Blog - Insurance Agency Singapore | Commercial Insurance and Personal Insurance

What Homeowners Insurance Won’t Cover If a Hurricane Hits

26 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

Having homeowners insurance is no guarantee against major losses for those who live in Hurricane path.

What was once a straightforward arrangement has become less generous and more complicated over the last quarter century as U.S. insurance companies shifted risks and costs onto their customers.

Most standard homeowner policies cover damages involved when winds blow the roof off, a tree falls on the roof or flying debris breaks windows. Most also provide protection from fire, lightning, hail, vandalism, explosions and theft, according to the Insurance Information Institute, a trade group.

They typically don’t cover flooding, which can become a major issue during hurricanes. Other exclusions include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, war and damages that result from an owner’s neglect. Sometimes wind damage can be excluded in coastal areas or if flooding and high winds wreck a home at the same time.

Homeowners bracing for a hurricane’s devastation may not even realize they need a separate flood policy for losses from surging ocean waves or an overflowing river.

WHAT IS/ISN’T COVERED

Damages typically covered by homeowners insurance:

Fire
Winds (unless winds and floods cause damages at same time)
Hail
Explosions
Riots
Aircraft
Vehicles
Smoke
Vandalism
Theft
Falling objects
The weight of ice, snow or sleet
Volcanic eruption

Damages typically not covered by homeowners insurance:

Earthquake
Floods
Mudslides
Landslides
Power failure
Neglect
War
Nuclear hazard
Government confiscation or seizure
Wind damage (if flooding and wind damage happen simultaneously)

Note: This list is based on the standard homeowners policy considered the most popular, as provided by Insurance Services Office Inc. Other types of policies can cover fewer or more protections.

By Leslie Scism

See full story at www.wsj.com

Top 5 Digital Transformation Trends in Insurance

21 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

Truth be told, the insurance industry has never been much of a leader when it comes to technology. But finally — after decades of working with clunky workflows, outdated software, and lots of paper — many insurance companies are starting to get a taste of the tech bug. Perhaps that’s because hungry newcomer start-ups like Slice saw an opportunity to do insurance smarter, faster, and better. Or perhaps they realized how much time, money and risk they can save by updating and automating their processes — up to 65% in cost reduction alone. Whatever the case, there’s finally forward movement in the insurance sector, and customers are rejoicing that companies are jumping into the digital age. The following are a few ways insurance providers are making life easier for customers through the digital transformation.

Self-Service Dashboards

Ah — the beauty of the self-service model. We’ve seen it in grocery store lines and restaurants — and now we are finally seeing it in insurance. As we’ve learned, people want to use their phones to get “life” done as quickly and easily as possible. They’ve also started to get more comfortable with doing serious things — such as taking out mortgages and buying cars — at the click of a button. It makes sense they’d want to do the same thing with their insurance—managing everything from finding the right policy and making a claim, to tracking their car repair all from one place.

By Daniel Newman

See full story at www.forbes.com

Understand Now What Your Insurance Covers in a Disaster

19 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

Homeowners should prepare their homes for high winds. Meaning bring in lawn furniture, grills, anything that could fly and damage your home.

Russ Dubisky, executive director of the SCIA also suggests cutting dead trees.

“Limbs that are hanging over the house, you’ll want to take care of those now when you have time to do so before the storm becomes imminent,” says Dubisky. “Dead trees, go out and survey those. See if you can get those taken down before it’s too late. We see a lot of wind damage with wind speeds and gust. That can impact your home.”

When it comes to your actual policy, take it with you if you evacuate and have your claim number, insurance information and agent’s number available.

“Taking a home inventory so the contents within your home, you have photographic evidence or some sort of detailed report of how many pots and pans you have, how many plates you have,” says Dubisky. “Things that we don’t think about when you walk into your home that might be hard to recall for memory when you’re not there.”

It’s important to understand what all is covered in your home insurance plan. South Carolina, wind damage is covered in most plans.

However, you will need a separate plan for flood insurance.

