Posts Tagged ‘s’
Friday, August 7th, 2009
by Amy Nutt
Car insurance companies are very strict on their insurance packages and most times, they look at your details to be able to award you the necessary insurance. Therefore, it is not uncommon to find car insurance buyers looking for ways to falsify their details in the bid to reduce their premium price and get cheaper auto insurance quotes. In fact, research has shown that in the UK alone, over 10% of all drivers have lied at a point in time about their details or records while in the US, it is estimated at a whopping 27%. Details that are mostly lied about include the age and address of the driver. In some cases, drivers have been known to leave out speeding tickets, drunken driving records and bans on driving they may have received.
Sadly, many drivers seem to think this is the norm and therefore lie about all these when they are applying for an insurance policy. And this is further influenced by the thinking that the companies are mandated to pay and reward them. Most informed drivers know that falsifying your records is seen as fraud while the uninformed drivers think it is ok to lie about their records. The truth is insurance companies are beginning to catch up with this trend and are taking steps against the frequent occurrence of such acts. One of these steps is in the installation of software that will function as a lie detector and will compare all the different data for traces of irregularities. Besides this, insurance companies now have penalties that are meted out on culprits of this act. These include:
1. Cancellation of the Insurance Policy. All culprits will lose their rights to any form of insurance with the company of they are caught. This means that all the monies paid prior to that time will not be retrieved or paid back and the driver will forfeit all attendant benefits.
2. All Claims will be lost and denied. All drivers caught in the act of falsification will be denied all claims. During accidents, most drivers and car owners resort to the insurance company to offer some form of relief. Even if the claims are genuine, the insurance company will desist from making the required payment if it detects false information.
3. Blacklisting in all car insurance companies Depending on the severity of the false information, most insurance companies will willingly blacklist the driver thus making it really hard for him to drive his car.
4. May pay Fines If the driver is found guilty of severe falsification or under the insurance act, he would be required to pay the sum of one hundred thousand dollars and another two hundred thousand dollars if there are other offences discovered. 5. Jail Terms.
In Canada, all offenders could face up to ten years in prison and may be forced to pay a sum greater than five thousand dollars if found guilty. So whatever the case may be, it is in your best interest to tell the truth at all times.
About the Author:
Full service insurance brokerage offers corporate and personal solutions. When looking for the best protection and information on Personal Insurance,
Car insurance in Ajax,
Health Insurance in Ajax, Commercial Insurance, Life Insurance options.
Tags: a, Ajax, b, business, business;finance, c, car, car insurance, f, family, Finance, financial, h, health, health insurance, home, i, insurance, j, l, liability, life, n, o, ontario, s, society
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Sunday, July 19th, 2009
by Ahmad Hassam
It is very important for you as a currency trader to identify and understand a trend in forex because they tend to be vicious and one way. FX trends routinely wipe out speculators like us who commit the trading sin of trend fading.
FX trends start slowly and are usually the result of another action taking place in the global capital markets. A booming stock market like that happened in the Tokyo Stock Exchange some years back may lead to a massive forex trend in its wake as an example.
Similarly, global recessionary fears may force investors to take refuge in save haven currencies like dollar in their flight towards safety. Likewise, anticipating decrease in interest rates will take carry traders to risk aversion.
So you will have to keep one eye on the global macro situation developing to look in which direction smart money is going to flow. Most of the trends in forex markets are fundamentally driven by the direction of smart money flow.
The longer the trend is, the longer the correction and the consolidation will be. In simple words, fundamentally driven trends do not make sudden U-turns.
But mostly when the retail investors realize that a trend has developed, it is always too late for them. Professional traders, institutional investors and hedge fund have long been in the trade and are ready to dump their positions on the retail crowd.
Dont forget the saying: a Newsweek cover is a kiss of death for a trend. Trends are important for a retail trader to understand.
Always remember the saying, trend is your friend. Trading the Trend is one of the popular strategies used by professional traders including hedge funds.
The best strategy is to take a position in the direction of the trend. You can easily identify a trend in currency markets using multiple time frame analysis involving moving averages.
