Sunday, August 9, 2009

Condo Insurance - What Does it Include?

As you're shopping for condo insurance, New York insurance carriers will explain their own terms and conditions regarding their coverage options, but below are three important questions you should ask your agent - regardless.

1. What Does My Policy's Liability Coverage Include?

Liability coverage is extremely important because it protects you during serious situations in which someone becomes injured on your property.
Given how expensive medical bills are and how costly it can be to supplement someone's lost income, you can understand why it's important to ask about the specific details of the liability coverage in your policy of condo insurance. New York insurance carriers can fully explain their policies' details to you so you can determine if you're getting enough liability coverage or if you want to purchase more.


2. Is There a Limit for Covering My Valuables?

Most insurance companies place limits on covering your valuables. Take care to find out exactly what your limit is each policy of condo insurance. New York condo insurance carriers can then help you purchase more coverage if the basic limit isn't enough.

3. What Does My Loss of Use Coverage Entail?

For most policies, "loss of use" coverage can help you maintain your standard of living should your condo become damaged or destroyed due to a catastrophe such as fire.

Because you probably don't want to go from living in a luxury four-bedroom, two-bathroom condo in an opulent complex to a modest one-bedroom, one-bathroom condo in an economy-style complex, it pays to find out the details about the loss of use coverage with your condo insurance. New York carriers, again, will be able to explain the details for each of their policies.

Choose the Right Home Insurance For Your Needs

Whether you rent or own your home, however, there are some things about home insurance that will help you to make a more educated decision:

- Renters

Renter's insurance is inexpensive in most states. Depending on the coverage you need, it will likely only cost you about $50 - $70 yearly. The key to getting renter's insurance that you feel good about having is to do your homework. Often, it isn't how low your insurance premiums are, but how good your coverage is. Just because your landlord has insurance on the property in which you live doesn't mean that everything you own and keep in the property are covered, so you need to make sure that in case of a fire, flood or burglary, you are protected against your losses.

Renters should consider how much their possessions are worth. Now, just because your great-grandmother's teapot is irreplaceable to you, you will need to consider how many dollars would it cost you to purchase something similar. Add it all up, even your dishes and clothing. If there were a fire, how much money would it cost to replace everything that you lost? This is the amount of coverage you will need.

Take pictures and list anything that is significantly expensive. Your insurance company will give you guidelines, but this is a very important step because it will help make all your claims go smoother. This is the time to consider expensive items valued at more than $10,000. Many home insurance companies suggest that you take out a rider on your current home insurance policy to cover very expensive items.

When you're shopping for renter's insurance, remember that many insurance companies offer multiple policy discounts. If you are happy with your auto and life insurance, consider getting your renter's insurance through the same company. Chances are, you will get a great discount.

- Homeowner's

When you buy a home, your lender will require that you have insurance on the property. Your lender will require that the home be insured for at least as much as you owe on it and it will have to cover the structure and contents.

Insure yourself against getting sued if someone gets hurt on your property. Liability is included in homeowner's insurance. Many insurance agents recommend that you insure your possessions for about as much as the value of your home, with very expensive items covered on a rider.

When you're shopping for homeowner's insurance, it will probably be paid out of your escrow, so it's likely that your mortgage payment will be affected. Depending on the cost of your home, your insurance can sometimes be more or less than you anticipated. It's important to choose an insurance company who has a good claims record. Raising your deductible will likely lower the yearly cost of your home insurance.

Seek Appropriate Advice From Injury Claims Solicitors!

In the eventuality of an accident, you must take advice from an accident claims solicitor. They can help you get the required information on making a claim. As a layman, you may not be aware of all the procedures to make a claim. Hence, seeking help from solicitors can prove to be useful. The solicitors will provide required guidance to make a claim. They will also brief you on the necessary steps to be taken to make a claim.

They will simplify things for you and help get compensation quickly. You need not worry about how to proceed with the claims case. The solicitors are always ready to help you with the procedure. If there are any complexities or technicalities involved, they will help you with it. You can also look online to make a claim.

If you look online, you can also get free advice on making a claim. From within the comfort of your house, you can get the required details. You need not worry about where to look for information. You can get free consultation from a team of accident claims solicitors.

