Car Insurance

It’s a truism that times have changed, and likewise, insurance has changed, too. The era of purchasing your business insurance from Uncle Harold who lives down the street has passed, if it ever existed, and the World Wide Web is your new hometown. So, is buying Internet insurance so very different from getting it from a local agent with a “brick & mortar” shop? Are there greater security and confidentiality concerns with online business insurance applications? Is “Internet insurance” another term for scam?

The short answer to all of these questions is “no.” Business insurance companies have had to change the way they market their products due to Internet insurance, but the only significant change for you is that it’s now easier to get information and far more convenient to communicate with potential business insurance providers. You still have to fill out forms and you can still ask representatives questions, but now you are able to do these at 3 a.m. while sitting in the comfort of your own home wearing your pajamas.

But don’t be tempted by the relaxing convenience to relax your standards. While purchasing Internet insurance is as safe as working with an “offline” business insurance carrier, no savvy businessman would entrust their livelihood to an insurance company without checking to make sure that company is reputable and sound. Just like when you work with an “offline” company, you must do your homework. You wouldn’t hand over your money to Joe’s Shady Alley Insurance Agency, so why give it to Joe’s Shady Internet Insurance Agency?

Start off by asking: Who are these Internet insurance companies? You’ll find many of the names are familiar. The major business insurance carriers have all gone online, and if you trusted them before, there’s no reason that should change. If the company is not familiar to you, then check it out. Is it licensed to do business in your state? How long has it been in existence? Are there any outstanding complaints or lawsuits? Does it have the financial reserves to back its promises? Are there any existing clients willing to give a testimonial? Essentially, be sure to ask the same questions of an Internet insurance company that you would ask any other company.

However, just because there isn’t cause for greater concern when dealing with online business insurance providers, there are different issues you need to be aware of. Online communications and transactions provide thieves with new ways to steal your information and perhaps your money. While it’s highly unlikely that your information will be hijacked en route by hackers, how much of your information the Internet insurance company keeps in databases connected to the Internet and what kind of security they have is an issue. The safest alternative is if they don’t keep your bank or credit card information at all, deleting that information once they process an online payment and pass that information on to a bank.

However, this may rule out automatic payments and is not the standard industry practice. A high degree of encryption (128 bit) will help preserve the security of your information, but you may also want to determine whether the business insurance firm has a redundant firewall, if their network is monitored by an external security company, and if they test their system with simulated computer-based attacks. If a company takes these sorts of precautions, you can feel as secure doing business with them online as you would if you were handing them a form across a desk.

Buildings insurance premiums could rise drastically after the storms and floods which caused insurers to payout an estimated £2.5 billion in claims. This is causing worry as many homeowners could be forced into rushing out and panic buying their insurance without looking at the small print of the policy.

One of the ways that consumers are conned into thinking that premiums are low is adding on a huge excess, this means that the individual would have to payout a huge sum of money before the insurance policy would kick in. Even worse some have ended up holding a policy that they cannot claim against due to the exclusions and so end up having to fork out thousands to repair the damage done by such as flooding because they never read the small print of their buildings insurance.

The best way to buy your buildings cover is to go with a specialist broker who can search the entire marketplace with some of the top insurance companies. This will get you the cheapest premiums for the cover and along with this the key facts of the individual policies. It is essential that you read these and compare them along with the premiums; the small print is where you can find the terms and conditions of the policy and this will tell you what is and is not covered in your policy.

Many people take out a policy believing that they are covered for everything including storm damage but the very basic policy often provides inadequate cover. You simply have to go over the small print with a fine tooth-comb and if unsure get the advice of a specialist before signing on the dotted line for the cover.

Taking buildings insurance from a direct insurance website is often the worst way of taking out the cover as this is where many people are blinded by very low premiums while very little information is given about what is included in the cover. Buildings insurance should be tailored to the individual and there is no one policy suitable for all circumstances, the cover you need will depend on your circumstances such as if your property is in a flood area of situated next to a river. If this was the case then obviously you expect to pay a little more for your buildings insurance to cover against flood damage and so off the shelf cover would not be suitable.