Once you have identified the trend, use Fibonacci retracement levels to enter and exit the position. Always put stop losses. If you successfully make a trade, you can make many pips in a few days.
About the Author:
Mr. Ahmad Hassam is a Harvard University Graduate. He is interested in day trading and swing trading stocks and currencies. Know These
Forex Broker Games. Try Netpicks
Forex Signals Free.
Tags: a, b, business, c, career, Credit, d, debt, e, education, ezine, f, fashion, food, fundraising, h, health, health insurance, hobbies, i, insurance, leasing, loans, n, o, p, personal finance, r, s, sports, t, taxes, travel, v, vehicles
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Saturday, July 18th, 2009
by Ahmad Hassam
When you open a currency trading account, you are told by your forex broker that there are no commissions involved in forex trading. New traders take their brokers word as true. Most think that the cost of trading is minimal.
Forex brokers are also called FCMs (Futures Commission Merchants) sometimes. They make profits through the bid/offer spread they charge their clients for each currency pair. This bid/offer spread is your trading cost and profit for your broker.
Lets take a practical example. Bid/ask spreads are usually overlooked by the individual traders as the price they have to pay for trading. So lets calculate what your cost of trading can be in a year.
Suppose you are a day trader. You trade 5 times a day. Taking away the weekends, when you cant trade, there are 250 trading days.
As a day trader, you open and close your position before the end of the day. That means each position is traded 2 times.
Suppose; your start with a deposit of $50,000. You use a leverage of 4 only, you are being cautious. So this $50,000 deposit will control (50,000) (4) = $200,000.
Your Annual Turnover will be; (5) (250)(2)(200,000)= $500 M. Huge! Now lets calculate how much your broker will make and what your spread cost is. Spread Cost= (Annual Turnover) (spread)/2.
Suppose further, the bid/offer spread charged by the broker is 3 pips. 3 Pips Spread Cost= (500M) (0.0003)/2= $75,000.
Suppose the bid/ask spread offered by the broker is only 2 pips. 2 Pips Spread Cost= (500M) (0.0002)/2= $50,000.
You can see yourself, the cost of trading with a 3 pips spread versus a 2 pips is $25,000. This is 50% of your account equity. You see, a 1 pip difference can result in $25,000 more as trading cost for you.
You will need to make a profit of $75,000 simply to break even with a 3 pips spread. Trading costs are one of the primary reasons most active traders fail in the long run.
About the Author:
Mr. Ahmad Hassam has done Masters from Harvard University. He is interested in day trading and swing trading stocks and currencies. Know These
Forex Broker Games. Learn
Forex Trading.
Tags: a, b, betting, business, c, career, casinos, Credit, d, debt, e, ecommerce, education, f, fashion, g, gambling, h, health, health insurance, i, insurance, leasing, loans, n, o, p, poker, r, s, sport, t, travel, u
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 7th, 2009
by Amy Nutt
Life insurance provides a benefit in the form of it policy amount to protect against the loss that arises from premature death. It is based on the insurable interest, or the potential that a direct financial hardship will occur due to the death of the insured. The insured is the individual whose life the death benefit is based on and upon whom we rate the risk.
The variables or factors used to determine Life Insurance rates are based on the habits of the individual. A risk is the potential for loss or a reduction in value. The loss of life produces a financial hardship for those left behind and can be assigned a value. Loss is the reduction in value that in life insurance can be loss of future earning potential or expenses incurred for funeral, bereavement, readjustment and moving forward.
The extent to which a reduction in value may occur is the loss exposure. This loss exposure is enhanced by perils that are situations, which cause loss, affected by these hazards:
- Physical hazard, which is some physical characteristic in the environment that presents a peril (i.e. a banana peel on the ground in front of where you are walking); – Moral hazard that is based on an individual characteristic such as dishonesty, theft and fraud; and, – Morale hazard, which is blatant disregard for the law such as driving under the influence of alcohol or driving over the posted speed limit.
The extent to which a person manages risk influences their rates. For example, smoking can be considered a morale hazard because we know that cigarette smoking is a major contributor to lung cancer. Knowing this and still engaging in the habit means that the person understands the risk but does not care. Since we also know that cigarette smokers die sooner than non-smokers, smokers pay higher insurance premiums for life insurance than do non-smokers.
