Why Do I Need Personal Insurance?
While some may choose to believe in crystal balls to foresee the future, most of us never really know what life has in store for us. Life is all about uncertainty and, in an effort to protect your personal belongs, your family and your income, it is crucial to take out adequate personal insurance from a reputable insurance broker or company.
Personal financial management should include short term insurance, and in South Africa there are a number of personal insurance options, including
- Life insurance – in the event of your death, your dependents will be adequately provided for
- Permanent disability insurance – in the event of your being permanently disabled by an accident or illness, you and your family will be taken care of
- Medical insurance – in the event of a medical illness, the insurance will cover all or part of the medical and hospital bills
- Household insurance – in the event of theft, fire, flood or other natural disasters, you will be able to replace or repair loss or damages to your home and contents
- Income protection insurance – in the event of a retrenchment or forced retirement, your income will be protected
The world faces a number of challenges
South Africa, as with the rest of the modern world, faces a number of challenges in this uncertain period where recession and poverty appear to be the watchwords for the next couple of decades.
Business liquidations are on the up, as are retrenchments. Personal savings are at an all time low, while personal debt appears to be suffocating the masses. It literally seems like aeons ago that the world was a bright, positive place where business sentiment was at an all-time high. This rapid change in fortunes is a sterling example of why we should all plan for the lean years and not just the fat ones.
Prepare for the unexpected
Apart from natural illness, motor vehicle accidents and crime claim their fair share of victims and we should be prepared for those possibilities. According to the South African Medical Research Council, HIV/Aids accounts for over a quarter of the deaths in this country. Next up is Ischemic heart disease 6.6%, Stroke 6.5%, Tuberculosis 5.5%, interpersonal violence 5.3% and motor vehicle accidents 3.1% – any of which can affect you and your family at any time, leading to a substantial loss of earnings and an increased outlay on medical bills.
All these things considered, it might well be deemed negligent not to adequately protect your family by taking out sufficient personal insurance.
Does my personal insurance cover a borrowed car?
I asked to borrow my friend's car recently because mine was in the shop. He said his insurance doesn't cover ANY other people, even a one time driver. He said that insurance goes with the car, so my personal insurance was no good. I called my insurance company and they said his insurance is primary and mine would be secondary.
About Author
Chadwicks Risk & Insurance Brokers in South Africa is an independent short term insurance intermediary specialising in risk treatment and insurance solutions.
October 28th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
It will depend from your insurance plan.
You can compare different plans and their rental coverage in internet, for example here – car-insurance.66ghz.com
October 28th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
I work at State Farm and we offer a personal articles policy. All you need is a bill of sale/estimate/appraisal & pictures and it is very inexpensive to insure. I have insured $17,000 diamond rings for $130 a year, so of course it would be cheaper for a couple thousand dollar laptop. It's an all-risk policy so you'll get the money back no matter what happens. And you can have a $0 deductible. You might also want to check and see what your homeowner's insurance covers. it might cover the value of the laptop in your personal property coverage.
October 28th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
I don't think it would. the claim is NOT against your personal insurance so they don't even find out about it probably (how would they?). Now your company that insures the car they provide to you – their rates may go UP. That may not make your boss happy!
October 29th, 2009 at 5:42 am
OK, I filter to US Only questions (not english only) and this came up, so I'm guessing that maybe you're not going to get many UK answers.
Here in the US, and most of the rest of the world, it's true – there are TWO different kinds of liability – personal, and business. "Public" is a misnomer – public can be either personal, or business. Or maybe it's just a UK way to say 'business'.
But, you CANNOT combine the two. The rating basis and coverages are WILDLY divergent. Business liability does NOT include personal liability, but it DOES extend coverage, to some extent, over employees IN THE COURSE OF EMPLOYMENT. With exclusions, of course.
October 29th, 2009 at 9:12 am
homeinsurance.awardspace.us – try this one. Got my home insurance from them. As I know they provide such a service.
October 29th, 2009 at 3:54 pm
You don't say what country you are from. If you are in N. America, then Blue Cross has a really good reputation at reasonable costs.
Good luck.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
You probably know that your condo association purchases insurance on the building and premises. Broadly speaking there are two approaches that condo bylaws take to insure the property.
One approach is the condo association agrees to cover only the exterior and common areas. You are responsible to insure the interior this can include walls, wall coverings, flooring, furnace, appliances, lighting, plumbing fixtures, kitchen and bath cabinets (basically everything inside your condo). In this scenario you are responsible not only for your personal property but also the entire interior of your condo. As an insurance agent I did not like this approach because it is very difficult to determine how much insurance you should have to be able to repair or replace everything in within the walls of your condo.
The other approach, which I always preferred, was more comprehensive where the association agrees to cover the entire unit as it was originally built. In this scenario you only insure your upgrades (i.e. bookcases, upgrades, finished basements. etc.) and your personal property.
You need to carefully review your condo bylaws or have a good insurance agent go over the bylaws with you. If you don't insure the property that you are responsible for you could find yourself woefully under insured and perhaps unable to rebuild your condo.
In addition to insuring the part of the building you are responsible for you need to determine the replacement cost of your personal property within the condo.
