Welcome
Welcome to InsuranceSavingsNut.com,™ a site dedicated to providing money saving advice,
tips and ideas on the types of insurance coverage available and how to be frugal,
reduce your insurance budget and save money on all your insurance needs to live more
cheaply. Advice and tips on health insurance, life and disability insurance, homeowners
insurance, automobile insurance and more. Start reducing your insurance costs by
reviewing the tips presented below. For hundreds more tips, advice and savings,
click on the navigation buttons on the left. Tell your friends and family about InsuranceSavingsNut.com
so they can start saving too, and feel free to add a link on your web site.
Health Insurance - If you are required to pay the full cost (or almost full cost)
of the health insurance you receive from your employer, and you are fairly young
and in good health, consider shopping for health insurance on the open market to
see if you can save. The employer’s group health insurance rates are often based
on the average age and average health profile of the entire work force. If you are
young and in good health your cost to buy insurance on the open market may be considerably
less. Just make sure you buy a policy that cannot be canceled if you become ill.
Also take into consideration if opting out of the employer’s plan will preclude you
from getting back into the plan if you so desire at a later date. And finally, when
evaluating your overall cost, take into account the fact that your cost of employer
sponsored healthcare plans is in pre-tax dollars, and that at least some of your
cost of buying an individual healthcare policy may be paid for in after-tax dollars.
Life & Disability Insurance - Life insurance coverage amounts are available as low
as $1,000 to several million dollars. Deciding on the “right” amount of coverage
depends on the cost of coverage, your personal needs and situation, and just why
you need life insurance. Consider the amount of annual income that would be lost,
your current debts and the length of time for which you need to provide financial
security. Your stage of life is important. If you are relatively young, your family
will probably move on with a new life at some time after your passing, and will make
their own way. If you are later in life, you may need to provide for your spouse’s
well being for an extended period if you pass away. In any case, do not become “insurance
poor” by buying excessive coverage. While large amounts of coverage are a great
“investment” if you die young (benefits are paid and premiums stop), for a person
with an average life span, insurance is costly. Remember, assuming you are healthy,
you can always buy additional coverage at a later date if you feel more coverage
is required. But keep in mind that most life insurance companies offer lower rates
per dollar of coverage as the amount of coverage purchased increases. In other words,
the per dollar cost for $250,000 of coverage may be considerably higher than the
per dollar cost of $500,000 of coverage. Make sure you check and take advantage
of these types of price breaks.
Homeowners Insurance - The cost to rebuild your home can be impacted significantly
due to building codes that must be followed when the home is repaired or rebuilt.
If your home was built prior to the enactment of these building codes, the cost
to follow these new building codes when rebuilding will increase the overall cost,
sometimes by as much as 25% or more of the total cost. This increased cost is not
covered under the standard homeowner’s policy. An endorsement is required to cover
any costs incurred because of new building codes in effect. In other words, if your
home is insured for $200,000, and the cost to rebuild the home is $190,000, but $40,000
of this cost is due to new building codes that must be followed, the insurance company
will only pay you $150,000. To protect against this type of shortfall a special
endorsement is required.
Loss or damage to personal property is only covered up to the actual cash value of
the loss. Wear and tear and depreciation are deducted from the value to determine
actual cash value. In other words, if the personal property damaged or lost is not
brand new, the settlement you receive from the insurance company may be less than
it will cost to repair or replace the personal property. To avoid this exposure,
you will need to purchase a “Replacement Cost Coverage” endorsement. With this endorsement,
you will receive the full un-depreciated value of the damage sustained, up to the
limits of your coverage, less any deductible.
Automobile Insurance - Collision coverage pays for damages to your vehicle caused
by a collision or rollover regardless of who caused the accident. It is important
to remember that the cost to repair your vehicle will be covered, less any deductible,
only up to the fair market value of the vehicle. So, if the cost to repair your
vehicle is 80% or more of the fair market value of the vehicle, the insurance company
will usually claim the vehicle for salvage, and pay you the fair market value of
the vehicle, less your deductible, resulting in you having a check and no vehicle.
Comprehensive coverage pays for damage to your vehicle resulting from any accident
other than collision (or rollover), such as theft, fire, vandalism, flooding and
hail. This coverage is also not generally required by regulation. While you may
have a different deductible for comprehensive coverage than you do for collision
coverage, the cost to repair your vehicle (or replace your vehicle) will be handled
as described above under collision coverage.
Rental Car Insurance - Your own auto insurance policy that you carry on your cars
at home may already provide coverage for damage or theft of the rental vehicle, just
like it does for the vehicles you own. Make sure you check with your insurance company
or agent to determine if this is the case. If you are covered, it generally works
like this. If you carry collision coverage on your own vehicles, your rental car
will also be covered for collision damage, but your deductible will apply. If you
have comprehensive coverage, your rental car will also be covered for non-collision
damage and theft, but your deductible will apply.
Travel Insurance - Their are many types of travel insurance available to protect
against unforeseen events and losses that may occur. Travel insurance is generally
available for both domestic and international travel, and for both personal and business
travel. Travel insurance is generally arranged for a specific trip at the time of
booking the trip, but can be purchased on a continuous basis to cover all travel
during the coverage time period. Pricing and terms can be “all over the place” so
be sure to check from various sources before deciding what coverage is right for
you and who to purchase the coverage from. Cost will generally be in the 3%-10% range
as a percentage of the trip’s overall cost.
Miscellaneous Insurances - There are many other types of insurance available for
specific needs. They include: 1) Insurance coverage provided by credit card companies;
2) Private mortgage insurance (PMI); 3) Homeowners warranties; 4) Moving insurance;
5) Flight insurance; 6) Appliance warranties; and 7) Pet insurance.
Thanks for visiting InsuranceSavingsNut.com™ and we hope the ideas and tips for saving
money on all your insurance needs will make life just a little bit better for you
and your family.
