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Insurance companies ready to use drones to evaluate claims

1 June 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user David Rodriguez Martin

It is currently illegal in the United States to fly drones for commercial use. However, in 2012 the Federal Aviation Association Modernization and Reform Act enabled the Secretary of Transportation to grant exemptions to approved companies that requested to use them. The first was granted last September and as of publication, 159 exemptions have been given to companies interested in using drones for agriculture, motion pictures, surveying and other operations.

While Amazon garnered the most media and consumer attention after announcing its goal of bringing drone delivery services to customers, one of the world’s largest industries has been positioning itself for years to take advantage of robotic flight: insurance.

Using drones for research and development at USAA

USAA, an insurer with more than 10 million members, was granted two different exemptions earlier this month. The company has been researching and developing drone technology since 2010.

Kathleen Swain, USAA’s Innovation Advisor and a licensed FAA commercial pilot, said five years ago the drone community was not fully developed for the commercial market, so companies began high-level independent research. The insurer partnered with PrecisionHawk, a drone manufacturer in North Carolina, and used the technology whenever possible within the narrow guidelines and laws that apply to unmanned aircraft systems in the United States.

More recently, USAA used drones in conjunction with Texas A&M University’s Roboticists Without Borders to survey Oso, Wash. after a mudslide consumed a nearby rural neighborhood in 2014. The company also continued its own independent testing until it received the exemptions, expanding the breadth of its drone program.

The first exemption granted April 2 allows USAA to “operate an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) to conduct research and development” within specific guidelines. The PrecisionHawk Lancaster drone (the aircraft stated in the exemption request) is the only drone the company is permitted to use at this time. The drone has a 4-foot wingspan, weighs 41 pounds and looks like a small propeller plane. It’s stored inside a carrying case small enough to be checked onto commercial airliners.

by Michael Thrasher

See Full Story on venturebeat.com

Questions to ask when hiring a maid for your home

29 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Chrisissy

The Maids of East Toronto and Durham Region can help you keep your home clean and healthy, even when life gets too busy!

It’s common for housework to creep down to the bottom of your ‘to do’ list.

Between work, the kids, activities and a social life, there’s rarely any time left in your day to clean the house. That’s why so many people are turning to cleaning companies to take the burden of housecleaning off their shoulders. Withregular cleanings, you will have more time to focus on doing the things you want to do.

Before hiring a cleaning company, there are several questions you should ask.

First, find out if they are fully insured, including workers compensation, liability and damage insurance. This is important because if the person cleaning your house injures themselves or damages your property and is not insured, you will be liable for that.

Many companies use subcontractors as a way to save money and distance themselves from the people doing the work. Find out if the cleaning company has staff that work for them or if they are contracting out the work.

As with any kind of service, you want to make sure that you are getting good value for the money you are paying. Ask the cleaning company about how things in your house will be cleaned. For example, will they just clean around your belongings or will they pick things up and clean around them? What services are included for the money you are paying?

Find out what type of products they will be using to clean your house. Some services use what you have and others bring their own. It’s important to know if the products they are using are safe and non-toxic, especially if you have children or pets living in the home.

Finally, ask if their services are guaranteed. You want to make sure that you will be happy with the cleaning, and if you are not, that the company will do something to make things right.

See Full Story on durhamregion.com

Culture of personal injury claims threatens to hit company car insurance

27 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Pictures of Money

A PLAGUE of personal injury claims is threatening to hit businesses running company cars with the knock-on effect of increased insurance premiums according to analysis by the AA.

For while the motoring organisation noted that a typical annual comprehensive car insurance policy fell over the first three months of this year, it expects this drop to be reversed aided by an on-going personal injury claim culture.

Recent research by the AA showed that 11% of motorists say they see nothing wrong in making a claim for compensation in the event of a no-fault collision even if no injury is suffered. Connor says this culture is encouraged by cold-calls from claims management firms.

“Despite the premium falls over the past couple of years, the cost of cover remains higher in the UK than in most other European countries, thanks to the claims culture in the UK,” Janet said Janet Connor, managing director of AA Insurance. “While the number of crashes on Britain’s roads has fallen, the number of injury claims has risen.

“It’s time consumers understood the connection between premiums and making fraudulent claims. Car insurance is there to protect drivers in the event of a crash, not as an opportunity to cash in. Insurance isn’t a savings account.