The solicitors have abundant experience in handling claims cases. They have successfully handled various claims cases. You can benefit from their expert advice. The legal team will investigate your claims case and offer a suitable solution. They can arrive at the best possible solution for you. No matter how complex is the claims case, you can get compensation in a short period of time.

It is very important to seek help from accident claims specialists. The solicitors will investigate your case and provide a suitable solution. The solicitors can provide you with free advice on making a claim. Looking online is the best thing that you can do. This is not only simple but also a free procedure. If you have suffered an injury due to faulty equipment, you can make a claim.

It is not difficult to make a claim for the injuries that arise from defective machinery. All you need to do is prove that injuries have occurred due to the fault of someone. However, you must have sufficient proof to prove that the injury has resulted due to the fault of someone. There are various provisions under the law that can offer you a suitable solution.

Basically, "work equipment" is defined as any kind of machinery, appliance, apparatus, tool or installation that is used at work. "Use" in relation to work equipment means 'any activity involving work equipment. It also includes starting, stopping, programming, setting, transporting, repairing, modifying, maintaining, servicing and cleaning'. Hence, if you find yourself in a position wherein, you have suffered an injury due to faulty equipment, you can make a claim.

How Not to Buy Laptop Insurance

It seems that these days, technology just keeps getting smaller and smaller. Just fifteen years ago, mobile phones were the size of bricks, but heavier, and are now practically the width of playing cards and featherlight. Televisions are no longer pieces of furniture - they've morphed into slim, sleek accessories that can lay flat against a wall and have DVD capacity built right in. MP3 players allow us to tuck thousands of CDs worth of music into our hip pockets. All around the globe, technology is rapidly shrinking, becoming at once more accessible, more manageable and more portable.

An inevitable consequence of all this convenience, however, is that the possibility for damage to technology increases directly in relation to its portability. An iPod being carried around in one's pocket day after day, for example, is much more likely to be dropped, rained on or stolen than a stereo system resting safely back home. A modern, diminutive mobile phone is more easily mislaid than the gargantuan devices of yesteryear. And then there is the most valuable of all these shrinking gadgets - and, perhaps, the most valuable - the laptop computer.

The home computer, for many consumers, represents the third largest material investment in life (following housing and car). It has become more a necessity than a luxury in today's day and age, something indispensable for work and play. And now, as technology continues to shrink, more and more of those in the market for home computers are electing to purchase laptop computers. Though a laptop does offer increased convenience over more traditional desktop models, it also presents the consumer with greater risk. And because a laptop computer embodies not only a substantial financial investment, but also (due to the great amount of personal data stored on most machines) a hefty emotional one, the loss of a laptop can be a particularly crushing blow.

Even more than other pieces of technology, then, it is very important to insure one's laptop computer. You should NOT, under any circumstances, travel with this very valuable device without protection. The BBC reports that muggings in London have risen 40% over the last year, and that many of these incidents involved the thefts of laptops or other portable electronic devices. These statistics, coupled with the potential for loss or damage inherent in the possession of a laptop computer, should serve to motivate you to go out and get your valuables insured.

Now, it is important to note that laptops and other portable electronic devices, because of the very high risk they present, are generally NOT covered by house or homeowner's insurance. It is possible to expand one's coverage to include a laptop computer, but the policy add-on is often quite expensive. Unless you are planning on losing two to three laptops a year, expanding your house or homeowner's insurance to cover your computer is generally NOT a good idea.

Luckily, there are other options for protecting your laptop computer. There are insurance agencies that specialize in portable electronic devices including laptop insurance. Their specialization ensures that their premiums reflect an accurate amount of risk - not an inflated number generated by some larger agency's spreadsheet.

This article is titled "How Not to Buy Laptop Insurance." What should you NOT do? Don't go uninsured. Don't expand your homeowner's insurance to cover your laptop. What should you absolutely do? Get insured by an electronics specialist. You'll be glad you did!
Emily Frost has worked in the insurance industry for over ten years and has a background in technology, having a master's degree in electronic engineering. She is an expert on
gadget insurance and works for a leading company in the industry.