Another factor that is considered when rating life insurance is the person’s health. This is a valid risk factor because we know that people who exercise are healthier than those who do not exercise and people who make healthier eating choices live longer than those who eat junk food. These are those morale and physical hazards that are measured by the insurance company and priced, based on the probability of it occurring. The more likely an event occurs, the higher the cost to insure.
Insurance companies are not in the business of paying claims. This statement may seem profound but it is a rational one. It benefits insurers and society as a whole if people live long healthy lives. This helps lowers insurance costs and make it easier to afford. The insurer looks at the rate of death or mortality potential within a classification, such as all 35 year-old males. This is based on the law of large numbers and risk pooling. In order for an insurable risk to be ideal, it must be measurable, produce a financial loss, which is indemnity, be accidental in nature (which is why suicide is excluded), and based on a large group. Lower probabilities occur in larger population groups, such as those ages 25 to 45 and higher probabilities in smaller older populations, age 65 to 85.
About the Author:
Full service insurance brokerage offers corporate and personal solutions. When looking for the best protection and information on Personal Insurance,
Car insurance Ajax,
Health Insurance Ajax, Commercial Insurance, Life Insurance options.
Tags: a, Ajax, b, business, business;finance, c, car, f, family, Finance, financial, h, health, health insurance, home, i, insurance, j, l, liability, life, n, o, s, society
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
by Derrick Johnson
Mutual of Omaha Medicare Supplement Insurance members receive valuable vision care savings through the EyeMed vision plan. The supplemental Medicare plan automatically includes the eye care and eywear savings with the vision plan at no additional cost to the insured.
Vision problems are often corrected with routine eye exams. More serious undiagnosed conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease and high blood sugar are often revealed with comprehensive eye exams. Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company and their clients benefit by reducing more costly future medical problems through early diagnosis.
As we age, our eyes are also at a greater risk for sight-threatening conditions such as cataracts and macular degeneration. Routine comprehensive eye exams can help detect these conditions and many others before the damage is irreversible.
Enjoy unlimited savings with the EyeMed program by simply presenting the Mutual of Omaha Medicare Supplement ID card. The value-added vision plan offers significant savings including:
1. Examination of the eyes for $50
2. 40% off frames up to $140
3. Discounted lenses and other lense options at fixed prices
4. Services and add-ons reduced by 30%
Mutual of Omaha customers can access quality eye care and eyewear with EyeMed. Thousands of providers nationwide provide eye care and eyewear discounts to members. Cutomers of Mutual of Omaha can save on eye exams and eywear at the location of their choice. Many convenient locations are available to fill the eye care prescription.
Lens Crafters, Pearle Vision, Sears Optical, Target Optical, J.C. Penney and many other providers are available for the Mutual of Omaha Medicare supplement policyholders to choose from.
Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company began operations in 1909 and began offering Medicare Supplement Insurance in 1966. Mutual of Omaha closed 2007 in the strongest financial position in its history. Mutual of Omaha has become a market leader in the field of Medicare Supplement Insurance which is also known as Medigap insurance.
Tags: e, f, Finance, h, health, health insurance, health senior, i, insurance, insurance finance, s, senior health, senior news
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Thursday, May 21st, 2009
by Ethan Kalvin
More options are being considered regarding student health insurance. These include additional tax credits and personal health savings accounts which would give students a vehicle for saving money to pay for their own insurance plan. Employees could recieve an annual $5000 tax credit if a proposal is accepted.
There is uncertainty where that proposal will go and how the plan would impact the students. Many parents are able to provide health insurance for their kids by way of the Health Care Tax Credit which is already in place. In addition most larger universities offer a student health insurance plan, it becomes part of the equation to total up health insurance expenses.
Many parents and students have a misconception regarding the health care providers employed by the clinic at the school, that they’re just beginning or have a lack of knowledge. This belief is mistaken, these doctors have a vast experience base from which to pull and are highly qualified to treat many situations. If you’re still not convinced there are private companies who offer a student plan. Assurant and Cardinal Healthcare are just two of these companies to offer plans to students with who are self employed, have good health and good work history.