“My greatest fear is that if insurance fraud such as whiplash injury claims isn’t brought under control and quickly, we will see a repeat of the spiralling premiums of 2010 and 2011 when the cost of the average policy rose by over 40% in just 12 months.”

The latest benchmark AA British Insurance Premium Index, which has shown the average Shoparound quote, which uses both direct/broker and comparison site prices, fell by 1% or £5.58, to £530.47.

by Paul Myles

See Full Story on businesscarmanager.co.uk

Changes in auto insurance rule slammed by crash victims

25 May 2015 By Digital Curator 1 Comment

Image via Flickr user durrah03

In the blink of an eye and the twist in a road 11 years ago, the lives of two young sisters changed for ever.

Shannon and Erica Deering were teenagers looking ahead to full and active lives.

Shannon, now 29, had won a scholarship to play softball in Florida. Erica, now 26, was still in high school but had hopes of becoming a lawyer.

All that changed in a horrific crash when both sisters suffered dreadful spinal injuries that left them quadriplegic.

Shannon was driving along a rural road between Oshawa and Port Perry when she was forced off the road.

At a news conference Wednesday, mom Deborah recalled the horror she faced when she had to bring her disabled daughters back to a home that had to be retrofitted to accommodate their wheelchairs.

Aside from major renovations to their home, they had to pay for nursing, physiotherapy and 24-hour attendant care.

“The costs are astronomical,” she recalled.

Just one thing stood between them and financial ruin.

“We said, ‘Thank God we had insurance.’”

Shannon and Erica were at Queen’s Park with other accident victims and the Personal Injury Alliance to protest changes to insurance rules introduced in last month’s budget.

The government proposes to slash the maximum amount a person can claim for a catastrophic injury from $2 million to $1 million.

And $2 million may sound like a lot of money, but when you’re paying for round-the-clock care, it gets eaten up quickly.

“We’ve already spent almost half of the $2 million we got from insurance,” Shannon said.

The Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty came to power in 2003 on a pledge to reduce the cost of car insurance premiums.

While premiums may have gone down, so have benefits — unless drivers buy additional insurance.

While no one argues the need to hold the line on payouts for minor bumps, sprains and strains, this change is devastating for people who’ve been consigned to a wheelchair for life.

It’s not just drivers who must worry.

Pedestrians and cyclists who don’t carry their own car insurance will suffer if they’re in an accident and the driver who hit them doesn’t have the extra coverage.

“There’s a whole group of people who won’t have the option to buy the optional benefits about which the Liberal government is speaking,” lawyer Sloan Mandel told reporters.

by Christina Blizzard

See Full Story on orilliapacket.com

Personal Injury Law: A catastrophic ambush changed by insurance

22 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Injury Lawyers San Luis Obispo

As part of the provincial budget announced on April 23, the Ontario government has decided to first throw seriously injured accident victims off the bus and then deprive them of the ability to make a good recovery. The announcement comes as a total blindside to interested stakeholders.

Historically, whenever the Ontario government was considering major changes to automobile insurance legislation, there was widespread consultation with stakeholders. That consultation process consistently revealed it was common ground among all stakeholders that it was sacrosanct to reduce the benefits available to the most seriously injured persons. As a result, prior changes focused on changes other than reductions in the benefits available to the catastrophically impaired.

The government’s announcement includes five major changes. Each change reduces the funding available to accident victims. Each change reduces the chance for an accident victim to regain their independence. Each change results in further pressure on the currently underresourced public health care system.

The changes, in order of least to most significant, are:
— A reduction in the benefit maximums in non-catastrophic impairment claims from the current total maximum of $86,000 (being $50,000 for medical and rehabilitation benefits plus $36,000 in attendant-care benefits) to a combined total of $65,000. In addition, the duration for accessing these benefits falls to five years from 10 years except in cases involving children. Prior to the Sept. 1, 2010, changes, these benefits totalled $172,000, so the new reduced maximum, after accounting for inflation, is about a 65-per-cent reduction from the amounts available prior to that time.

— A reduction in the duration of eligibility for non-earner benefits from life to a maximum of two years (albeit without the six-month waiting period that currently applies). This change will affect students the most as they had previously qualified for a higher weekly benefit rate of $320 a week after two years. For example, a seriously injured teenager who will never work again because of accident-related injuries will now be unable to access the weekly benefit.