Arranging a More Comprehensive Insurance For Your Residential Property

When you bought a residential property, the financing bank will require you to insure the building at least with a basic Fire Insurance policy to protect the bank interest as well as you the owner's interest. Fire use to pose the highest treats for property insurance as every year, billions of dollars has been lost due to fire damage. However, in recent years, due to climatic changes which caused the occurrence of many naturally disasters in many parts of the world and destroyed billions worth of properties and death of many lives, people are more conscious on many others perils or risks that can damage or destroy that property other than fire.

A basic fire insurance policy will not compensate the owner in the event of any damages done due to the perils other than fire, so in order to protect your property again all these natural and man made disasters. You need to arrange a more comprehensive insurance policy to properly protect your property again all these risks. There are insurance companies which package many of their perils with fire policy to provide their policy holder a wider and more comprehensive cover and protect than just fire damage. Some of the perils include;

Earthquake and Volcanic eruption

Windstorm damage

Flood

Water Damage due to bursting of domestic water tank, apparatus and pipe

Riot, strike and civil commotion

Malicious damage

Impact damage by vehicle

Aerial damage

House breaking and theft

Bush and forest fire, etc etc
These comprehensive indemnify you on your losses cause by these insured perils and not necessarily related with or caused by fire. If your property is situated in an area that prone to such occurrence, you might w ant to consider arranging such a comprehensive cover to give you piece of mind. Again, always buy your insurance from a reliable and qualified insurance consultant and if in doubt, check with the authority concerns.


SK Wong, A Chartered Marketer of The Chartered Institute of Marketing UK; graduated with an MBA in Finance. He is also a Certified NLP Sales Trainer and a Certified Member Trainer of Junior Chamber International. Currently SK is working as Manager in a Risk Management & Insurance company. He is in charge of Business Development, Operation and Management of his unit. SK has conducted many training for his teams of Financial and Insurance Consultants on Motivation, Goal setting, Leadership Development, Marketing & Sales and Management Effectiveness apart from product knowledge training.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Boat Liability Insurance

A long and remembering ride on your newly bought, stylish and trendy boat - sounds great! But before that you have to get your boat insured. You may wonder why? Well the description of this article already states the idea behind getting your boats insured but I would like to explain it a bit further by giving an example to you.

Now suppose, you want to experience an unforgettable trip to the beach near by your house and for that you wish to have your own boat. You don't have enough money to buy the boat; you started saving some money for this purpose and cut down your expenditures to the maximum level. After few months' savings, at last you saved enough money to buy your own boat. You went to the best shop in your area and bought the trendiest and up-to-the-minute boat to fulfill the wish you longed for.

You want your dream come true and you were so hasty that you didn't bother to get your boat insured just because you, yourself not convinced that it is a right thing to do. You went for a ride, on the way coming back, weather started changing and suddenly wind becomes out of control. The splashes of waves were so high that it causes damage to your brand new boat. You somehow managed to come back safely with your boat but your boat needs a repair.

Now, it is the time when you realize the importance of an insured boat. If you have get your boat insured then repairing the boat and its expenditures may not be a big deal for you but as you haven't insured your boat, therefore, you have to pay these extra expenditure for yourself. I hope you now have got the answer of your WHY.

If you are convinced that yes, getting our boats insured is a good thing then your next step is to find the best insurance company around you. Finding the best boat liability insurance company in your town is also a hard nut to crack. But you don't worry as I'll crack this nut for you in this article.

How to find the best Boat Liability Insurance Company?

Finding a boat liability insurance company is the most important step as it is the first step towards getting your boat insured. If the company is good then you don't have to worry about different terms & conditions regarding premiums and all. As a good company keeps its promise and is responsible in its every act.

First of all search the company with the most reliable source i.e. the Internet. Then find out if there are some advertisements given in the newspapers. And last but not the least, consult with the people around you who already possessed insured vehicles.

Once, you find the company then do try to meet their owners personally and discuss their terms and conditions in detail so that you should not miss anything important. If you are completely satisfied with all the conditions regarding your premiums and installments then sign the contract and get your boat insured. Conclusion!

All what I can conclude here is "Have Fun but Be Safe in Every Way!"
Yes, you need to take proper decisions on time, before it is too late. Get you boats insured and enjoy your trips to the beaches. Get all the splashes of fun, make this moment really memorable but always think from each angle to be on the safe side.


