Many small businesses operate without liability insurance to cut down on operating costs, but in today’s business climate in which frivolous lawsuits are brought against companies on a daily basis, operating without any liability coverage is a highly volatile practice. Often, the cost of defending a claim without insurance can push a small business into extreme debt or bankruptcy.

While the cost of safeguarding a business and its owner with liability insurance can be costly, a little due diligence can help in finding the best coverage for the best rate. Small business liability insurance will not only protect a business and its owner from costly litigations, it will also provide a solid foundation for success. Business owners should invest the time in researching insurance coverages and investigate their own liability insurance needs. This can be done by simply talking with peers, industry associations or insurance representatives. Having adequate insurance coverage can be one of the most important steps a business owner takes in ensuring the company’s survival.

By : James Cochran

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In the extensive field which is insurance, life insurance stands out as one of a few which is usually taken out for someone else’s benefit. Insurance covering house, mortgage, valuables, travel etc. is intended to cover the holder against loss as a result of accidents, breakdowns, delays, theft and a vast number of other circumstances. Life insurance on the other hand is usually intended to benefit those left behind when the holder dies, if only to provide funds which will diminish to some extent the problems caused by that person’s unexpected departure.

There are of course exceptions to the above, as in the case of an endowment policy which is used as a form of saving in that it pays out at the end of the specified period. Even this has the provision to pay out on the earlier death of the holder, so it does not provide solely for the benefit of that individual. If this is the type of cover which you are considering, ask your broker for details of the various forms, as in Unit Linked or With Profits.

If however it is your intention to protect your beneficiaries from financial problems occurring in the event of your death, you have a good variety of choices. It is as well to bear in mind that, particularly in more complex estates, it can take quite some time for cash to be made available after a death to meet expenditure which was originally agreed to by the deceased. This may include the funds necessary to meet funeral expenses, which are not debts which can be put off for any length of time. At the last check payment by instalments was not a feature applying to interment costs, nor is yet socially acceptable to ‘take the hat round’ for contributions! If you do take out cover for these charges, make sure that your family are aware of this; it could save them from a panic situation when the time comes.

So what is available in varieties of life insurance? The answer is that there is a surprising range of policies, each designed to meet a different need. It will have to suffice here to cover the broader outlines of some of these varieties and leave the intended policy holder to discuss the finer details of their needs with their broker.

Perhaps one of the more common policies issued is the ‘Whole of Life’ which means just what it says. You will be covered for the whole of your life, subject to the caveat common to any insurance, that you must keep up the payments; default on a payment could result in the policy being cancelled. This insurance provides cover for a specified sum and will be paid out to your heirs in the event of your death. If after a reasonable number of premiums have been paid, you should decide that you no longer require the cover, then there should be a cash value when the policy is surrendered.

Term insurance is a policy which is taken out to cover a period which you specify, and is usually intended to provide funds for your heirs when you die. If you don’t die within the term specified there is no payout and no cash value - the policy simply terminates.

A variety of this is a Level Term policy which is usually used to protect an ‘interest only’ mortgage in that it will be set at the level of the capital sum which will be due on completion of the interest payments. Because the length and value of the policy can be established at the outset it has the advantage of unvarying costs, which makes expenditure control easier.

In the opposite direction, an Increasing Term policy is linked to inflation increases. This avoids loss of value but adversely affects the premiums.

The lowest cost term policy is the Decreasing Term (or mortgage protection) policy. This provides cover for the steadily decreasing total debt of a repayment mortgage, and thus the risk factor is also heading for a final zero.

Perhaps one of the best policies for providing for your family’s needs after your death is Family Income Benefit cover. The fixed term ensures that the potential total payout reduces steadily, thus reducing the overall cost.

One of the less altruistic life insurances is the Endowment policy which has a guaranteed payout at the end of a defined term (usually at least 10 years) or in the event of your death. There are a number of variations on this theme which can increase the payout sum or alter the premiums as time goes by; you may wish to explore these. The big advantage here is that with this type of policy you may collect the benefit sum yourself.

The above is only a rough outline of some of the policies available. To enable you to examine these or others in detail you need to talk to a broker. Initial contact via the internet is the quick and easy way to do this and may well be the best ‘mouse click’ which you have ever done.

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One of the most challenging things to shop for is insurance. Any type of insurance whether it be car, life, home, boat, fire, flood or pet insurance poses a challenge to the most seasoned shopper. This is because there isn’t any tangible, physical thing to handle.

Since insurance is a bit touchy to shop for effectively, here are a few things to look for:

Now shopping for insurance in the office is a tedious experience. In order to be able to compare policies, you would need to go to several appointments, speak with several companies and make all kinds of notes.