— Indexing the tort deductibles to inflation since 2003. This change means that anyone with a valid claim for pain and suffering will face an inflated deductible of roughly $37,000 instead of the current $30,000 unless their pain and suffering award is assessed at more than the inflated vanishing deductible of roughly $123,000. While this change is arguably an attempt to adjust the previous deductibles to the level intended in 2003, it’s notable that the accident-benefit limits have all remained unchanged by inflation for the last 20 years.

by Darcy Merkur

See Full Story on lawtimesnews.com

Expert Dishes on When You Should Really Buy Travel Insurance

20 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Liam Moloney

You’ve selected your destination, departure date and seat assignment. You’ve entered your name and date of birth and if you’d like to pre-pay for checked bags. You’re almost done buying a plane ticket and then the dreaded checkbox asking whether you would like to purchase travel insurance or not pops onto the screen.

Here are some tips to help coach you on when to buy trip or airfare insurance:

What’s the timing? If you’re buying a ticket last minute for a trip you’re taking this weekend, it’s less likely something will disrupt your plans.

Will canceling break your pocketbook? If you need to cancel or delay a trip and being out that money (and perhaps knowing that you’ll have to pay even more money to reschedule), paying a little extra up front for insurance won’t hurt in the long run.

Do you have use for other services? If you’re going on a major trip where you might need more than just trip interruption coverage — if you want coverage for medical incidents, lost baggage or help with lost travel documents, for example, — insurance might be for you.

by Liz Klimas

See Full Story on theblaze.com

Medical claims are top of the list for travel insurance

18 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user [Duncan]

Medical insurance claims are the most expensive for New Zealand’s largest online travel insurer.

Southern Cross Travel Insurance has released a list of its ten largest insurance claims in 2014 today, all of which were medical.

The most expensive was a $400,000 surgery in the United States.

Southern Cross’s Craig Morrison admits other types of claims are small in comparison.

“After medical, the biggest claim we pay for is accidental death – for car accidents…things like that, and that’s a pay out of around $50,000.”

Morrison points out the list shows the importance of travel insurance.

“My experience tells me that the unexpected events indeed happened and it happened in a random nature.”

See Full Story on newstalkzb.co.nz

What you need to know about travel insurance

15 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user fdecomite

An online travel insurance company has taken out this year’s national award for best-value policy, sharing the top spot with Southern Cross.

Travel Insurance Direct were joint winners with Southern Cross in this year’s Canstar travel insurance awards, offering the best policies across both trans-Tasman and international travel.

“Offshore events such as Tropical Cyclone Pam or domestic events such as a family member suddenly falling sick can cancel a holiday altogether. That said, it’s never too late to insure yourself, so if you’re heading away for Easter next week and haven’t yet put travel insurance in place, do it right now.”

TRAPS TO WATCH OUT FOR

Travel insurance was second in New Zealanders’ list of gripes to the Financial Services Ombudsman last year, behind personal loans for car purchases. Here’s what you can do to minimise any problems.

* Pre-existing conditions: these are existing medical conditions that insurers don’t cover. Each insurer will have a different list, so make sure to read the small print. Don’t be tempted not to declare your condition, as it could void the entire policy.

* Look closely at policy definitions to check cover is as comprehensive as thought.

* Age limits – cover can be limited when a trip is cut short by the death or illness of a relative over a certain age (usually 75-80).

* Cover for certain sports – Skiing, snowboarding, scuba-diving, bungy-jumping and motorcycling may not be covered unless discussed with your insurer beforehand.

* Motor vehicle liability – Most insurers don’t cover the renting of a car in another country, so make sure you take out a comprehensive policy from the rental agency.

CASE STUDY 1

C arranged insurance for a trip to Peru between June and September 2013, with P. In June, C made a claim, providing a report from the Peruvian police, which stated C “declares having forgotten and left, inside a black coloured taxi . . . a black coloured HP personal computer”. P declined the claim on the basis that the loss was not a result of a defined peril, in this case theft, and the claim was outside the scope of cover.

C disputed the decision, saying the police report did not correctly record the circumstances. C stated that she did not leave the laptop in the taxi, but that it was stolen. The case manager did not believe C had shown, on the balance of probabilities, that the laptop was stolen. The complaint was not upheld by the Insurance and Savings Ombudsman.

