely oversee the organizations that actually create the financial products.

In fact, everyone and every organization giving financial advice in the UK must be authorized by the Financial Services Authority.

However, the Act makes a distinction between financial products bought as a result of a recommendation from a Financial Adviser and "Execution Only" business. Execution Only is where a customer is wholly responsible for the selection of the investment and therefore the financial adviser's sole responsibility is to process the purchase efficiently. Under Execution Only, the Adviser bears no responsibility for the products suitability for the clients needs.

You should be aware that many of the web sites promoting life insurance operate on this Execution Only basis. However, most web site operators provide extensive information to enable the client to make an informed choice. Sometimes the information is published on the web site and sometimes provided during a follow-up telephone call. Either way, within their Terms of Business the web site will have to tell you on what basis they provide financial services and as part of your application, you will normally be required to confirm that you have read these Terms.

These Terms of Business will always include details of a complaints procedure. In outline, if a customer wishes to complain, then the customer must detail the complaint in writing and send it to the Compliance Officer for the business employing the advisor. That business then has to investigate the complaint and reply to the customer in writing. If the Compliance Officer upholds the complaint, and the customer has suffered a financial loss as a result, then the business must agree a financial settlement with the customer. Ultimately, if the customer has suffered financial loss and cannot accept either the organization conclusions or their proposed financial settlement, then the situation can be referred to the Financial Ombudsman. The Financial Ombudsman's service is free to the customer and they are wholly independent. The Financial Ombudsman's decision is usually binding on both parties.

The other central piece of protection for the customer is the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This provides the customer with a level of protection if a financial organization regulated by the FAS becomes insolvent and cannot properly meet its financial responsibilities to its clients.

8:45 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Get Moving Insurance before Moving

There are different kinds of Insurance that pertain to moving:

• Released Value Insurance, the most basic coverage provided by moving companies. Estimated by weight it covers US$0.60 per pound of objects.
• Declared Value Insurance offers coverage of US $ 1.25 per pound, coverage is on the total weight of your movables. If any objects are damaged, the insurance is based on the depreciated value of the object to the maximum value of items shipped.
• Lump Sum Value, this insures based on the actual value of goods shipped and not by weight. The specific value of items must be declared on the bill of landing.
• Full Value Protection, covers all damage or losses. Objects will be replaced, repaired, or cash for value of object will be offered.

Tips:

• Decide which objects are to be moved and which are to be stored.
• Prepare a detailed list of objects to be moved along with weight and value.
• It is advisable to take insurance over and above that offered by the movers.
• Ask for advice on which insurance would benefit you the most.
• Get estimates from insurers.
• Remember a customer has to file a complaint within nine months of the move.
• A mover is legally obliged to acknowledge a claim within 30 days and offer settlement within 120 days.
• Even if there is damage a customer is obligated by law to pay for the move. After which the customer should address the claim procedure to receive compensation.
• Ask the mover to explain clearly the insurance cover offered by them, the exclusions, and limits.
• Always read carefully the small print on the mover's contract and insurance papers.
• List antiques and valuables separately and take extra coverage for them. Extra premium is generally charged for fine china, paintings, and so on.
• If any goods are damaged, never unpack/remove them from their boxes until all procedures for claims are completed.

Check whether your homeowners insurance covers moving. Purchase an insurance that best covers the value of the property being transported.

Find out what can be insured. Normally, jewelery, cash, as well as items not packed by movers are not covered. Goods like fuels, fertilizers, acids, ammunitions, paints, aerosol cans, corrosives, as well as flammable substances will invalidate insurance and should not be moved. 

It is important to know the laws of the state or country where you live and the place you are moving to. 

Experts recommend transit insurance as a good supplement to moving insurance. It will generally cover the gaps left by the insurance policy. 

Clever coverage can save hundreds of thousands of dollars and insurance is available on the net, through the mover, a move-it-yourself company, or homeowner's insurance companies.

8:23 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Keyman Insurance - Protect Yourself Against Your Biggest Businesses Risks

As a business man you might have public liability insurance and you insure your buildings, stock and vehicles. You may even have professional indemnity insurance and legal cost insurance. Is that all? What about your other primary assets - your key staff? 

