1 Top 5 Best Insurance Companies

When setting financial goals, we often include building a healthy savings fund and starting a lifefree of debt. The more ambitious among us would look for ways to invest and grow their money. For those who are more cautious and would like a safety net in case things do not go as planned, getting insured is a definite must before they can consider themselves financially stable.

Insurance protects you from unexpected expenses and emergencies, but not everyone is comfortable with the idea of applying for one. Some of them even think insurance agents are merely out to get them for a commission.

But not all insurance providers are there to take advantage of you or your money. There are actually some good and reliable insurance companies out there. It is just a matter of finding a provider that could meet your specific needs.

MSN has recently released a list of the best insurance companies based on customer and claims satisfaction, value for money, along with recommendations and renewal rates. The insurance providers that have won the favor of loyal customers so far are as follows:

1. USAA
USAA, which caters exclusively to military men and their families, is an auto and home insurance provider with mainly positive reviews. In the survey conducted by MSN, customers reported a smooth claims process, the availability of various plans and discounts, and good policies with no sudden rate hikes. The company also offers affordable home insurance packages. 

2. Erie Insurance Group

Erie Insurance Group provides attractive auto insurance rates locked in within a year even if you make a claim within the said period. The provider has won the loyalty of long-time customers for reasons such as rates do not increase after your first accident, and deductibles with your plan can be reduced if you register no accidents or moving violations. Their car insurance package even covers pets injured in a car crash

3. Amica Mutual

One of the oldest auto insurance providers in the US, Amica Mutual is backed by a history of delivering outstanding car insurance policies to its customers. Being a mutual insurance company, Amica is owned by policy holders. It offers low auto insurance rates and impressive customer service. It is, in fact, one of the few large insurance companies that consistently get high rankings for customer satisfaction. Aside from auto insurance, Amica Mutual also specializes in homeowners, marine, and personal liability policies. 

4. American General
American General offers comprehensive life insurance packages to provide plan holders with income replacement, mortgage payoffs, or education funds. The insurance provider offers very low premiums to small business owners and large families, with different insurance terms available. Customers reported how their complaints have been addressed promptly and adequately, thus increasing American General’s customer satisfaction scores.

5. Kaiser Permanente
     Kaiser Permanente scored the highest for top health insurance providers. It registered high scores in claims satisfaction and customer renewal score. The company offers a selection of individual and family health insurance plans in ten states. Pricing is relatively higher over other health insurance plans but plans are mostly for the long term.

0 How to Save Money When Buying Your Own Health Insurance?

Health insurance is an important asset – and it’s one that you’ll soon be required to have. However, not everyone has the best health insurance benefits through their employer. The premiums may be too high, or the coverage may be insufficient. Therefore, they may look into buying their own health insurance. Others may be self-employed or unemployed and not have access to employer-sponsored health benefits.

While buying your own health insurance will give you the protection you need in case you become ill or injured, it can also be expensive. Premiums can easily top $1,000 a month, depending on where you live, the size of your family, and your personal health profile. Finding ways to cut back your premiums is important to helping you maintain your budget and your financial health. Here are a few ideas for how you can save money when buying your own health insurance:

Maintain Good Health

The best way to get the lowest health insurance premiums is to maintain good health. When you get a quote for insurance, you will be asked about your weight, your lifestyle habits (such as your exercise, whether you smoke and how much you drink), and any health issues you have experienced. The better your health, the better the rates you will be given. Of course, the better your health, the better your quality of life will be, as well.

Get a Lot of Quotes

There are many insurance providers for you to choose from, and it pays to get quotes from several of them to make sure that you are getting the best rates possible. It’s easy to get rate quotes online. You can fill out your personal details and get an estimated quote, which you can confirm when you follow up with an agent. The more companies you contact, the more competitive the quotes will be. 

It also doesn’t hurt to mention the rate you’ve been quoted from another company. Some companies may be inclined to find more discounts for you to compete.

Check into Discounts for Professional Affiliations

Even if you do not work full-time for a company, you may still be able to join a professional organization. For example, there are many professional groups for freelance writers. By joining these groups, you often get access to perks such as discounted health insurance. These organizations negotiate a group discount, which you can use to save on your quote. 

Choose Higher Deductibles

When you become ill or injured, you will often have to meet a deductible for your medical expenses before your insurance benefits become effective. By choosing a higher deductible, you can lower your premiums. Since routine well visits are automatically covered, you usually would only be paying towards this deductible if you became seriously ill or injured. In many cases, your medical bills will far outweigh the deductible, so you’ll still be saving money.

