Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Auto Insurance: Be It Cheap Or Expensive

John Maxim is an independant writer who writes for several major publications. His latest project can be seen at Accounting Blog.

Cars are considered as valuable property. People have cars as a necessity but for some it is just a form of expressing luxury or vanity. Whatever the reason is, cars must be protected especially the owners and the people on the streets if any untoward incident.

This is where auto insurance comes in.

In the United States of America, there are varied policies concerning car insurance rates. The most common is that rates vary according to car model. As to date, these are the ten cheapest cars to insure and on the other hand, the ten most expensive to insure.

In this fast-paced world of young professionals and rising businessmen, a reliable means of transportation is an absolute necessity in order to stay on track in the urban rat-race. Years ago, owning a car was considered a luxury or status symbol, but now, given the rapid rate of technological developments it has become as essential and basic as eating and sleeping.

THE five CHEAPEST:

Chrysler Town and Country

The Chrysler Town and Country is a minivan marketed by DaimlerChrysler. The Town and Country was introduced in 1990, while its sister vehicles, the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager, had already been in production since the 1984 model year. Chrysler's success.

Chevrolet Cobalt

The Chevrolet Cobalt is a compact car introduced by Chevrolet in 2004 for the 2005 model year. The Cobalt is intended to compete with Japanese cars like the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla.

Dodge Caravan

The Dodge Caravan and Dodge Grand Caravan are minivans manufactured by DaimlerChrysler (they were sold by the Chrysler Corporation until 1998). They were introduced in 1983 for the 1984 model year along with sister model the Plymouth Voyager.

Chevrolet Impala

Chevrolet's chief engineer in the late 1950s, defined the Impala as a "prestige car within the reach of the average American citizen." At its peak sales volume in 1965, the Impala was the best selling full-size car in the United States.

Chevrolet Silverado C/K Pickup

The Chevrolet Silverado from Chevrolet and its GMC counterpart, the GMC Sierra, are the latest line of full-size pickup trucks from General Motors.
As of 2006, the Silverado pickup is the second-best selling vehicle in the United States, behind the Ford F-150 pickup.

These are just five among twenty cheapest cars to insure. For one not to spend bunch of money just for insurance rates, we let you know what cars do not require too much. In this modern time, it pays to have the best car but setting priorities will still be considered.

TOP TEN EXPENSIVE CARS TO INSURE:

Honda Civic
Chevrolet Cavalier
Nissan Altima
Ford Focus
GMC Sierra
Ford F-Series Pickup
Chevrolet Silverado
Dodge Ram
Toyota Camry
Honda Accord

OTHER CHEAP TO INSURE CARS:

Land Rover Range Rover
Porsche Cayenne
G-Class Mercedes-Benz
Lexus LX 470
Cadillac Escalade
Cadillac SRX
BMW X5

Auto Insurance - How to Keep The Premium Down

Auto Insurance - Don't Pay Too Much

All Auto insurance premiums and costs are based on statistics. These statistics involve analyzing accident rates and theft rates for the different makes and models of automobiles, under differing circumstances. It is for this reason that auto insurance is significantly more expensive for teenagers than it is for adults. But there are many factors that determine the cost of your auto insurance premium.

Lets take a look at the main contributing factors.

A. Deductible. Having a low or zero deductible on your auto insurance will significantly increase the cost of the policy. This is of course a tradeoff, because you are gambling on the fact that you won't need to make a claim. You can pay up to 10% less on your annual premiums buy increasing the deductible. But a word of warning, if the time arrives to make a claim then you will be digging deeper into your pockets to pay for the larger deductible.

B. Crime Rate . If you are living in an area that statistically has high theft rates for your make and model of vehicle, then you will pay a higher premium. This is because your car has a much higher liklihood of being stolen, vandalized, or involved in an accident. There is not much you can do about this, you shouldn't move location just to cut your auto insurance costs. Don't make the mistake of asking one of your family who live in the rural if you can use their address for your auto insurance. If the insurance company discovers this, you may be in trouble when its time to make a claim.

C. Garage Parking. The majority of auto insurance companies will give you to a slight premium reduction because cars parked in a garage are less likely to be stolen, vandalized, or damaged.

D. Mileage. Some companies have a low milage discount if you drive less than a certain number of miles in a year. This is often difficult to become eligible for because you will need to limit your driving in order to qualify.

E. Anti-theft Alarms Most auto insurance companies offer policy discounts if your car is equipped with a safety device or antitheft device

F. Shop around to find the cheapest auto insurance available. Get a quote from every reputable auto insurance company in your town or city. Most reputable insurance companies are on the internet and its easy to get online quotes.

F. Insurance Consolidation. Most insurance companies will give you significant discounts if you have all your insurance policies with the same company.

G. Driving Courses. Most companies are now reducing the policy for people who take a driver education course. This mainly applies to new drivers. Insurance companies like to know that you are driver educated and therefore statistically have less liklihood of an accident.