Hope you find this article informative and it had answered the "WHY" you had in your mind before reading this. Therefore, before setting up for anything, get your boat insured right after you buy it. That's it!

Why Windsurfers Need Insurance

Windsurfing insurance or sailboard insurance as it is sometimes called, can be a fairly low cost expense. Most insurance companies will offer cover for your windsurf board on coastal and inland waters. They will cover you during travelling to and from the water and also if you store your board in a secure locked area.

Standard practise is to provide cover for accidental loss or damage, fire and theft. Your policy should include Public Liability insurance, as this is often a requirement before you are allowed on many inland waterways.

Windsurfing on a lake or loch in the UK is now carefully monitored and some offical will no doubt ask you if you have Public Liability insurance at least. Why? Well if you cause damage to other craft or people they will want compensation for the damage you have caused. So insurance is not only sensible to have but also a requirement.

Your policy should also have Personal Accident as well as Personal belongings cover. Some policies offer Hire of Replacement equipment as well as Salvage charges being covered, in case you lose your gear. Remember your windsurfing equipment is costly and replacement prices are increasing all the time, so it is essential that you have insurance in place to cover this gear!
Using a sailboard in high winds is exciting. It is also extremely hard on all your equipment and the unexpected breakage or loss can occur, which will need to be bought out of your pocket. Unless you have the necessary windsurfing insurance in place!

One Little Known Way to Save on Flood Insurance! Bet You'll Never Guess

A vast number of flood insurance policyholders are unaware of the discount Community Rating System (CRS) offered through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) by FEMA; specifically, created to give participating communities direct discounts on policyholder's premiums.

One designation of the FEMA created CRS was to be used as an incentive program for communities around the nation to participate with the NFIP in order to take a more proactive stance against potential flooding within certain flood zones, as well as, an over all aggressive approach to floodplain management.

There are full compliance eligibility requirements for communities to be accepted and verified as a participant and which are regulated by FEMA.

The CRS is based upon a credit and classification system. There are 10 different classifications and every community starts with a Class 10 rating. From there, the community begins to gain credit points based on 18 different activities.

These 18 activities are divided into four main categories: Public Information, Mapping and Regulation, Flood Damage Reduction, and Flood Preparedness. FEMA sets the CRS classification based upon the credit points of each community.

This classification determines the premium discounts policyholders are entitled to. The premium discounts which should be applied to every policyholder's premiums range from 5 percent to 45 percent as recognition of the proactive floodplain management.

Hint: Over 80% of all property owners overpay for Flood Insurance!

During this economic crisis, which everyone is experiencing a budget crunch; it would be prudent of each flood insurance policyholder to request from their local agent a detail analysis of their premium calculation. Once received, the policyholder can inform their agent about the FEMA mandated discount structure and request a discount.

This is just one avenue to investigate to make sure that you the consumers are getting the best from the NFIP.

The 4 Simple Steps to follow to save on your insurance rates:

1. Request from your insurance agent a detail analysis of your premium calculation. Hint: Don't tell your agent why you want it!

2. Once you have your premium calculation in hand inform your agent of the FEMA mandated discount structure and request he/she look up the appropriate FEMA insurance discount so you can compare it to what you are actually paying.

3. Since you now know what you should be paying and if you are paying too much inform your insurance carrier (agent) and request the premium be lowered.

4. BIG HINT: You can also request a refund from your insurance carrier for overpayment.
You too can reduce your flood insurance costs, just take the time to follow these simple steps and enjoy!


Bet you never thought it possible to reduce, let alone Eliminate your expensive requirement for Flood Insurance. Did you?

Keep an eye open in upcoming articles as I will be explaining in a 2 part series or more in detail "How to Eliminate Your Flood Insurance Requirement". Just as a little teaser so you will stay up nights waiting for my upcoming lessons on Flood Insurance let me tell you I am batting 100%. That's Right! 100% of the time I have been able to Reduce or Eliminate your insurance requirement.

So...... if you want to Save Big on your Flood Insurance just watch for more "Ways to Save on Your Flood Insurance" and "How to Eliminate your Flood Insurance Requirement".