Buying on an advised basis such as with a specialist broker you are able to give them your circumstances by answering a series of questions which will then allow you to get the cover they need along with the key facts of the policy so you are able to go over them. A specialist will be able to search with the top lenders to get you the best deals and cheapest premiums based on your circumstances so that you can be sure you have the cover you need if the worst should happen and you would have to make a claim.

Insurance is something a company buys with the hope that they will never have to use it. Of course when they do have a claim, they expect the process to go smoothly. The expectation is that legitimate claims get paid, and bogus claims don’t. The majority of claims are handled without incident; but, unfortunately, we don’t hear a lot about those claims. It’s the difficult claims that get all the press because those are the claims that create the most sensationalism.

The focus of this article will be on the claim’s process, specifically, workers compensation, general liability, auto and property claims. In the interest of brevity, I’ll only elaborate on workers compensation and automobile claims. It is important to note that no two claims are exactly alike, and that each and every claim has its own set of circumstances.

The claims adjuster is the central figure in any claim. Simply stated, their job is to apply the applicable policy provisions and to make sure the claim is handled promptly and without prejudice. Claims departments are a highly specialized business unit of every insurance company. Auto claims are handled by auto adjusters, workers compensation claims are handled by workers compensation adjusters, etc.

Let’s run through a workers compensation claim. First, the insured calls in the claim and the adjuster takes all of the information. Second, the adjuster contacts the injured employee to get his/her story (on tape), and they corroborate their story with any witnesses to the accident. Thirdly, if needed, the adjuster will contact the medical provider to get an idea on the extent of injuries. Next, the adjuster will coordinate care and act as a liaison between the injured employee and the insured. Lastly, if it appears that the claim is questionable, they will do everything in their power to fight the claim. Usually, by this stage, the injured employee has hired an attorney.

In an automobile claim, you could have four different people handling the claim. Depending on the damage/injuries, you could have a front line adjuster, an appraiser, a PIP adjuster and a bodily injury adjuster. It’s the front line adjusters’ job to act as the quarterback and to coordinate the claim with all of the other adjusters. The adjusters and appraisers are highly trained in their specific area of expertise. I only mention this because, as we know, there are people out there who put in fraudulent claims. Trust me, if the claims looks as though it’s fraudulent, they will know, and the repercussions are severe.

When it comes to claims, speed is of the essence. The quicker the insurer gets the claim, the better the claim will be handled. Insurance companies want to be the first to contact the injured party (or parties). I always recommend that the insured report all claims, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. The insured isn’t the one to make the determination as to whether the claim is legitimate or not, the insurer is. It’s important to note the policy provisions when a claim occurs. Ideally, you would have read the policy before a loss occurs, but I know that’s not always the case. Among other things, it states: “Give us prompt notice of the loss or damage.” So, not only is it wise to report claims promptly, it’s a condition in your policy to do so.

In addition to prompt reporting of claims, you must “take all reasonable steps to protect the covered property from further damage, and keep a record of your expenses necessary to protect the covered property.” For instance, if a tree falls on your building and exposes your personal property to the elements, the insurer expects you to minimize further damage by any means possible. This could include moving your property to another location, or having the building damage temporarily fixed to prevent further damage until the adjuster can make a determination of damages.

It is the adjuster’s job to set the reserve. A reserve is the probable ultimate exposure. In other words, it’s the amount the carrier expects to pay for the claim. The better the information they get, the more accurate the reserve. Reserves do change from time to time that is why it’s imperative to pay close attention to your loss runs. For the difficult claims, your agent should be scheduling claims reviews with you and the adjuster. This gives you the opportunity to question how the claim is being handled and have the adjuster justify the reserve.