H. Being Smart Helps. Many car insurance companies are now offering discounts for higher than average grade students.

7. No Claim Bonus. Most insurance companies will reduce the premium every year if you don't make a claim. Every year your premium will reduce if you do not have an accident.

8. Sports Cars Pay The Price. If you have a high performace sports car then you better dig deep. Sports cars and up market luxurious cars are the most expense to insure. Many times the cost can be double or more than a standard family car.

So finally, to save on your auto insurance premium costs its a matter of keeping the above factors at a level that are in your favor.

Insurance Guide

The U.S. insurance industry, which is made up of property/casualty and life/health companies and agents, brokers and service personnel for all sectors, employed 2.3 million people in 2004.

There were 3,330 property/casualty insurance companies in the United States in 2002. Many of these companies were part of larger entities.

Insurance premiums (property/casualty and life/health) worldwide totaled $2.9 trillion in 2003. In the U.S. alone, insurance premiums totaled $1,055.5 billion in 2003, up 4.9 percent from $1,006.0 billion in 2002. Premiums in the property/casualty sector totaled $574.6 billion (including state funds), while life/health premiums totaled $480.9 billion.

The transaction value of insurance-related mergers and acquisitions totaled $58.5 billion in 2003, up from $9.7 billion in 2002. The property/casualty insurance industry's rate of return on a statutory basis was 10.2 percent in 2003, up from 3.3 percent in 2002.

The property/casualty insurance industry had a $30.4 billion after-tax net gain in 2003, up from $9.7 billion dollars in 2002. U.S. catastrophe losses rose from $12.9 billion in 2003 to $27.3 billion in 2004. The total for insured property losses from the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks has been revised and now stands at $18.8 billion. A property/casualty insurer must maintain a certain level of capital and surplus to underwrite risks. This capital is known as "capacity."

When the industry is hit by high losses, such as after the World Trade Center terrorist attack, capacity is diminished. It can be restored by increases in net income, favorable investment returns, reinsuring more risk, and/or raising additional capital.

When there is excess capacity, usually because of a high return on investments, premiums tend to decline as insurers compete for market share. As premiums decline, underwriting losses are likely to grow, reducing capacity and causing insurers to raise rates and tighten conditions and limits.

Over the last 10 years, employment in the insurance industry (all sectors) has averaged 2.1 percent of the total U.S. employment.

In 2004, net income after taxes, at $38.7 billion, was at the highest level since 1998, at $30.8 billion.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Health insurance

Health insurance like other forms of insurance is a form of collectivism by means of which people collectively pool their risk, in this case the risk of incurring medical expenses. It is sometimes used more broadly to include insurance covering disability or long-term nursing or custodial care needs. It may be provided through a government-sponsored social insurance program, or from private insurance companies. It may be purchased on a group basis (e.g., by a firm to cover its employees) or purchased by individual consumers. In each case, the covered groups or individuals pay premiums or taxes to help protect themselves from high or unexpected healthcare expenses. Similar benefits paying for medical expenses may also be provided through social welfare programs funded by the government.

By estimating the overall risk of healthcare expenses, a routine finance structure (such as a monthly premium or annual tax) can be developed, ensuring that money is available to pay for the healthcare benefits specified in the insurance agreement. The benefit is administered by a central organization such as a government agency, private business, or not-for-profit entity.[1]

insurance premium

companies for active coverage. An insuranceinsuranceinsurance premiumpremiumpremium for the same service can vary widely among insuranceinsuranceinsurance providers, which is why experts strongly recommend getting several quotes before committing to an insuranceinsuranceinsurance policy. Insurance agents or brokers will take your basic information and calculate an insuranceinsuranceinsurance premiumpremiumpremium estimate based on your answers and other factors. The lowest quoted price on an insuranceinsuranceinsurance premiumpremiumpremium may be the better bargain, but the level of coverage may also be lower.

save your health

Tips for people with Diabetes

1) Look at total carbohydrate

-not just sugar. Evaluate the grams of total carbohydrate — which includes sugar, complex carbohydrate and fiber — rather than only the grams of sugar. If you zero in on sugar content, you could miss out on nutritious foods naturally high in sugar, such as fruit and milk. And you might overdo foods with no natural or added sugar but plenty of carbohydrate, such as certain cereals and grains.

-Don't miss out on high-fiber foods. Pay special attention to high-fiber foods. Although the grams of sugar and fiber are counted as part of the grams of total carbohydrate, the count can sometimes be misleading. If a food has 5 grams or more fiber in a serving, the American Diabetes Association recommends subtracting the fiber grams from the total grams of carbohydrate for a more accurate estimate of the product's carbohydrate content.

2) Beware of fat-free products

-Per gram, fat has more than twice the calories of carbohydrate or protein. If you're trying to lose weight, fat-free foods might sound like just the ticket. But don't be fooled by "fat-free" food labels.

-Fat-free can still have carbohydrates. Fat-free foods can have more carbohydrates and contain nearly as many calories as the standard version of the same food. The lesson? You guessed it. Compare food labels for fat-free and standard products carefully before you make a decision.

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