Unfortunately it is too late to get flood insurance ahead of hurricane Irma. Most plans have a 30-day wait period before they kick in.

By Loren Thomas

See full story at www.wltx.com

Rosendale offers insurance tips for wildfire victims

14 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

State Securities and Insurance Commissioner Matt Rosendale offers these tips for property losses due to wildfires, smoke, and evacuations. The following tips were posted on Facebook on Aug. 16:

Insurance policies often cover losses indirectly caused by wildfires, such as damage from smoke or fire retardant. Montanans should consult with their insurance agents if they’ve been affected by fires this year, and always feel free to contact our office with any insurance problems.
If you are forced to evacuate, living expenses are often covered if you keep track of your expenses and receipts.
Policyholders generally understand if their property burns down or is damaged by fire that their insurance company pays for damages. However, many insurance policies provide more protection and coverage for damage and losses indirectly caused by wildfires. Insurance professionals can guide Montanans through this process.
In addition to creating health risks, smoke can damage properties even if the fire never directly threatens the home or other property. Damage from smoke is a covered peril in insurance contracts.
If property owners are subject to a mandatory civil evacuation order, many insurance policies provide extra living expense coverage up to two weeks. If this coverage is available, it helps defray costs during a stressful time.
If a property owner incurs damage from fire retardant, many companies will pay for the cost to remove the retardant and restore the structure to pre-loss condition.
It is also important to note that certain property damage is not covered, or may be limited. Damage to trees, landscapes and fencing are examples where insurance protection may only apply with capped dollar amounts.

See full story at www.greatfallstribune.com

6 tips to navigating the insurance game

12 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

One of the most frustrating and seemingly futile battles of starting your practice from scratch is getting the medical insurance game figured out.

The problem with this game is that the rules vary from company to company.

Here’s the guidance and tips/tricks that would have been helpful to you for navigating insurance game.

1. Do your research

There are some companies that are universally a good idea to join. There are other, specific regional carriers that you may want to join.

First, you must do your research. Start by knowing your vision for your practice and your patient demographic. Study your community. Who are the major employers? Who are the major insurers?

There is no shortcut to knowing this. Your practice is your priority. Your community is your priority. You must study your own community to know how to serve it.

2. Meticulousness is rewarded

When attempting to get on insurance panels, get ready to amass an arsenal of evidence. It is extremely helpful to take meticulous notes about every call made, online form submitted, email sent, and snail mail delivered.

Be prepared for a whole lot of “We don’t see your application,” or “We never received a package from you,” or “Please allow 60 days for processing.”

By Melanie Denton

See full story at optometrytimes.modernmedicine.com

Tips on how to choose the right insurance company

7 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

Its hard to find an insurance company that caters to your needs and your pocket. That’s why Review spoke to an insurance broker in the city, Johannes Manamela, about what to take into account when choosing an insurance company.

He said the most important thing is to know what type of insurance your business needs and then finding a reputable company to look at your needs and means to get you the best deal and cover at the best price. Manamela added choosing to insure a business means there is a need for several basic types of insurance which can make or break a company.

These include:

• General liability insurance: Every business, even if home-based, needs to have liability insurance.

• Property insurance: If you own your building or have business personal property, including office equipment, computers, inventory or tools you should consider purchasing a policy that will protect you in the case of a fire, vandalism, theft, and smoke damage among other factors.

• Business owner policy (BOP): These packages all have coverage a business owner would need. Often, BOP’s will include business interruption insurance, property insurance, vehicle coverage, liability insurance, and crime insurance.

• Commercial auto insurance: Commercial auto insurance protects a company’s vehicles.

• Worker’s compensation: Worker’s compensation provides insurance to employees who are injured on the job.

By Riana Joubert

See full story at reviewonline.co.za

Tips for Adding a Teenage Driver to Your Auto Insurance

5 September 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

The financial shock of adding a teenager to a family auto insurance policy is getting less shocking — at least somewhat.

An annual analysis by insuranceQuotes.com, a rate comparison site, found that adding a teenager still increased annual premiums substantially, but the magnitude of the increase has been falling over the past few years.

