Insurance World

You will most likely need to deal with one or more adjusters who will determine the insurance salvage. Follow these simple tips to make sure you have taken all the necessary steps to collect the correct information and follow the correct procedure.

Do your self a favor and prepare in advance. Know the laws and the reporting requirements of the state you live in and drive in. Always carry an accident package in your car. It should contain paper, pen, and accident reporting form which are available online free from the DMV.

If an accident occurs remain calm and stop your car. If there are injuries do what you can to make the person or persons comfortable. Call the EMT to treat any injured parties and call the police.

If you smell gas or if the car is on fire clear all persons away from the area. Do not move seriously injured people unless it is a threat to their lives to leave them where they are.

If the accident is minor and there is only property damage and no injuries, put your hazard lights on and drive both vehicles to a safe location at the side of the road. Set up flare or reflective triangles in the rear and side of the cars to ensure other motorists are aware of your location.

Both drivers need exchange car insurance information. You also need to exchange the names of the drivers, all passengers in the vehicle, and any witnesses. As well as names you should obtain complete addresses and telephone numbers.

Next you will need to contact your insurance company and if you feel you need to contact a lawyer now is the time to do so.

Your car insurance company will need to collect all pertinent information. They will need the year, make, model, and license plate number of the other car. They will also need the drivers name, address, telephone number, date of birth, and his or her driver’s license number as well as the issuing state.

If the other drive is not insured obtain as much information as you can then notify the police. Both the police and the insurance company will want the full names, addresses, and phone numbers of all witnesses.

If the police attend the accident scene request a business card from the attending officer that gives his full name and how you might reach him.

If you have a digital camera handy take plenty of photos. These days many people have a digital camera built right into their cell phone which is very convenient.

As soon as you are able, write down all details pertaining to the accident. Information such as weather conditions, pavement conditions, visibility and lightening could all become very important in determining who was at fault.

You also need to record the estimated speed of both vehicles. As well do a sketch of the accident scene marking the direction each driver was traveling. Make notes of things such as stop signs, traffic lights, other vehicles on the roadway, and any obstacles.

You should also record all damage to the car and any other property as well as all body injuries no matter how minor they appear.

Whatever you do, do not discuss who is at fault with the other driver. Insurance companies recommend you do not engage in conversation about fault. Give the police officer an account of the accident but in privacy away from the other driver.

Remember no one can force you to give details of the accident or admit blame. You always have the right to consult a lawyer before answering any questions.

Let’s hope you never have to file an insurance claim. But if you are well prepared should an accident occur you will be much more likely to record the necessary information to ensure that your claim proceeds smoothly.

Have you filled in a life assurance application recently? There’s a little box that strikes fear into the heart of the “slightly overweight”. It simply asks you to state your weight. Do you go straight to the scales, undress to the state of nudity and jiggle about on the said scales, trying to pinpoint the lowest mark on the gauge? No, I thought not, you probably take a vague and over optimistic guess, write it in and swiftly move on to the next question. Most of us do it. It’s not really cheating. You know you’re going to lose it soon, before Christmas/holidays/the wedding. If only!

Now, one of Britain’s biggest names in life insurance, namely Scottish Provident, in an effort gain more accuracy in working out the risk factors, has added another innocent little question, i.e. When did you last weigh yourself? Aware of the fact that many people are self conscious about their weight and tend forget the odd few pounds gained since they were last on their “diet to end all diets”, they feel that this should help to give a true picture of their clients potential health risks. It should also be noted that there are some people who will lie in an effort to obtain cheaper premiums.

Scottish Provident are quite rightly concerned that they are being told the truth. The UK government are taking obesity very seriously and it has been announced recently that almost a quarter of us are overweight, and it’s thought by Cancer research UK that around a quarter of these are not interested in losing weight. We are second only to Greece in obesity levels as a nation.

The definition of obesity is based on the British Medical Association’s Body Mass Index (BMI). To work this out, you need to know your height in metres and then multiply by the same figure. Take the result of this and divide by your weight, using kilograms. This gives you your BMI, which can be used to indicate if you are underweight, normal, overweight or obese. It will, however, overestimate fatness in people who are muscular or athletic. These figures are for adults.

BMI categories are

· Underweight = less than 18.5
· Normal weight = 18.5 to 24.9
· Overweight = 25 to 29.9
· Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

In a recent study of 33,000 adults reported in the Lancet, the above figures for normal weight were agreed and there was a suggestion was that only adult patients with a BMI of 35 or above would present a serious lowering of life expectancy.

Most of the life insurance industry has accepted a BMI level of 30, which seems fair and even generous. For anyone with a BMI of over 30 your premium will be loaded and you may even be asked to take a medical examination. This means if you’re overweight you could find your critical illness or life assurance premium could increase by 50% and it seems likely that for some, cover could be refused.

It’s a risky business!