Key staff represent the heart of every businesses but no more so than the UK's 3.9 million small, often family, businesses that have up to 4 employees. Prolonged absence through serious illness or even death can be terminal for some of these enterprises. The risks are the same for limited companies, a partnerships and sole traders. 

In this context Key man Insurance is a must. Key man Insurance represents a group of insurance plans all designed to financially protect business from the affects of prolonged illness or even death of staff who are central to the prosperity of the business. The insurance can't replace people but it can provide cash to buy time and cover the costs of temporary staff, recruitment, loss of profits or provide a cash injection. 

The insurance falls into four categories - insurance to help your business recover during the extended period when your key personnel are unable to work or to train or recruit a replacement, insurance to protect profits, insurance to protect shareholders or partnership interests, and insurance for anyone involved in guaranteeing businesses loans or banking facilities. 

Key man Insurance on those who are central to your business.
Who are your key people? They are the ones who steer, create and drive your business. The people without whom your business would lose sales and profits or without whom even the basic viability of your business would be shaken. Look at the Directors, Partners, owners and beyond. Consider the roles of senior managers in sales, technical development and operations - the roles will change in every business but the candidates are sure to jump out at you. 

Insuring these people will provide the extra cash needed to take on temporary staff or recruit and train a replacement. 

Key man Insurance to protect your Profits.
The effect of losing key staff goes well beyond simply the cost of their salaries and the cost of replacement. As they're central to the businesses prosperity, their loss will knock on to the bottom line. You can insure for loss of profits too! 

Key man Insurance to protect Shareholders or Partners.
Here we are talking about insurance to protect interests in the event of long-term illness or death. Families may want to sell their stake in the business but the remaining members in the business may not want those stakes held by newcomers. Key man insurance schemes can be implemented which provide the necessary finance to buy the shares from the original shareholders or their estate. 

Key man Insurance insuring those who provide personal guarantees.
When a business takes out a loan or raises bank finance the lender is quite likely to require a personal guarantee or a charge on their personal property. This especially applies to small and new businesses. So what happens if these guarantors become seriously ill or die? The lenders may well be in a position to call in the loan. What happens then? Again, Key man Insurance is the answer. Insurance can be structured to pay-off the loan and thus free the business and the guarantor's family, from major worry. 

Most of the UK's leading insurance companies offer Key man Insurance as a development of their Life and Critical Illness Insurance interests. They have all the necessary paperwork available to implement the cover you need and ensure the tax man is kept at bay. 

So, can your business afford to ignore Key man Insurance? You'll be either a brave or foolish man to say NO!

8:21 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Memo to Myself - I Need Keyman Insurance

Last month I had to drive down to London. I don't like driving at the best of times but the rain, spray and heavy traffic on the M 1 made conditions difficult. Radio 2 kept me company and the heater kept me warm. Then I hit that queue - six miles solid and I was soon an hour behind schedule.

They were still clearing up the accident when I got there. It was nasty. A lorry and what was left of two cars. Made me think, after all that could have been me. Yep, my life insurance is up to date and my Will was renewed only last month. The family would be well cared for and the mortgage repaid. Had I missed anything?

The business. What would happen to that? We have two directors, 7 employees, an overdraft and lots of insurance. Public Liability, professional indemnity, vehicles and stock are all insured. We even have legal protection insurance. Had I missed anything? I got to thinking.

Thank goodness it wasn't George in that accident. A great guy and he's been with us five years. He's our top salesman. There again what if it had been my co-director who also owns 50% of the business? What would be the repercussions on the business?

Sales down, profits down, bank phoning all too politely to ask about the Directors guarantee on the overdraft. Then I'd have to try and buy his shares. I wouldn't want someone else to get hold of those. At some stage I'd have to recruit someone of his caliber to continue the company going forward - that wouldn't be easy! And recruiting top people doesn't come cheap. That's more time and more money. The personal problems... the repercussions... the extra work... the extra stress...

Oh heck, I don't want to think about it all. Quickly, switch over to Radio 1.