It is much easier and faster to do these tasks online. Shopping for insurance online affords you a couple of unique opportunities. First, you will have all the information in front of you in writing. In this way, you can go over it in depth and really get informed. Plus you have it in black and white and it is a formal quotation. No back pedalling on the agent’s part and no surprises for you 3 months down the road.

Second, there are numerous websites where you can go and ask for a quote on any kind of insurance you may need. The information that you put in is distributed to several different agents. They will contact you with their offers directly. Even better, they will be forced to compete for your business and that translates to bigger savings for you!

Whether you are doing your insurance shopping online or offline, the rules are the same. Don’t rush, don’t get lost in terms, look for the discounts, compare a few policies and be aware of the penalties. Remember that an informed, educated consumer is a happy consumer as well as a salesman’s worst nightmare.

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Life insurance is a useful investment to have in your portfolio. It can give you peace of mind, with the knowledge that your family have been provided for in the event of your death. Alternatively it may provide you with a nest egg if you have chosen an endowment mortgage and then lived through to the end of the term.

How much thought have you given to it in recent years? Did the events of September 11th 2001 tend to focus your attention on your own mortality? They certainly had that effect on a number of people as there was a small rise in the number of new policies taken out in the following year.

In the UK the tube and bus bombs of 7th July 2005 had a more marked effect. People living in or commuting to London were suddenly made aware of the dangers around them and this would be reinforced by travel in a crowded tube train or even on a bus. Then there were the details and photographs of some of the victims in the papers, with the possibility of a name or a face being recognised as a neighbour, a work colleague or just a fellow traveller.

Mortality became a fact instead of a distant and little regarded enemy, and suddenly protection of family was thrust into the forefront of conscious thought. The inevitable result was for insurance to assume a greater importance, and the Association of British Insurers (ABI) reported a trend for increasing numbers to be taking out life insurance. The increase in value of life insurance to £1 billion in 2005 is judged by the ABI to be a likely result of the terrorist’s actions. A similar increase in interest was recorded in the USA following the September 11th terrorist attacks.

It is unfortunate that it takes a terrorist attack to bring home to us the need to protect our families against the unexpected loss of a parent or any other family member who helps to provide our financial stability. However, that is the way of the world and these things are easily overlooked in the daily work, eat, sleep cycle. The old saying that ‘it’s an old wind which blows nobody any good’ is tested in this case, and there can be few winds more ill than those which blow in on the back of terrorist violence.

Fortunately life insurance is still applicable in the event of deaths caused by terrorism; those victims of the London tube and bus bombings who had life cover would at least have provided some financial security for those they left behind. The ABI warn however that careful examination of the terms of any life policy is advisable because there can be variations. They quote group life insurance policies as an example, because the accumulated risks which can occur in a single incident may be specifically excluded.

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, it is worth considering endowment policies as these will pay out, not only in the event of the death of the insured during the years of its currency, but also if the insured person survives to the end of the agreed term. In the latter case the total paid on a unit linked endowment would be the total contributions paid plus the value of the investment interest earned over the period of the policy. If the policy was taken out as ‘with profits’, the payout would be the sum insured plus the total of bonuses issued during its term, plus a terminal bonus. Historically terminal bonuses have proved to be very valuable, but there can be no guarantee of the level of investment interest or bonuses, depending as they do on the success of the company’s investment or business endeavours.

If you intend to follow the path of life cover, contact a broker and discuss your needs. You should however enter into the agreement with the intention of following it through to completion. Although life policies tend to have a value after the initial years, they should at that point be entering into their period of best growth. This may look tempting as an option to surrender, but a little patience will produce a markedly better return for yourself or for your family.

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Your new engagement and wedding rings are beautiful, and your husband paid dearly for them.

You got a new big-screen plasma television for Christmas, with a home theater system.

You bought a new computer so that you can play the latest games (and maybe use it for your finances, too).

These are all major purchases, and they are things of which you are proud. And you should be! But what if something happened to them? Do you know if your homeowners or renters policy will cover them? Do you know if they will be replaced at the full value, or if the payment will be reduced for depreciation? Do you know if they are covered if they are stolen, lost, or broken?

In this article, we will examine jewelry, electronics, and computer equipment separately. As always, you should check with your agent, because each company’s policy is a little bit different.

What does a typical homeowners policy cover?

In the standard homeowners policy, your personal property–including jewelry, electronics, and computer equipment–is covered under “Personal Property Coverage.” This coverage usually applies anywhere in the world, so your jewelry would be covered if you were traveling and it were stolen from the hotel, for example; or your computer would be covered if it were stolen from your car. (There might be a limitation of 10% of the total coverage for property that is away from home.)

However, most policies have some very important limitations:

* Only losses caused by certain events are covered, including fire, theft, lighting, smoke, wind, and some others. Simply losing an item is not covered under most policies; nor is dropping your wedding ring down the garage disposal if you set it on the back of the sink while you wash dishes. Dropping the plasma television would not be covered.