Sorry for the long answer but it is a surprisingly complex question.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:46 pm
You may try to google it,here http://www.InsuranceFreeTip.info/insurance-for-free.htm has some direct resource that might be helpful.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:42 pm
Your attorney is a moron, find a better one. Did the insurance company cause the injury to you? Was the insurance company driving the car that hit you, or did they own the property that you slipped and fell on? You sue the driver/owner of the vehicle that hit you or the owner of the property that caused your injuries. The other party, however, can choose to not report the claim to their insurer if they decide they want to pay the expenses themselves.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:07 am
Trying to generate a "book" of customers from scratch is always tougher at the beginning. I've been doing personal insurance sales for about four years now and it gets easier every year. My best referrals come from existing clients, without them your job is already more difficult.
A couple of suggestions for you. First, network, network, network. The more people you speak with, the larger your web becomes. Don't tell people you're selling insurance on the side, they don't want to hear that it's a second thing for you. Tell them you're selling insurance and nobody can service their account as well as you can because you also work closely in the customer service department. Sell yourself.
Think about joining a networking group that meets after five or before nine. BNI is a great one depending on where you are in comparison to where they have active chapters. Also use help from your friends. They don't want to move their insurance, fine. Do they work with anyone who might be interested. If you're too shy to ask for referrals from people you're comfortable with, you'll never make it in a commission sales environment. Do you have a friend that makes websites? Look into putting one up and advertising it on craigslist or with google adwords. Your commissions could cover the cost and then some. Good luck. It gets easier the longer you've been doing it, and the renewal commissions after a few years are nice.
October 30th, 2009 at 8:40 am
Lol. Some cons are so rude and self-centered. We know where they're going when they die!
Anyway, I'm a lib, but I just had to say something about these people on here thinking that it's always a person's choice to become sick or get cancer. Haha let's see what happens to them one day, as it does to millions who do what they can to be healthy.
I sure hope they can take care of themselves entirely without help if/when they get cancer from our poisonous environment and food supply and can't work to afford their $500k medical bills. What then?
October 30th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Try this site, if you want to find the best or the cheapest medical insurance just in one minute,
http://cheap-health-insurance-usa.info/
Here you can get free quotes from different companies in your area, its the best way to find an affordable medicable insurance with a reliable company.
Hope this help,
October 30th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
autoinsurance.undonet.com – try this one. I have their car insurance and, as I know, they can provide such a service.
October 30th, 2009 at 9:33 pm
First of all that is my favorite place on earth. I need to go check out Winn's new resort. Anyway. the following site has a fantastic free comparison quote feature wher you can see side by side quotes from the leading insurance companies. Then you can compare coverages and rates and make an informed decision. Good luck with your business
October 31st, 2009 at 12:07 am
No. This is an administrative/clerical level. The insurance organizations usually will not provide you with malpractice or liability insurance to an administrative/clerical position. The areas that they suggest that you have liability insurance for are health care practitioners such as doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, massage therapists, acupuncturists, chiropractors etc.
I hope that this helps you!
October 31st, 2009 at 12:46 am
Well, $700 is the cheapest way to go.
If you go to an independent agent, he'll put you out to market, and I'd be shocked if you found ANYTHING for under $1500.
October 31st, 2009 at 8:10 am
Typically, when a property transfers ownership and a mortgage is put in place, there are two types of policies issued.
1. Mortgagee Policy (covers the lender's mortgage and insures that it is the first, best lien on the property)
2. Owner's Policy (covers the new owner's interest in the property)
Think of it this way. You carry insurance on your car, in case there is an accident. The insurance pays for damages that may occur to your car in the future.
You (hopefully) will carry homeowner's insurance, which will pay for damages to your house in case of a fire, etc in the future.
Your Owner's Policy of Title Insurance protects you against things that may have happened in the past. You pay a one-time fee that is collected at closing, that insures that no one else holds any interest in your new property (except for the lender on your new mortgage). It is your proof that the chain of title was clear up until the date and time that you deed filed, and no one can claim that they are "owed" something from your home.
Examples:
1. A previous owner died, and one of the heirs did not get their portion of the proceeds from the sale of the property.
2. A previous owner divorced and their spouse did not get their half of the proceeds from the sale of the property.
3. A lien was filed against a prior owner that was never paid off and released.
If, in the future, you decide to refinance or sell the property, a new title search may be done. Chances are that a different examiner will do the search. If they come across something that shows a problem with your title prior to the date/time your deed filed, the owner's policy protects you against that claim. You can file a claim against the underwriter who issues the owner's policy for payment of any losses incurred.
Get an owner's policy, and keep it with your important documents.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Maybe integrity has some thing to do with it.
I didn't grow up in a household where you were dependent on others to provide for you.
If I was hungry, I fixed myself something to eat.
If my clothes were dirty, I washed them.
When I got a car, by law I had to have insurance.
People that feel it's the government's responsibility to change their diaper need to grow up and stop acting like someone owes them something.
November 1st, 2009 at 12:38 am
Yes, insurance follows cars, but it's pretty obvious your 'friend' does NOT want to loan you his car, and is using insurance as an excuse. If yours is in the shop, ask about a loaner. If they don't have one, go rent one.
December 2nd, 2009 at 4:40 pm
sometimes the local chamber of commerce will back a group plan, or there may be an Association of B&B people who back a group plan.