Does all this ring alarm bells with you? 95.2% of UK businesses employ less than 10 people and these are precisely the organizations most at risk from the impact of severe illness or death of a key person. The risks of a key person being stuck down with a long term illness or death are real. 1 in 5 men suffer a critical illness before their normal retirement age. Then there's the M 1. The fact that it hasn't happened so far might just mean your business has just been lucky.

Now to those actuarial coffins in insurance companies, risk and luck are flip sides of the same coin. And they can provide insurance cover for most risks. After all they too want to increase sales. But they're scratching their heads about Key man Insurance. Most of Britain's 4.1 million small businesses should have it but few do. What can it do? It can be structured to:

• Provide an income stream to the company whilst the key person is incapacitated (compensation for the lost contribution from the Key man)
• Provide a lump sum to the business in the event of death (pay off the overdraft or simply bolster cash flow?)
• Provide money for remaining shareholders to buy the shares from the original shareholder or their estate

You'll need to talk to a Financial Adviser about these issues but they are all insurable. Can your business afford to take a risk it doesn't need to? 

Memo to myself - get Key man Insurance!

8:18 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Calling All Smokers. A Dream Ticket for Two to Paradise Island

Sorry to remind all you died in the wool smokers but November was Lung Cancer Awareness month. But no don't click away - spare a few moments of your time, please... 

If hard words on packets wash over you, let me put the financial case to you for quitting. As well as feeling healthier I can offer you a holiday for two on Paradise Island in the Maldives, for two, for every year of your longer life! 

OK, I know you don't believe me. Let's explain. 

Say the average smoker is 40 and smokes 20 a day. With cigarettes at £5 a packet that's £1,800 a year. Then you'll save loads on the cost of your your life, critical illness and medical insurance. Just how much was highlighted in a recent snapshot study by www.express-life-insurance.co.uk. This found that the average smoker paid 56% more for life insurance than a non-smoker. Therefore, giving up could easily save you £50 per month on your various insurance premiums. 

So as a non-smoker you could be £2,400 per year better off. Wearing a financial hat I can show you that if a 40 year old man put those savings into a personal pension plan with NFU, then at 5% per annum growth, he'll have a healthy retirement fund of £97,860. On retirement that could give an in the pocket tax-free sum of £24,465, plus an annual lifetime income of £3,830 (or £5,100 per year if the tax-free cash was left in the pension). 

On the other hand let's have more fun! 

For £2,400 you can have a 5 star 10 day holiday for two on Paradise Island in the Maldives. Give up smoking forever and you could afford to go back to Paradise Island every year! 

QED - makes you think doesn't it?

8:06 PM   by Unknown ·   0

Life Insurance - Smokers and Overweights Pay Over 50% More!

The life insurance industry is becoming tougher on smokers and those of us who are overweight.

When an insurance company calculates its premiums, it has to work out the risk of you dying whilst the policy is in force. (Or with Critical Illness Insurance, the risk that you will become critically or seriously ill during the policy's term.) In this context, smoking and obesity have become increasingly important issues.

The life insurance industry pointedly ignores the views of some Pro Smoking Pressure Groups which argue that smokers under the age of 40 have around the same probability of dieing as non smokers. David Pickett, Life Insurance Manager at Sainsbury's spoke for the insurance industry when he confirmed "Health risks associated with smoking can have a big effect on life cover costs. It is vital for those who have kicked the habit to review their policies".

Just how big an effect smoking has on life insurance costs was highlighted in a recent snapshot study by www.express-life-insurance.co.uk. This found that the average smoker paid 56% more than a non-smoker. The study was based on nine of the UK's top insurance companies and examined the premiums quoted for two men aged 30 asking for £100,000 cover over 25 years. The only difference between the application details was that one was a smoker and the other wasn't.

The life insurance industry has also recently tightened its belt on the overweight members of society. Previously, only people with a Body Mass Index of 33 or more were considered as overweight. This level has now been reduced by 16%. Now anyone with a BMI of 28 or more is likely to face premiums loaded by 50%. If you're anxious to know whether that includes you, you'll need a calculator! BMI is calculated by dividing your weight in kilos by your height in meters and the result squared.

