Insurance World

Most of us would agree that we do need some sort of life insurance. While not personally a benefit for us, it can be a great help to our loved ones once we are gone. At the same time, it is important to make sure we not saddle ourselves with a policy that is too expensive or will be of little assistance when the time comes. Here’s some ideas on how to buy cheap life insurance that still fills the bill.

First, evaluate just how much cheap life insurance you really need. To accomplish this, you need to take a good look at your overall financial circumstances. Are you the sole support of your family? What would happen to other loved ones, such as elderly parents, if you were to predecease them? Are there already mechanisms in place elsewhere in your financial portfolio to handle paying off the mortgage, or making sure there are moneys set aside to help your kids with college? A cheap life insurance policy can speak to your particular condition, and prevent you from paying premiums for services or coverage that you really do not need.

Once you have ascertained what you need in a cheap life insurance policy, the next step is to begin gathering data. A time-honored way to being this process is to contact local agents. Be aware that the agent may not be interested in selling you a cheap insurance policy and try to direct you toward a bigger package. Resist the urge to cave in, but use these encounters to broaden your knowledge of what type of cheap life insurance packages are offered by theses local agents and how well they provide service on those policies. The data you compile through these efforts will help you directly as you move on to the next level of investigation.

After getting as much information on cheap life insurance as possible from your local agencies, turn your attention to the Internet. Just about every insurance provider has a website, and many agents as well. By using keyword searches such as “affordable life insurance” or “cheap life insurance”, you can get an idea for which companies offer different policies that can be customized to fit your needs. In addition to the individual sites, there are a number of websites that do comparisons of various policies side by side. These sites are perfect for someone who is looking for cheap life insurance and wants to have the convenience of comparing different offerings side by side.

Looking very closely at the terms of each cheap life insurance package you are considering is very important. Make sure you understand any nuances of the contract regarding time frames for reporting a claim or how long it will take for a claim to process and pay to your loved ones. What documentation is needed to process the claim and will someone such as the beneficiary or a surviving relative be responsible for collecting necessary documents or will a call to the company or an agent get the call rolling? Remember, the whole idea behind cheap life insurance is to make life a little easier for your loved ones in their time of loss, not add more burdens. Make sure the cheap life insurance you purchase will be a blessing, not one more problem to solve.

When choosing a cheap life insurance policy, it is important to remember that you do not have to give up excellent customer support in order to purchase a cheap insurance policy. Part of your evaluation has to include not only the specifics of the policy itself, but also how well the issuing company takes care of its customers. Before you ever settle on and sign any kind of cheap life insurance policy, make sure you investigate the company very closely. Make sure that you look at both your local agents and the internet options for cheap life insurance. How easy is it to speak with someone when you have a question about your coverage? What type of reputation does the company have when it comes to paying up on cheap life insurance policies?

Purchasing reliable and cheap life insurance is easier today than ever. Just be sure to do your homework and your loved ones will be well take care of.

Buildings Insurance went up again last year, costing homeowners another 1% a year, taking the average to just over Ј205 for a year’s insurance. Contents insurance also went up, this time by 2% - now it costs the average homeowner Ј151 a year. However, some lenders are hiking prices even higher than that – Norwich Union for example, raised its prices by a whopping 6% last year.

The question is - why? There’s so much competition out there, you’d expect prices to be falling, not increasing – but there are other forces at work, as we go on to discuss.

No 1 – the cost of having a house repaired or rebuilt

Labour and building materials are getting more costly, so when the insurance company calculates how much it would cost to rebuild your house, prices are higher. This is due to inflation, and the same thing affects the insurance company and its own operating costs. Wages, bills, office rental – all these costs are increasing year on year – so of course insurers have to factor these in.

No 2 – the weather

The British weather is getting more and more tempestuous, whether it’s due to global warming we are not qualified to say, but it’s a fact that we have been experiencing a lot of extreme weather in the past few years. The 1987 hurricane was a freak occurrence, but flash floods such as the incident in Boscastle, Cornwall, Helmsley in North Yorkshire, and Carlisle are making the headlines on a regular basis. The Association of British Insurers has stated that the average insurance claim due to flood damage could be anything from Ј15,000 to Ј30,000, making huge dents into the insurance industry’s profits. In fact, floods cost insurance companies millions every year.

No 3 - Burglary

Claims due to burglary have been going up, now average at around Ј1,400. The 2 main causes are:

• From digital cameras to laptops, game consoles to ipods – our houses are full of electronic gadgets with a high value bought new, and a high value resold. Burglars are after these items and it’s hitting the insurance industry where it hurts – their pocket.

• Burglars pick posh neighbourhoods to ensure they get away with the best items - with expensive items like jewellery for the taking, the value of these kind of claims is increasing.

Insurance companies use statistics relating to a postcode area to calculate premiums for everyone in that area. If your neighbours have suffered subsidence, or your area is near a river which has been known to flood – you will have to pay higher premiums. Similarly, if people in your area have been broken into, then it will be assumed that you are at a higher risk of making a burglary claim too.

Having a no-claims discount is a help when it comes to offsetting the annual rise in premiums, but insurance companies cap these discounts once you have 5 years no claims, so you will not get any further discounts.

So is there any way to avoid the rising cost of home and contents insurance?

The first thing you can do is look around for the best deal. Try the Internet for the best deals, because most insurance companies offer a discount, often 10%, for customers that buy online. You will also save if you pay by direct debit. It’s tempting to accept your current insurer’s renewal quote but don’t be fooled – the small amount of effort it will take to shop around will pay good dividends. One of the reasons for this is because insurers always offer their best deals to new customers, existing customers are virtually penalised for showing loyalty!

Improving your home security is another good way to reduce premiums – while giving you essential peace of mind. Neighbourhood watch schemes, external security lighting, a burglar alarm, security locks on windows, and industry-recognised locks on external doors will make a difference. Obviously these things cost money to install, but they pay for themselves in the long run.

Play the insurance company game and you will always win – shop around, be prepared to move insurance company every year, and don’t accept any high prices. There’s always a better deal out there!