Of course, you’ll need to make sure you have the savings put aside to pay the deductible if the need arises. Choose an amount that you know you’ll be able to maintain in savings.

Open an HSA

A health-savings account allows you to make contributions tax-free that can be used for your medical expenses. This allows you to bring home more money in your paycheck, effectively creating a “discount” on your medical care. When you open an HSA, you also often qualify for discounts on your premiums. The HSA works a bit like a deductible, helping you to offset medical expenses that are not covered by your insurance.

Buying your own health insurance coverage can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. You can use these tips to help you get the coverage you need at a price that fits your budget.

About the Author:

Bridget Sandorford is a freelance food and culinary writer at www.culinaryschools.org. In her spare time, she enjoys biking, painting and working on her first cookbook.

0 Take Your Pick To Be Insured: Term Life vs. Whole Life

The two life insurance policies are composed of two basic types. The first one is the term life insurance and the second one is the whole life insurance. Both of these life insurance types have both advantages and disadvantages. The choices will depend on your preferences and your needs. However, you will never know the differences and the benefits if you do not have idea as to how they work. 

 

Term Life Insurance

It is important to keep in mind that policies are designed for unique investments. It offers great protection for all holders of the policy as a security and back up from the unexpected insured events take place. These insured events may be an illness or death. Naturally speaking, the benefit of insurance is financial, but the genuine value is definitely psychological in nature as it gives the policy holder a total “peace of mind” if the unexpected insured events arise. This term life insurance policy provides you this “peace of mind” which everyone is looking for. However, from the word “term”, it means that it would not last forever. This will only provide you and will let you enjoy the benefits for a certain period of time. This may be ten, twenty or thirty years. If the insured events happen within a definite time, the holder of the policy, along with the beneficiaries, will be able to receive the benefits from the policy they are expecting. Furthermore, term life policy is only insurance and never an investment policy. Therefore, you cannot collect the cash value every after the term. The policy of the term life insurance has ended with terms that are not being helpful to its policyholder ahead of that.

Whole Life Insurance

Before, the notion of life insurance is on termed basis, but since termed basis only allows taking pleasure from benefits within a specified period of time, new types of policies were made in order to address the requests of policyholders. The new policy is created for the owners to use for longer periods and beyond. Furthermore, it provides more monetary value for policyholders. The insurer spends in moneymaking ventures by making use of the premium which pays above the insurance cost.

Other than making huge investments, the insurer also credits the premium insurance with interest. Because of this, the cash built up from interest and investments are added to the policy. As a result, this doubles the cash value of the policy that equals the benefit of death.

Term Life Versus Whole Life Insurance

In the term life versus whole life insurance, it is important to understand their time durations. The term life insurance only effects within a specific period of time. It does not also provide cash value. The whole of life insurance provides policy investment and protection benefits for the owner and his recipients. This can be considered as an investment policy which insurers can use the fraction of the premiums being paid by the holder of the policy to boost the financial value of the policy.

Knowing both their functions, pros and cons will provide you valid information which will help you choose what’s best for you.

2 Pros and Cons of the Health Care Reform

Health care reform is among the most highly controversial topics in society today. Whether you're satisfied with your health care, hate your health care, or have never given a thought to your health care coverage, the information overload may have prompted you to take a closer look at your health care plan and perhaps ponder what you would change and what you'd hate to have taken away.

Of course, those choices aren't necessarily in your hands, as the recently passed health care reform legislation have etched public preferences - as seen through the eyes of politicians - into law, at least for the time being. Depending on who you talk to, the health care reform laws fall somewhere between the greatest and the worst government actions in recent memory. The reform regulations provide something different for everyone, so the only way to truly assess the value of the reform's effects on you are to research and judge for yourself.

One of the primary complaints of the health care reform legislation is that it is unconstitutional - obviously a pretty big concern. Specifically, critics claim that the individual mandate, a provision requiring uninsured Americans to buy government-approved healthcare, violates the freedoms provided by the Constitution. According to George Mason School of Law professor Ilya Somin, giving the authority to force decisions on individuals could lead to "unlimited congressional power to mandate personal behavior." This would be a troubling trend to promote, as limiting government power over individuals is a cornerstone of the American Constitution.

Another apparent flaw in the health care reform legislation is that despite its claims to reduce the federal deficit, it may actually expand it. One NewYork Times editorial noted that the purported savings were merely "fantasy," because the Congressional Budget Office has to take