Hopefully you’ve done your best to prevent claims from happening, but we know they do occur. It’s what you do when a claim occurs that determines the final payout. It all starts with reporting all claims in a timely manner. A good agent, and insurance company, will guide you through the process, and do all they can to make sure the process goes smoothly. If they can’t, find someone who can.

The traditional role of the insurance company loss control rep is that he/she is the “eyes and ears” of the underwriter. To some extent this is still true; however, he/she has taken on an even more expanded role. Nowadays, the rep is also responsible for coordinating the various services and/or products available to insureds. Keep in mind, not all services are provided to all clients; just like anything else, the bigger you are, the more you get.

During our last hard market (2001-2003), loss control truly was the “eyes and ears” of the underwriter. The rep would visit with an insured or prospect, assess the exposures and controls, and write a report. If the rep told you that you needed a central station fire alarm, he meant for you to install one; and if you didn’t, well, go find another carrier.

Guess what? The other carrier was going to have the same requirement(s). The carriers held all of the cards. They knew you didn’t have any alternative other than to comply with their recommendations. Don’t get me wrong, all in all, the recommendations were warranted; it’s just they wouldn’t be as vigilant about them as they would be during a soft market.

In a soft market, carriers are a lot of times more lenient. Where before they would tell you that you absolutely had to do something, now they have to weigh the significance of the recommendation and decide if it is something they are willing to lose an account over. The insurance company knows the insured can probably find another carrier who won’t be so vigilant. All the gloves are off in a soft market. It’s the insured’s who are in the drivers seat, not the carriers. I don’t want you to think the carriers are willing to overlook important safety hazards or exposures; it’s just that they are willing to work with you even more so on controlling them.

Today, the carriers want to partner with insureds. It has become a two-way street in a lot of respects. Carriers are doing all they can to differentiate themselves in ways other than price. Sure, anyone can give you a low price, but what else do they bring to the table? Loss control has become a way for the carrier to bring “value” to the equation. No longer does the rep just go out and report back to the underwriter with his/her findings. Now, they must also make sure the client knows all of the services available to them.

What we see now is coordination between your agent, the underwriter, the loss control rep and the claims department. In most cases, the rep will still visit with an insured or prospective insured and come up with a list of recommendations; but now, they will be willing to work with you even more on implementation. In addition, the strategy will be communicated to all of the other parties (agent, underwriting, and claims) so that everyone is on the same page and that the recommendations can be implemented and monitored.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention at least a few of the services some carriers provide through loss control. In no particular order, they are:

1. Business continuity planning
2. Legal review of contracts (hold harmless & indemnity clauses)
3. Fleet safety
4. IT data security
5. Property valuations
6. Industrial Hygiene
7. Ergonomics
8. Electrical preventative maintenance
9. Property conservation

The good news is most of these services are free, and for those that aren’t, the carrier is usually willing to defray some of the cost. Not all carriers provide these types of services, so that is why it is very important to find out what loss control services are available prior to making any buying decisions. It really is more than price when deciding between carriers. The same can be said for deciding between agents. What value add do they bring to the picture?

Now that we know the function of loss control, and the services they provide, it’s important to discuss how to prepare for a loss control visit. At the risk of sounding simple, rule number one is to take the rep’s phone call. His/her job is to either take a phone survey or make an appointment for a site visit. Don’t make it difficult. The last thing you want to do is to get off to a bad start by ignoring his/her phone call. Do yourself a favor - take the call!

So you’ve made an appointment with the rep to do a physical inspection, now what? It really depends on what the focus of the visit is. Is he coming to do a property inspection? Is the inspection going to be more focused on liability, and the contractual controls you have in place (if you’re a contractor)? You’ll want to know only because you should have as much information ready for the rep before he/she gets there. There’s nothing worse than when a loss control rep shows up and has to spend time obtaining information that should have been ready prior to the visit.

If the rep is coming out to look at your property, you’ll want to make sure you have the following: sprinkler information - such as design and testing, and a building plot plan. If he is going to be looking at your fleet, do you have a fleet safety program? If you do have one, you should be able to detail how you follow up or manage the program. For instance, what really happens when you have an automobile loss? Do you investigate and follow up on any corrective measures? A fleet safety program is great, but it has to be more than words on paper.