* If jewelry, watches, or precious or semi-precious stones are stolen, the maximum amount is usually limited to a certain amount, often $1,000 or 1,500.

* Many policies limit the coverage for computer equipment to $1,500, $2,500, or $5,000. (If you use your computer equipment for business, you should talk to your agent about how your policy covers business property.)

* The amount of coverage is usually limited to the actual cash value, which might be adjusted for depreciation. If your computer or television is a few years old, you might find that the insurance payment is not enough to replace the item.

Some companies remove some of the limitations, such as the limitation on computer equipment. Each company’s policy is different, so you should speak to your agent for more information.

What if you want coverage for the full replacement cost?

Most people would be unhappy if their five-year-old big screen television were stolen, and they found out that their payment would be reduced because of depreciation. This is the difference between replacement cost and actual cash value. Replacement cost is payment that is sufficient to purchase a new television to replace the stolen television. A five-year-old television, however, is not worth as much as a new television, because part of its life is already used up. Actual cash value is a payment that has been reduced because of depreciation. The guiding principle of insurance is that it should restore you to your position before the loss, so if you had a five-year-old television replaced, you should be able to buy another five-year-old television.

Most companies recognize that their policyholders want to replace their property with new property. Some companies have expanded their policies to include replacement cost automatically. Other companies make it available as an option. Ask your agent whether your personal property is covered for replacement cost or actual cash value; and if it is not covered for replacement cost, ask how much it would cost to enhance your coverage. You will be much happier when you have a claim.

Although most companies do not require it, your claim will go much more smoothly if you have the model number and serial number of valuables like these, if not the original receipts.

What other options do you have to cover jewelry?

You will want more coverage than the basic policy includes if you have valuable jewelry (wedding and engagement rings are the most common). The basic policy limits the jewelry coverage so that people without jewelry do not have to pay for coverage that they do not need; but anybody with valuable jewelry can get the additional coverage for a modest cost.

The best way to do this is by listing the specific jewelry items and purchasing coverage for those items. Some companies list them on your homeowners policy, and some put them on a separate policy. Your agent might refer to this as “scheduling” it, or putting it on a “personal articles floater.” This coverage is called a “floater” because your jewelry can be moved around the world (”float”) and still be covered. Most floaters will cover jewelry anywhere in the world, even if you are traveling outside the country.

A floater usually covers jewelry for almost anything that can happen to it. Certain things such as intentional acts or wear and tear are never covered, but almost everything else is covered. If you throw your ring in Lake Erie because you are mad at your husband, it is not covered; but if you drop it in Lake Erie accidentally, it is covered.

What if you use your computer equipment for business?

Your homeowners policy is designed for personal use only, not for business. Many people have occasional business use at home, however, so the policy includes some very limited coverage.
Insuring a home-based business is beyond the scope of this article. Talk to your agent to make sure you are properly covered, and read our article on insuring a home-based business. There are several options, depending on your specific circumstances.

Contact your agent!

Policies vary widely from company to company and from state to state. Contact your agent for more information on what your current policy covers.

Your personal property is one of your biggest assets, so you need to protect it properly. More importantly, these are your dreams! A wedding ring is not just a piece of metal with a stone. It is a symbol of your marriage. If your policy can’t be adjusted to get the coverage you need, consider shopping for a different company. And if your agent can’t answer your questions, consider shopping for a different agent. This type of consultation is the agent’s job. It’s why you pay him! Don’t you deserve to have your property protected properly?

Ms. Perry had about 15 years of product management experience before she opened her agency just outside Columbus, Ohio. Because of her background, she focuses on annual protection reviews with her customers, helping them to find what their policies cover and what is excluded. For more information about the types of things you should discuss with your agent in your next annual protection review, please visit her web site at http://www.community-ins.com

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Do you want to know more about how to compare insurance quotes? By understanding how to compare insurance quotes quickly and effectively, you can manage to save yourself hundreds of dollars every month on your insurance rates. At the same time, by using poor methods to help you compare insurance quotes, you may get stuck with an insurance policy that does not provide you with the coverage you need or that costs more than you should be paying for an insurance policy.

How to Compare Insurance Quotes from the Comfort of Home

If you want to compare insurance quotes from the comfort of home, you have many options available to you. Before the Internet, the only method for comparing insurance rates from home was to call various insurance companies and ask them for a quote. Now, you have more options available to you. For example, you can go on the Internet and visit the websites of a variety of different insurance companies and request quotes from their sites. To make the entire process simpler, however, many people have turned to websites that gather information from a variety of different insurance companies in order to provide them with several insurance quotes from a number of different companies.

How to Compare Insurance Quotes Accurately

All three of these “stay at home” methods can help you accurately compare insurance rates. Of course, calling individual insurance companies or visiting the individual websites of insurance companies is a time consuming process that can be quite frustrating as well. In addition, you cannot be certain you are really comparing similar policies to each other. In other words, one company may set the deductibles higher in order to make your premiums lower or they may decrease your benefits in order to quote a lower monthly premium.