Adding a single teenager to a policy caused annual premiums to increase an average of 78 percent, or $671. But rate increases have been decreasing since 2013, when the average increase was 85 percent.

Laura Adams, senior insurance analyst with insuranceQuotes, said that factors in the trend may include safer automobile technology, a dip in the number of teenagers getting driver’s licenses and the continued impact of “graduated” driving programs, which place restrictions on new drivers until they gain more experience on the road.

But the impact of adding teenagers to a policy is still a jolt to families, especially those adding boys. Putting a male teenager on your insurance policy increased rates an average of 89 percent, compared with 66 percent for a female teenager, the analysis found.

Ms. Adams said premiums increased when a teenager was added because, statistically, younger drivers — particularly boys — have more accidents than older, more experienced drivers, and file more insurance claims.

Nearly 1,900 drivers aged 15 to 20 died in car crashes in 2015, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, up 9 percent from 2014.

By ANN CARRNS

See full story www.nytimes.com

How to Get Engagement Ring Insurance: 9 Things You Need to Know

1 September 2017 By admin 1 Comment

We’ve asked jewelry and insurance experts to weigh in on what it takes to make sure you’ll be able to enjoy your ring for years to come — no matter what life throws at your left hand. Read on to learn everything about how to insure wedding rings!

9 Things You Need to Know About Getting Engagement Ring Insurance

1. Get Engagement Ring Insurance As Soon as Possible

Your soon-to-be fiancé can insure the ring as soon as it is purchased and in his possession—much like you would insure a car prior to driving it off the lot. You might not initially be thinking of anything happening to your precious and sentimental token, but the sooner it’s insured, the sooner you’ll be protected. Once purchased, you or your fiancé can begin to shop for ring insurance providers.

2. Choose a Coverage Provider

When it comes to insuring your engagement ring (or other valuable jewelry for that matter) you have two options. If you have homeowners’ or renters’ insurance, you can purchase an extension (also called a “rider”) that covers your engagement ring specifically. If you don’t have homeowners’ or renters’ insurance you can take out a policy through a company that specializes in jewelry insurance like Jewelers Mutual. Independent companies like Jewelers Mutual are also worth a look if your wedding ring insurance provider doesn’t offer the specific coverage you require.

3. Understand How the Price of Engagment Ring Insurance is Determined

The cost of coverage will vary greatly based on several factors including the value of your ring, where you live (and theft rates in the area), as well as whether or not your policy has a deductible, says Kash Bulsara, a team manager in the homeowners insurance division at State Farm. “Policies without deductibles will have higher monthly premiums. And, just as with health and car insurance, it’s a great idea to ask your insurer what types of repairs contribute to your deductible.”

Estimated costs to insure rings average $1 to $2 for about every $100 your ring is worth. In theory, then, you can anticipate a premium of $100 to $200 a year.

4. Ask The Right Questions

Make sure to ask a potential policy provider important questions like:

Can you choose who repairs your ring?
If you’re insured for replacement (instead of a cash payout), where can you purchase a new ring?
What happens if a suitable replacement cannot be found?
How will you need to prove the ring vanished if you make a claim?
Are there any circumstances that aren’t covered?
Will you continue to be insured when out of the country?
Are you covered for damage or just loss/theft?
Will the policy adjust according to inflation?

By Alyssa Wells

See full story at www.brides.com

How to Decide When to Buy Travel Insurance

29 August 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

At any rate, here are some tips for deciding when to buy travel insurance and tips for choosing the best travel insurance plan:

1. Think about the specific coverage you may need

Most travel insurance policies cover:

Emergency trip cancellation
Lost or stolen luggage
Medical care in case of illness or injury
Medical evacuation (“medevac”), lie-flat nurse-staffed air flights back home in the case you need to be transported back to a hospital at home
Medical repatriation, transporting your body back home in case of death.