But the catch is to research and find the best health care plan takes time and most who are self employed lack the time to do this. Especially with studying, tests and classes to attend. Some students would delay seeking health care when they need it due to the focus of going to school. But if there is really a health problem, these students must go to a doctor.
Health insurance people understand the difficulty of locating the proper plan and will assist you to find the correct plan for you. The plan must be a good fit for you as a student and a worker.
About the Author:
Are you looking for
health insurance? Permit the specialists at gohealthinsurance.com to help you find the correct plan for you. They will provide competitive health
insurance quotes from many companies. Click on gohealthinsurance.com today for your plan.
Tags: a, d, disease, e, education, f, family, h, health, health insurance, healthcare, home, i, insurance, insurance quotes, m, medical, n, o, p, physicians, s, student health insurance, students, university clinics
Posted in health insurance | 1 Comment »
Monday, May 18th, 2009
by Terry Stanfield
We do not live in a perfect world and the risk of fraud exists. It may be a fraud through a company offering you products, or it may be fraud through con artists, but the sad truth is it exists. Long-term care insurance is not exempt from the risk of fraud, and there are those out there who will try and benefit off your misfortune and leave you with nothing. One of the important things you can learn from the mistakes of others is how to avoid being a victim of insurance fraud.
Obviously, the first thing anyone should consider when they are thinking of getting long-term care insurance is research. Researching a company is one of the best ways to prevent long-term insurance fraud. When you look at the record of a company, you will be given a clear indication of how they will treat you and your money.
You should look into the financial rating of a company to determine how legit it is, and how stable it is. Standard & Poor determines the strength of insurance companies, as well as giving detailed financial profiles on thousands of insurance companies. You can also look at Fitch Ratings, which give financial strength ratings for many insurance companies.
When you decide on a long-term care insurance policy, make sure you get the policy when you meet with the insurance broker. Do not fall for the line of ‘It is all in the brochure.’ Usually, it is not. You should be able to get the policy, in writing, when you meet with the broker and before you sign it, make sure you read it very carefully, even if you have to take it home to do so.
When you get a policy, you are asked for a month’s premium up front to process the application. If you choose not to accept the policy or you are declined, you should get your money back in full.
You can also talk to friends of yours to find out what insurance company they go through for their own long-term care insurance policies, if they do. However, do not accept their word because they could be victims of long-term insurance fraud and not even know it yet. Just research the company and if you find out something troubling, let them know. Conclusion Long-term care insurance is one of the best things you can do to make sure you are not a financial burden on your family. However, you do not want to give someone your money and find out later that you were a victim of fraud. Then, with all the money you put in, you come up with nothing and that is a horrible situation to be in. Do your research, ask questions, don’t sign anything without reading it and always make clear what you expect up front. If you do this, you should be okay and be able to prevent yourself from becoming a victim of long-term care insurance fraud. You should just ask for help from an insurance representative who specializes in long term care insurance to answer any questions.
Tags: a, baby boomers, e, f, family, Finance, financial, financial planning, h, health, health insurance, i, insurance, l, long term care, long term care insurance, long term insurance fraud, n, r, retirement, s, seniors
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Monday, May 18th, 2009
by Terry Stanfield
What do I look for in a good company? You know that you should buy long term care insurance, but where should you look and which company should you consider? A lot of advisers either sell one company’s policy, or they only sell a few policies a year, or truthfully, they really don’t know. So what do you look for in a good company?
We’ve all heard that any insurance policy is only as good as the company standing behind it, but what does that mean? It means that the company must meet the standards of an excellent and superior rating. In order to achieve a rating like this a company must meet certain requirements. Look for:
Financially sound companies Committed companies with a large client base Claims paying history Length of time selling LTC insurance History of rate increases
They all sort of blend into one another, but let’s look at them in detail:
Financially Sound Companies Check their ratings with the companies that rate the strength of insurance companies. Generally you can get a good flavor of the company’s financial strength by looking at their A.M. Best rating. If you want to back up your findings, you can by looking at Standard & Poor, Moody’s, Fitch, Duff & Phelps or Weiss Research, A.M. Best usually gives a very good overview of the companies strength and the companies don’t have to join the rating service in order to be rated.