One of the advantages of using one website to help you gather insurance quotes is that you can request quotes for specific benefit and deductible amounts. This way, you can be certain the insurance policies you are comparing are truly the same.

Considering More Than Just the Costs

When it comes to understanding how to compare insurance quotes, you need to consider more than just the premium amounts, the deductible amounts and the amount of the benefits. You should also consider the reputation of the insurance company and the accessibility of a representative. After all, if you are involved in an accident or your vehicle become damage, you want to make sure the company you work with will be responsive to your needs and will actually pay out the benefit you deserve.

Before signing a policy with an insurance company, you should also be certain to read the policy carefully. All insurance policies will have certain exclusions in place, which means certain items are not covered by the policy. To be sure you are receiving the coverage you think you have, you need to read through the policy and make certain the proper coverage is in place.

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As we mentioned in previous article, critical illness insurance is a type of insurance which will pay a lump tax free benefit to the insured if he is diagnosis of one of the critical illnesses covered by the policy. The benefit is intended to help insured persons maintain their quality of life and financial independence after suffering a life-threatening illness. In this article, we will discuss the taxation of critical illness insurance.

Critical Illness policy is considered to be an accident and sickness policy.

a) If the policyholder, the insured, the payer of the premium and the beneficiary are all the same person, the premium are not tax deductible and the benefits are tax free.

b) In a key person

If premiums are not deducted as business expenses then the benefit is tax free if the key person insured is designated as the beneficiary. If the business is the beneficiary of the policy then premium is tax deductible and benefit is taxable.

c) Small business owners purchased critical illness insurance on themselves.

When setting up ownership in a private corporation, one significant concern is that there is no mechanism similar to the capital dividend account to permit the benefits to be paid out on a tax-free basis to shareholders. As a result, critical illness benefits payable to a private corporation can only be paid out as either taxable employment income or taxable dividends.

Therefore, it could be significant implications where the critical illness benefit is intended to be used by the shareholders as part of a buy/sell arrangement, or to fund personal expenses arising from the critical illness.

d) Corporation critical illness insurance

Some employers have incorporated critical illness coverage into a wage loss replacement plan If the premiums for such coverage are deductible as a business expense to the employer then the benefit are not taxable to the employee because they are not payable on a periodic basis. If the employee suffers a critical illness, benefits will be paid directly to the employee under the critical illness policy.

Some insurers are now offering one policy that includes both critical illness coverage and life insurance. The application is underwritten for both benefits at the time of sale. One premium is paid and it funds all the benefits under the policy and It makes even more complicated to the taxation of the policy.

I hope this information will help. If you need more information, please visit my home page at:

Kyle J. Norton

http://lifeanddisabitityinsuranceunderwriter.blogspot.com/

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Taking on credit in any form whether it is by way of a loan or spending on credit cards means that you are in debt until you have repaid in full. While you are working everything might be going smoothly, unless you get too far into debt, however if you were to lose your income problems arise if you cannot continue repaying. A loan insurance policy can be taken out to protect your repayments and this would allow you to continue paying if you fall ill, suffer an accident or should become unemployed.

If you cannot maintain the repayments then at the very least you will see your credit rating affected. You will get a bad mark on your credit file for being a none payer and this means that anytime you go for a loan in the future you could be turned down. Your credit rating is the first thing that all lenders will look at and if yours is bad then you can expect to pay a higher rate of interest even if you manage to get a loan.

Loan insurance has in the past caused much concern after it was brought to light in 2005 that mis-selling of cover had occurred. The mis-selling ranged from selling policies to those who stood no chance of being able to claim on them to failing to give essential advice. The cost of payment protection with lenders on the high street can work out expensive. Many people believe that just because they got a low rate of interest for the loan then they will also get the best deal on the cost of insuring the repayments. This in the majority of circumstances is not the case. Often when taking protection with the high street lender they will calculate the cost of insurance on the full term of the loan and then add interest on top. This means you pay not only interest on the amount you are borrowing but also on the protection for the loan as well.

If you choose to buy loan payment protection independently you will be given a quote for protection which is based on your age and the amount you wish to cover each month up to a certain amount. You would then pay the premium and if you should find yourself unable to work or become unemployed you would then begin to receive an income tax-free. You would have to wait for a period of time before the policy would begin to pay out. Usually this is between days 30 and 90, however some providers will backdate your policy to the first day of you being unemployed or of being unfit for work. All ethical providers will supply you with the key facts regarding their loan insurance polices. This is where you can find out when cover begins and ends and also what exclusions there are in the protection policy. All policies come with some exclusions but they differ, with some providers adding in more

By Simon Lance Burgess

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