Flood Damage Restoration

If you want flood damage restoration you can take care of the damage yourself or hire a restoration service to do the work for you. If the flood was a result of some thunderstorm or hurricane your insurance will only pay for it if you have the special flood insurance coverage, which is sold separately from a homeowners insurance policy.

Who pays if the damage is not from a natural occurrence? If this flood was a result of a faulty toilet, for example, you'll likely get a check from your home insurance company. If, for example, you knew that this toilet was faulty in the first place and did nothing about it, the insurance company won't cover you because it considers the damage as negligence on your part.

When cleaning up water, the main thing you have to worry about is mold and mildew growing after all of the water is sucked out. Once you get all the water out you can prevent mold and mildew from growing by drying out your house as much as possible. This would include cranking up the air conditioning, opening up the doors and windows, and using a dehumidifier. If some water got on your drywall, you may very well have to replace this drywall so that it doesn't start growing behind it.

If the flood damage is bad enough, go ahead and hire a restoration company. If you have a mild case of flooding, you can easily clean it up yourself with the help of some buckets, a shop vac, mop, and/or water pump.

How Do I Keep the Funnel Full of Prospects For My Insurance Agency?

How do I keep the funnel full of prospects for my insurance agency?

It's the age old question insurance agents have long been seeking the answer to.

We all know that insurance, financial services, and pretty much all of sales is a numbers game. It's what they teach you in sales training and it's what you read in all the best selling sales books. The more people you talk to, the more prospects you will find to get a quote. Of the number who get a quote, how many of them buy? These are the numbers and the ratios that you need to know. One of the hardest things to do though, is to get people into the sales funnel. How can I keep getting more prospects into the top end of the funnel? Put another way, how do you turn people into prospects more often?

Internet leads have proven to be an effective way for an insurance agent to get more people into the top end of the funnel and ultimately grow their agency. However, most agents forget this one crucial component to really maximizing the return on their investment in the leads. If you are paying for these leads and not following up again at their next renewal, you are missing a golden opportunity!

Let's say that you get one good lead per day, and you close roughly 1 in 6. If your closing ratio is not this high yet, don't worry. At the end of the month you would have written policies on about five new households. You now have 25 leads with policy renewal dates that you can begin marketing to. What happened to the other 25 leads that you didn't write a policy on? The prospect did one of two things. They either went with another company, or they did nothing, but something prompted the prospect to go online to request a quote from another provider. That's when you got the lead. You got in touch with the prospect and they let you give them a quote. Now, lets assume that your quote came in much higher, or they were ineligible with your company because of their claim history. It doesn't really matter. What matters is the fact that these leads are extremely valuable and should not be taken lightly. Too often, these leads are tossed in a folder with the hopes of following up sometime down the road. These were people who gave you all of their personal information. Most companies offer some type of leads management software where it will remind you when it's time to follow up with the prospect. Call them back in six months to try to quote it again.

One of the strongest reservations that agents have with internet leads is that at the same time their office is calling the prospect, so are three or four other insurance agencies. Six months later however, you will probably be the only one calling the prospect. You should have all of the "extremely valuable" quote information from the previous quote. Calling will let you know if the prospect actually switched carriers when you got the lead and possibly what you could have done differently to win the business. Maybe they switched to another company, but the application process was a nightmare or a billing mistake was made. The prospect may be anxious to switch again. If your internet lead follow up program is in place, you will be there to rescue them from their current carrier and grow your agency and your income.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Insurance Marketing - Why Bumper Stickers Work Best

The insurance industry is absolutely brilliant in marketing their products to people, and over the last 5-10 years they have taken a softer approach, and shunned all the fear tactics. Today, we have quaking ducks, talking Geckoes and Cave Men telling us to choose certain insurance companies or to go online to get a free-quote. Obviously, these insurance companies have an endless revenue stream and can afford the very best TV ads and creative geniuses to brand their companies.

Still, what can an insurance agency do locally to insure that they are in the minds of the consumers when it comes time for them to buy insurance? Believe it or not some of the low-tech advertising works the best. That's right, not websites, TV cable ads or some tricky advertising agency scheme, but really simple old style marketing. For instance, bumper stickers work extremely well, sometimes too well. How can a bumper sticker work too well, after all if it brings in customers it's all good right?