Where do I get this? Updates are published monthly, quarterly and annually and can be found in any public library. In addition, you can usually find the ratings on each company’s web site. Do this first and then ask your agent.
Committed Companies With A Large Client Base “The theory of large numbers” works here. The larger the client base the better buffer you have against rate increases. As claims come in the companies need to financially spread these over their client base. If larger claims come in than forecasted then the company has to decide whether to absorb this into its projected cost of business or to pass this along to policy holders in the form of a premium rate increase. Companies who have made a commitment to this line of business normally do not raise premiums. A smaller, uncommitted company may be more inclined to do this.
Where do I get this? The company web site should have their policyholder information readily available. Also the agent representing the company should have their marketing materials, approved by the state where you live, that give policyholder information. In addition, you can get more information from the rating agencies, A.M. Best etc.
Claims Paying History Sometimes a good financial rating may not tell the whole story. Some companies with good ratings have been known to deny or delay paying claims in health insurance. If they use that same practice in other areas, then there is a good chance it will do so for long term care insurance claims. Also, it is important to ask how many claims have been paid since they started selling LTC insurance.
Where do I get this? Call your state insurance department for information on the complaints filed about specific companies. If this isn’t available then sometimes you need to use your own judgment based on size and reputation of the company. A well-known company is less likely to risk bad publicity for this type of action.
Length Of Time Selling LTC Insurance The Company that you choose should have been selling long term care insurance since the early 1990′s. If they haven’t then they probably have not been in the business long enough to have experienced enough claims. Without good claims experience then a company can’t tell if they have set their premium rates correctly. You do not want a company to find out that they set them wrong to begin with and you are the recipient of a “rate adjustment”.
Where do I get this? Once again if you look at the same sources from the above items you will find this information. The state approved company marketing materials will have this information as well as an informed LTC insurance agent. History Of Rate Increases Any company that has ever had a rate increase to its existing clients should not be a company for primary consideration. There are always exceptions to this especially when it comes to health issues and the need for coverage from a company that specializes in these problems.
Where do I get this? You can always contact your state department of insurance and ask them, or ask your agent. However, a sure fire way to do it is to ask your agent for the first page of the long-term care insurance personal worksheet for that particular company. This is a part of their application and will always show their rate increase history.
Finally! Now we know what to look for in a good company. The ideal company will be very large and financially sound. It will have a lot of long term care insurance clients and will have sold these policies since the early 1990′s. In addition it will not have any complaints with your state insurance department concerning the payment of claims. And finally, the ideal company will have a good reputation and will not have ever raised rates to their existing clients in any state.
Tags: a, baby boomers, f, family, Finance, financial, financial planning, h, health, health insurance, i, insurance, l, long term care, long term care insurance, n, o, personal finance, retirement, s, seniors
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Monday, May 18th, 2009
by Terry Stanfield
How does a long term care insurance policy protect Senior Citizens? Lets take a few minutes to look at this. Life is a journey full of surprises! No one knows exactly what the future holds. You worked hard to save and invest wisely for retirement. And, though it’s impossible to predict what lies ahead, we can gain some control of the future by examining our lives and finding solutions that will protect our independence. The reality of life is that, despite everything you do to take care of yourself, your chances of needing long-term care steadily increase over time. The costs that go along with long-term care can exhaust your savings and impact your standard of living along with your independence. Fortunately, there’s a solution. With long term care insurance, you can help ensure that if you ever need long-term care, you’ll be better able to pay for it and help protect your family, your assets and remain in control of your future!
American’s are living longer, leading healthier lives than ever before. We know what is healthy for us and what is not. We have access to medical advances and care that with each passing day we hear about another person celebrating their 100th birthday. Most never expected to live that long. Have you thought about living a long life and the financial and emotional risk associated with long term care? Chances are, you or someone you know has faced the issues involved with caring for a family member. Long Term care is the ongoing care for a chronic, long term illness or disability such as Alzheimer’s, a broken hip or an inability to perform Activities of Daily Living (ADL’s). Long Term care can include home health care, supervised adult day care, assisted living, residential care, respite care and nursing care.