So if you're intending to apply for life insurance is may be as well to loose a few pounds first - oops kilos - and they're much harder to lose than pounds!

It's not quite so straightforward for smokers. To qualify as a non-smoker, most insurance companies insist that you must not have "smoked or otherwise consumed any form of nicotine products during the previous 12 months." Indeed, some companies go further and extend the qualifying period to 5 years!

Because premiums for smokers and chubbies are so high, it becomes even more important to seek out the cheapest possible prices. As you're an internet surfer, the odds are you'll land a good discount. Just search for cheap life insurance and let your fingers do the walking!! You'll still pay more but the discount will soften the impact on the wallet. Expect online savings of 10% - 15%.

7:22 AM   by Unknown ·   0

Travel Insurance - Few Bargains for the Over 65's

At last you've retired. It's now time to relax and experience a slower pace of life. Even enjoy spot of gardening. But not all of today's modern over 65's have heard the message! Retirement is taking a new twist. 

Less of the slower pace of life and substitute jetting around the world! International travel for the retired is here and booming! 

It's all the result of a increased sense of adventure and willingness to experiment, combined with more money in the pocket. Cheaper air tickets have also helped! Even cruises, once the territory of the seriously rich and famous, have become affordable. An escape to Antigua and a fortnight in the Canaries or a weekend in Stockholm are now firmly on the over 65's travelling schedule. 

Then a fly sticks in the ointment. Finding economical travel insurance when you're over 65 is not easy. Insurance companies recognise that people have healthier lives and are living longer, and in recognition the insurers are offering far more products for the older market. But with travel insurance, the over 65's are still faced with exorbitant premiums. 

Premiums rocket as you get older and if you're looking for an annual policy for an extended holiday or a series of holidays, the problem becomes finding a policy at all rather than simply finding the cheapest price. 

The dilemma revolves around the costs of medical claims experienced by the insurers. Over 65's are much more liable to make a medical claim and the claim size is well above average too. Against this, older travellers reportedly lose less luggage - but these savings are counter-balanced by the fact their belongings are liable to be worth more. 

The result is that even if you are fit, the lowest priced annual policy for the over 65's could cost £1,000 per person - that could be more than the cost of the holiday itself. Faced with these charges, the solution is to buy a separate policy for each trip. But even with a good medical history, the cost of insuring a 3-week holiday in the South of France starts around £65, and rises enormously for destinations in America and further a-field. 

What's the solution? You're recommended to shop around. Your travel agent may offer a quotation but don't snap his hand off until you've got competitive prices. You'll almost certainly find a much cheaper alternative through surfing the Internet and buying online. 

But don't make your final decision simply on the basis of cost. Always examine the small print. Some travel policies will insure you for up to 21 days, others up to 31 days or 45 days. Some policies will only cover you if you're staying in booked accommodation rather than staying with friends or relatives. No good for visiting family in New South Wales! Then you need to ensure that you've got adequate cover for medical and hospital expenses and don't spare the horses - think of a high figure and triple it! You'll be amazed how expensive quality medical attention can be whilst you're abroad. Incidentally, it's important that your insurer will fly you home to the UK if your medical condition demands. And don't overlook comparing the excesses you have to pay per claim. Finally, check that the policy pays medical costs direct to the hospital rather than you paying first and having to reclaim. 

And now comes the really good bit - jet off and ENJOY yourself!

7:21 AM   by Unknown ·   0

Travel Insurance - Do I Need Insurance for a Holiday in the UK?

Last week my wife and I booked a two centre holiday on the Scottish Isles. Seven days on Skye and then a ferry over to Steornabhagh for a further seven days on the Isle of Lewis. Wonderful scenery, plenty of walks and masses of peace and quiet. 

You could have blown me over when my local travel agent assumed that I wanted travel insurance for an additional £27.50. Not on your Nellie the Lock Ness monster, I thought. Who needs travel insurance for a holiday in Britain? The National Health Service is free and in an emergency, my son could drive up and bring us home. 