Sure, but local advertising agents that give away free insurance stickers at local business trade shows and county fairs find non-clients putting them on their cars. Thus, folks who do not even buy their insurance stick them on their bumpers, and each one of those insurance bumper stickers is worth as much as $200 in advertising, yet costs less than a $1.00 so you can see why it's such a worthy technique.

Creating a bumper sticker can cost as little as $30 for typesetting and about under a $1.00 a piece when you buy 250 or more, and with the economy down we've sure seen a number of discounts out there for this advertising and marketing venue lately. Please consider all this.

Prospecting Success and Life Insurance Leads

Start here if you want more qualified life insurance leads and better prospecting results.
If you want to generate life insurance leads and have better success prospecting for insurance and financial plans, the the learning cycle can be significant, however there are number of steps that can reduce that learning curve.
It takes a very disciplined and hard working person to endure the life insurance sales job. There are many set backs and rejections, but those with the right attitude will attain great financial rewards.
Success in life insurance lead generation and improving your prospecting results requires constant promotion. You can use the old form of direct mail to bring leads into your business. Ensure that the envelope does not look like junk mail. Labels, and bulk mailings are easy to identify as 'junk' and therefore they get thrown out.


Your sales letter should persuade your prospect to either call or ask for more information.
Also, do not bore your prospect with how wonderful your company is. Always write assuming your prospect is thinking, 'What's In It For Me?"


Teleseminars are also a great prospecting and lead generation tool. Teleseminars are very cheap to operate and you can have hundreds of potential clients on the line at one time. Provide some good valuable information and then end with your sales pitch. The goal of the teleseminar is to get prospects to either buy from you or sign up to your mailing list.

Having a website is critical for success when prospecting for life insurance and generating qualified life insurance leads. You need to set up a lead capture form on your website to collect the email address of your prospects. Offer them something of value in return for their email.
Also, once you have their email address, start to send regular follow up emails. But do not use sales messages. Send quality information they can use. This establishes trust, credibility, and positions you as an expert.


A good rule of thumb is to send seven quality emails before asking for an appointment or a sale. For this reason, it's a good idea to have an auto responder series set up so you don't have to do it manually.

Write articles and post them on article directories is a little known lead generation tip. Many website owners will display the article on their website free of charge. This is free advertising for you. Ask local websites to post your articles, or test advertising on these sights.

Create articles and post them to article directories. This well get links into your sight and it will rank your site higher on the search engines. Ensure that the resource box contains the address to your sign up page, so you can capture the email address and follow up with life insurance and financial planning prospects.

Use a referral generation form on your website also. If someone goes to your website, the lead capture form allows them to enter their name and email address as well as the people they know. Again, this is a free form of prospecting but very effective. It's possible to double your life insurance and financial planning leads using this tip.

Create joint venture deals with other people in your industry. Ask them to promote your products and services to their customer list. This can bring you instant sales and create a huge mailing list that can be used for years to come.

Regardless of your current experience in the life insurance industry, the life insurance prospecting ideas above will give you an advantage over your competition and allow you to generate more leads and close more sales.

Individual Vision Insurance

Do you wear glasses or contacts? If so, you probably make periodic visits to the optometrist. Here you will have checkups and make sure your eyes are in good condition. They'll also give you a higher prescription for glasses or contact lenses as necessary. If you deal with this expense, you know that it can add up quickly.

Even if you don't have classes or contacts, that is no reason to skip the eye doctor visits. It's one thing to go less frequently, but it is another to go 10 or 20 years without going to the eye doctor. You shouldn't wait until you can't see well to get your eyes checked. That could cause more damage to your eyes. Also, you could have and I disease and not even know it. Don't take that chance.

In order to help you out with vision care, you may need to get individual vision insurance. First, check with your health insurance provider and see if you can get covered to their or if you already are covered. For example, if you get health insurance from your employer, you need to make sure and see if they cover version. If not, you may need to get separate individual vision insurance.

This will be another expense, but paying for insurance will most likely save you money over time than if you pay for each visit each time. Usually, you can get covered for an annual checkup as well as a certain amount of money towards new glasses or contacts each year. Each plan is different, check with your provider.