When it comes to long term care, evaluate the impact on yourself and your family. Would you be able to stay at home to care for yourself or would your family care for you at home? How will you pay for it? Families often bear the burden. The majority of long-term care is provided by unpaid family caregivers to seniors living in their own homes or with their families. Discovering the benefits of long-term care insurance will help ensure your financial security and independence.
Reasons to own a Long Term Care Policy:
1. You can have a professional plan and coordinate your care at home. 2. Your family can be a part of your care plan, but they don’t have to be the planners. 3. You will have the money to pay for the care without depleting your nest egg. 4. Your loved ones can carry on with their jobs and own family commitments. 5. Your family will help out of love instead of out of feelings of obligation. 6. You will have the funds to be better able to choose your own facility or stay at home, whichever is more appropriate. 7. You may be able to stay in your own home longer. 8. You may be able to stay with your children without depending on them for all of your care. There will be less strife between family members. One person won’t have the sole responsibility of caring for you.
How does a LTCi policy protect Senior Citizens? by protecting your independence and family’s well-being. Including Long Term Care Insurance (LTCi) in your financial plans is an important step toward making sure the high cost of long-term care doesn’t take your choices away. Work with a Long Term Care Specialist who can answer your questions and help you obtain affordable protection best suited for your needs today!
Tags: a, baby boomers, f, family, Finance, financial, financial planning, h, health, health insurance, i, insurance, l, long term care, long term care insurance, n, o, retirement, s, senior citizens, seniors
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »
Monday, May 18th, 2009
by Neil Gholson
How can long term care insurance Keep Up With Inflation? When purchasing a long term care insurance policy, it is important to have an inflation protection rider included in your policy.
Since many people who purchase policies do not access their benefits for many years, having inflation protection helps keep your policy competitive with the rising cost of care. A 5 percent compound inflation protection rider is recommended for individuals purchasing long term care insurance who are under age 65. A more modest inflation protection option of 5 percent simple interest is recommended for people over age 65. With compound inflation doubling in 14.3 years, a 50 year old who purchases a $150 daily benefit with 5 percent compound inflation protection will have a $300 daily benefit by the time they are 65. The daily benefit will have grown by 5 percent compound each year. With simple inflation doubling in about 20 years, a 65 year old that purchases a policy with a $150 daily benefit and 5 percent simple inflation protection will have a policy that will have grown to $300 by the time they are 85 years of age. The daily benefit will have grown by 5 percent simple each year.
These types of inflation protection are automatic. The daily benefit will automatically increase by 5 percent compound or simple each year and premiums will stay level. We know what the cost of care is today but in 20 or 30 years when an individual is more likely to go on claim, having a policy without inflation protection will not provide enough coverage when it comes to claim time. Although having the inflation protection rider in your policy has been proven to keep your policy competitive, this finding is also due to the shift in care received in nursing homes toward assisted living and home and community based alternatives.
Recent studies have shown that more than 80 percent of the costs of care will be covered by such policies. Other options include a Guaranteed Purchase Option (GPO), or the option to increase coverage. This option differs greatly from an automatic inflation protection rider. Having a GPO is not automatic and your premiums are not level. With a GPO you can choose to increase your benefits periodically for example, every two or three years. A GPO usually gives you the option to increase your benefit by 5%, 10% or 15% of the original amount of your daily benefit. When you do increase your benefit, your premium will increase. The increase in premium is dependent upon the age you are at that time. If you increase your daily benefit regularly then you usually do not have to show evidence of insurability. If you do not regularly increase your benefit, you may not be given the chance again.
Inflation protection can be one of the most important decisions that you can make when purchasing a long-term care insurance policy. With the rising cost of care it is important that your benefits have raised throughout time or you may find years from now your policy is not adequate enough to pay for your care.
Tags: a, baby boomers, f, family, Finance, financial, financial planning, h, health, health insurance, i, insurance, l, long term care, long term care insurance, n, o, retirement, s, seniors
Posted in health insurance | No Comments »