Later in the relaxing setting of my sitting room I got to thinking.

Holiday misfortunes don't only happen abroad. So with my pessimistic hat on, I made a note of the risks: 

Some rotter might steal our luggage 

Last week I bought an all singing and dancing digital camera especially for the trip. Got it on the Internet. I might lose it whilst away. 

If either of us were hospitalised we wouldn't want to be marooned on Skye. We'd want to transfer to our local hospital in Warwickshire. 

My wife's parents are getting on. God forbid, but I'd have to cancel the holiday if something happened to them just before we're due to go. 

One of us could be taken ill before we depart and we'd be forced to cancel. As the ferries and the hotels were non-cancellable, we'd lose everything we'd paid. 

There may be a major delay at the ferry going over to the Isle of Lewis. Besides the inconvenience, we have to arrange an extra overnight stay on Skye. 

One of us might be called up for jury service. 

Then it struck me. If I were holidaying in the Britain, my existing Home and Contents policy might cover me for loss of my camera or luggage. I dug out the policy document. Lucky I did. I was only insured for "personal possessions" if they were listed and as I'd just bought my digital camera I hadn't got round to listing it as a valuable item on my policy. 

Another aspect struck me. I'd lose my no claims discount if I made a holiday related claim on my Home & Contents policy. That wouldn't be a good idea. I've got a ten year claims free record that policy and it still cost me £310 a year. I jotted down a another note - remember, when the policy comes up for renewal, see if I could get it cheaper on the Internet. 

By now a travel policy at £27.50 for was looking worthwhile after all. 

Now my wife says I'm a bit of an old skin flint. So keep up the image! I know, get back online and check out the travel agents' policy at £27.50. Is it competitive? 

Not all the web sites I surfed could offer me a single trip travel policy for a holiday within the UK but within ten minutes I'd found what I wanted - and a saving of over £10! 

Time to study the small print to confirm I had the cover I wanted. Great, all the risks I had noted were covered. The insurer would even pay out £30 if my ferry was delayed for up to 12 hours and then give me the option to cancel my trip to the Isle of Lewis and get my money back. 

Now what wouldn't they pay for? I wasn't covered if my holiday was for less than two nights or my hotel was less than 25 miles away from home. I also had to meet the first £30 of any claim. Seemed fair to me. 

The decision was made. Simply type in my credit card details and I was insured in a CLICK. 

Peace of mind restored!

7:20 AM   by Unknown ·   0

Medical Insurance - Sorry, you're not covered!

In the UK around 7 million people spend around £3 billion a year on medical insurance. One in seven policies are taken out by individuals with the balance being put in place by their employers. The problem is that Medical Insurance is complex and few policyholders take the time to really study the details of their cover. As a result, many misunderstand what will be covered. If you expect medical insurance to pay every health claim, you're mistaken. 

Medical Insurance is designed to provide protection for curable, short-term health problems and allow policyholders to jump the NHS queues to see consultants, be diagnosed, receive surgery or be treated. That sounds fine, but before you buy you need to appreciate the treatments and situations that fall outside the scope of the cover. 

But first a word of warning. This article does not relate to any specific policy and the terms and conditions issued by individual insurers do vary. So please ensure you also check your policy documents. After reading this article, you'll know what to look out for! 

Sorry - it's a chronic condition 

If a condition can be cured and is not a long-term problem, your insurance company will classify it as acute and should meet the cost. If your problem is incurable or it's a problem that, despite appropriate treatment, will be with you for a long time, then your insurance company will classify it as chronic - and no, you won't be covered. 

But deciding whether a condition is acute or chronic is fraught with problems. It's rarely a black and white decision and this can lead to a major area of conflict between policyholder and insurer. 

It's clear that asthma and diabetes are chronic conditions as you're almost certain to suffer from them for the rest of your life. So those categories of illness are not covered. 

Problems arise when Doctors initially consider a patients' condition to be curable, but the condition later deteriorates and the medical team changes its' mind, it's now become incurable. This can sometimes happen, especially in the treatment of certain types of cancer. 