CASE STUDY 2

X arranged travel insurance for his and his wife’s travel to Australia between June and August 2013, with P. While in Australia, X’s wife sought medical treatment for a problem with her left eye.

X telephoned P and advised that his wife required eye surgery. P told X it did not believe the surgery was emergency surgery, given that it was scheduled two weeks later. P said it was considering flying X’s wife back to New Zealand for treatment, and requested confirmation from X’s wife’s doctor in Australia, who said this was fine.

P said X’s wife was fit to fly back to New Zealand and the policy would not cover claims arising from her refusal to return to New Zealand.

X told P his wife would undergo surgery in Australia, and then tried to claim for the surgery when the pair returned to New Zealand. P declined the claim, saying X’s wife had been fit to fly, the surgery was not emergency treatment and the policy did not cover private hospital treatment where publicly funded services were available. The claim was not upheld by the ombudsman.

See Full Story on stuff.co.nz

Things to look before you buy Travel Insurance

13 May 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Moyan Brenn

In today’s times, travelling to a foreign country does not mean packing bags and flying off. Rather, the task has become complex as various arrangements need to be made such as foreign currency or changing one’s telephone plan. The increasing instances of lost luggage, delayed flights and health complications have made the need for travel insurance must for a traveler. One has to get into finer details to know if their selection of travel insurance policy is right or not.

Extent of health coverage – Though all of the travel insurance policies cover for medical emergencies and other related expenditure, but a traveler should look for a policy that has a comprehensive or appropriate coverage to suit one’s medical condition.

Other inclusions – Most of the policies provide compensation for lost baggage and documents and flight delays, but specific inclusions such as covering disabilities or death as a result of accident while traveling are not part of all policies. A traveler should look for such inclusion if he is going on an adventure trip. On the other hand, leisure holidaying will not need such coverage.

Global or specific region coverage – Travel insurance policies are of two types, that is, either they are applicable to travel across the globe or extend coverage to specific regions. In most cases, a global coverage is appropriate but if a traveler is sure of travelling to a certain region then a specific geographical coverage should suffice. Normally, insurance companies charge a higher premium for covering places that are categorized as high-risk. Hence, one should review and compare policies to save paying higher premiums.

Pre-set coverage amount – A travel policy specifies a preset coverage amount that is allowed for each head. For example, a travel policy may specify maximum limit of upto $1000 on flight delay or $100,000 for health emergencies. One should try to get a coverage that will cover the maximum cost.

Time of travel – If travel abroad is a frequent activity then one may consider buying an annual multi-trip policy. But, if it is just one-time affair in a year then a single trip policy will be good enough. Also, one should get a coverage that allows an extension of policy, if in case someone wants to extend the stay.

See Full Story on indiainfoline.com

5 examples of car insurance fraud

29 April 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user GotCredit

Everyone knows car insurance fraud is bad news. But would you know how to spot it? We’ll reveal 5 common schemes to give you a better understanding of fraud in action.

Recap: insurance fraud 101

Car insurance fraud is any deception committed against an insurance company for financial gain. Fraud is illegal in all 50 states, and insurance companies (like ours) do all we can to investigate and expose fraudsters.

5 ways car insurance fraud can happen

1. Vehicle dumping, aka “owner give-up”

This type of car insurance fraud occurs when the owner disposes of the vehicle by leaving it somewhere, burning it, dumping it in a lake, or even selling it, and then claiming it was stolen.

2. False registration

Where you live affects what you pay for car insurance, and this car insurance scam is designed to mislead insurers and avoid higher premiums.

3. Exaggerated repair costs after a car accident

This one is committed by less-than-upstanding repair shops. Let’s say you bring your car to the shop after an accident, and the mechanics use shoddy parts to make the necessary repairs.

4. Faulty airbag replacement

This is another type of car repair scam. It happens when mechanics don’t replace the airbag after an accident. Instead, they stuff the compartment with other objects, such as beer cans (yup, you read that right) or packing peanuts to keep the sensors working.

5. Faulty windshield replacement

Windshield fraud can take unsuspecting drivers by surprise. Usually, someone claiming to be a windshield repair specialist will approach you in a parking lot, trying to convince you that your windshield is damaged and you need a new one ASAP.

See Full Story on esurance.com

Insurance Agency Singapore | Commercial Insurance and Personal Insurance