If you’re a contractor, the rep is going to want to see a sampling of contracts used by your GC’s. If you use any subcontractors, they’ll want to see the contracts you use with them. Do they contain the proper risk transfer clauses? Depending on the size of the contractor, they will more than likely want to visit one of your jobsites. If they visit a jobsite, they’ll be looking to see what the safety conditions are at the site and how the foreman is managing the job. Is he documenting everything? If he isn’t, he should be. It would also be helpful to give the rep a list and scope of your ten most recent jobs.

One of the objectives for the rep is to get in front of the decision maker, even if only for ten minutes. The rep wants to get a feel for management, and to see if what the decision maker says correlates to what is actually happening out on the front line. If the owner is afraid of giving the rep access to the front line workers, that would signal that maybe things aren’t the way they were lead to believe. Consistency from top to bottom is important.

I hope I have given you an insight to the function of the loss control rep. It is a very important business unit of the insurance company. It will continue to operate as the “eyes and ears” of the underwriter, but it is much more important than just that. Loss control is beneficial in that you can view them as a consultant that helps you reduce loss.

The popular Business Insurance Policy, known as Business Owners Policy(BOP in USA) provides financial protections to your personal business property, liability risks, structures/buildings, business income, plant & machinery in one package. BOP package policy is ideal for small & mid-sized business. But large companies may need a commercial package policy or a customized policy for meeting their typical risks. BOP covers-

1.Buildings and contents in Standard and Special forms of comprehensive nature.,

2.Loss of incomes/earnings/profits due to business interruptions resulting from fire or other catastrophic nature leading to disruption of operation of business. BOP also covers additional expenses of running the business from a temporary location.

Sometimes it may be a blessing for you, in case of major fire or windstorm(hurricane) or other disasters that causes a wide-spread damages to your business premises and your are forced to shut down your business activities during the repairing period of your premises.So a quick resumption of your business right after the disaster is the prime necessity for you to win out over your competitors.

By ensuring your loss of earnings, you’ll be reimbursed or compensated adequately, based upon your financial records. BOP also covers your over-head costs such as electricity and other day to day expenses during that intervening period.

3.Liability risks for the legal responsibility of your company to harm others.But some of the demerits of BOP is that it does not covers health or disability insurance, workers’ compensation insurance, professional liability insurance, insurance of your automobiles(exclusively for your business purposes).

Flood, Earthquake and Terrorism risks are not generally cover by BOP. But if you need, you can buy flood insurance policy through your same agent or contact the National Flood Insurance Program by visiting my previous post here. Earthquake insurance is very essential in case you are living in an quake-prone area.And you will have to buy terrorism coverage,under TRIA(see my previous post) by paying additional premium.

Now, a lot of queries may crowding in your mind as to why BOP? Well, setting up a business and running it successfully requires a lot of capital, hard-work, dedication, business skills, recruiting a competent managerial team and efficient employees and what not?

But unfortunately all the business ventures won’t survive in the long run and thats the reality. Statistically every 1 in 5 business ventures fail within the first five years of their commencement. So, selecting a right king of insurance for your business establishment is one of the most vital decision you would ever make.

But before jumping at a recommended one,you should evolve a risk inspection and valuation of your entire properties at risk by engaging a competent professional and seek help from a efficient consultant or you may prepare your own.

But adopting the first one,you can manage to save a lot of valuable time, energy etc and this is the most scientific approach in getting the insurance coverages for your business venture and that is more acceptable to your insurance company too. For your best guidance,you may visit here at Small Business Administration.

Business insurance policies are available in different countries with different names and coverages in package form. In U.K. you’ll get business policies like Manufacturers & Wholesaler insurance, Shop insurance.In India, there are package policies like Shopkeepers’ insurance, Fire insurance,Industrial insurance.