In these circumstances, the condition is initially defined as acute and is therefore insured, but deteriorates and becomes chronic - and outside the terms of cover. This is possible as insurers retain the right to reclassify a condition from acute to chronic during treatment. 

Sorry - it's too long term
The insurance company will not pay out for long term treatment. But you need to check your policy documents to see how they define "long-term". You can find the situation where a course of drugs extends for say 12 months, but the insurer will only pay for ten months. 

Sorry - it's preventative
Your insurance is designed to pay for the treatment and cure of conditions when they arise. It is not designed to pay for treatments that are used to prevent an illness. 

Again, the problem of definition arises. Sometimes it is arguable whether a treatment is preventative or a cure. Take the drug Herceptin for example. This drug can be used in the early stages of breast cancer. Research shows that Herceptin can halve the incidence of cancer returning for women who have a particularly virulent form of the cancer known as HER2. In this situation, is Herceptin offering a cure or is it a preventative? 

Insurance companies are split on the debate. Norwich Union, WPA, BUPA and Standard Life Healthcare will pay for Herceptin for HER2 patients whereas Legal and General and Axa PPP will not. 

Sorry - the drug is not approved
Two of the main attractions for taking out medical insurance are: to jump the queues at the NHS, and to get the latest treatments and drugs. But there's a rider. 

The Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence exists to approve the use of new drugs by the NHS in England and Wales. Until that body has approved the drug your insurer is unlikely to pay for its use. The problem is that the Institute's brief is to perform a cost/benefit analysis to ensure that the financial benefits to the nation from using the drug, outweigh the costs of using it in the NHS. A difficult brief and it has placed the Institute under scrutiny for the extended delays in drug approval. 

The compromise hit on by the Financial Ombudsman is that if your medical policy won't pay for the use of experimental treatments, then it should meet the cost of an approved conventional treatment with the policyholder footing the bill for the balance if the experimental treatment is more expensive. 

Sorry - it's a pre-existing condition
The basic principle is that if you are already suffering from a condition when you start a policy, then that condition "pre-exists" the policy and any claims for its treatment are invalid. 

For this reason, insurance companies insist you complete an exhaustive questionnaire before they agree to insure you. After all they need a clear picture of your medical condition before they quote. For many applications, the insurer will, with your approval, also write to your GP for specific details of your medical history. They like to have a complete picture. 

So lets say some years ago you twisted your knee playing tennis. It appeared to recover but now it turns out that you have a torn cruciate ligament and it needs to be operated on. Your medical insurance company could argue that the ligament damage was a pre-existing condition and you have to pay for the operation. 

Some insurers try to accommodate these grey areas with a moratorium provision within your policy. These provisions typically say that so long as you have been symptom free for two years relating to any condition you've suffered from within the last 5 years, they will pay for subsequent treatment. Not all policies have these moratorium provisions and the time periods do vary between insurers. You should carefully read your policy. 

Sorry - its not covered
Medical Insurance is an annual contract - just like your car insurance. So when it comes to renewal, your insurer is at liberty to review not only your premium but also change the conditions on which your cover is provided. 

Therefore, if your policy comes up for renewal mid way through a course of treatment, it's possible to find that your new policy no longer covers that particular treatment. This means that you will have to foot the bill for the balance of the treatment. 

Furthermore, with ongoing advances in medical research, more and more conditions are becoming treatable. This progress has the effect of shifting back the dividing line between chronic and acute conditions. 

This hits the insurers' pocket in two ways. With more conditions being reclassified as acute, the number of claims is increasing. And there's also a trend for new treatments to cost more - Herceptin being a good example. The net result is that the insurers are finding themselves having to pay out far more. This is inevitably passed back to you through increased renewal premiums. And in an attempt to reduce their risk exposure, insurers have a tendency to adjust their definitions and exclusions. This means that you must read your renewal notice closely before you decide to renew. 

So if you're tempted to buy Medical Insurance, be aware that everything is not always black and white. If you've got insurance and need treatment, you're well advised to contact your insurer without delay and get them to confirm that they will meet the cost of your proposed treatment.

12:56 AM   by Unknown ·   0