First, you should always know whether your health insurance covers you when you are abroad. Many American health plans do not. Even if they do, you may be required to pay for all health care expenses out of pocket up front and then deal with paperwork and reimbursement–the last thing I want to be doing in the wake of an emergency! That’s one thing that I like about the General Global Assistance policies. There are no out-of-pocket expenses for medical services up to $1,000.

If you’ll be doing something the insurer considers risky (skiing, backwoods backpacking, adventure sports) some policies specifically exclude injuries caused by such accidents, so you may want to consider buying extra coverage.

2. Consider the relative likelihood that the insured event will happen

Think carefully about your trip and decide what the risk of the insured event happening is and your own tolerance for that risk. In the case of trip cancellation coverage, here are some situations in which you may be particularly inclined to consider it:

Your flight is expensive
You are pre-booking an expensive and/or non-refundable hotel, tour package, or a cruise
You are traveling to a high-risk location during hurricane/cyclone/wildfire season
You are traveling to a place that has a greater than usual potential for political instability
You ar traveling to a place where you don’t speak the native language, making accessing and paying for medical care potentially more complicated
You are traveling with family and/or dependents and want to make getting care, in case of emergency, easier on them
You have ill family members or health concerns of your own that increase the likelihood you may need to change plans
You are planning the trip very far in advance.

Obviously, unfortunate things can happen to delay your travels anywhere you go, but the more of the above-listed factors you have, the more you may want to consider buying travel insurance.

3. Find out what your current medical/renter’s/homeowner’s insurance covers

Some of these features may already be covered by insurance you already have. Your existing medical insurance may cover treatment for illness/injury abroad, and your lost or stolen luggage may be covered under your renters or homeowners policy. Check with the companies before you leave to see what they do and don’t cover.

BY CASSIE KIFER

See full story at www.everintransit.com

Raising Deductibles to Save Money on Insurance: Does It Work?

24 August 2017 By admin Leave a Comment

One common, painful bill that we all face is the insurance bill. Whether you’re talking renters insurance, home insurance, or car insurance, the bill feels painful because it’s not something we can often directly see the benefit from. It just comes in handy when something goes wrong.

One of the most common tactics that you’ll see in cost-cutting articles is calling up your insurance company and requesting an increase in your deductible – the amount you have to pay before the insurance kicks in.

On the surface, this works well. If you increase your deductible, your premiums (the amount you pay each month/quarter/year) will go down, meaning your monthly bills are lower. You can chip hefty percentages from your insurance bill just by making this move.

One of my long-time readers, Jeanne, has been writing to me about insurance this week. She has considered doing this, but something is convincing her that it’s not the best move:

I understand that raising a deductible will lower your premiums. But why do we have insurance in the first place? Doesn’t raising the deductible through the roof defeat the purpose?

The first thing to note here is that the purpose of insurance is to insure that you’ll survive financially due to an unforeseen event. We don’t have homeowner’s insurance because it’s fun – we have it because it will help us start over with a new home should our house burn to the ground. Without it, most of us would financially sink. The same goes for renter’s insurance – it’d be tough to lose all of your possessions in a fire without any way to recover. Again, with automobile insurance – if you total your car without insurance, you might be sitting holding just a car loan and nothing to show for it.

Obviously, if you have a ton of money, insurance on smaller things is a lot less important. People with huge bankrolls have no need to carry full insurance on their cars – they just cover the parts that might worry them or that they’re legally required to cover.

Saving money by raising a deductible assumes that you have the cash on hand to cover the deductible in such a situation. If you raise your auto deductible from $200 to $1,000, you’ll see a big drop in your bill, but if something goes wrong with your car, you’re going to need that $1,000. If you don’t have that $1,000 in an easy-to-access place, then you’re in real trouble.

The solution is simple: if you have a well-funded emergency fund in a savings account somewhere, you can raise your deductibles some without worry. A well-funded emergency fund means a minimum of a couple months’ worth of living expenses, plus more if you have dependents. If you have that kind of cash that can be accessed with ease, then by all means, raise your deductibles.

by Trent Hamm

See full story at www.thesimpledollar.com

Insurance Agency Singapore | Commercial Insurance and Personal Insurance