Insurance World

Sorry to remind all you died in the wool smokers but November was Lung Cancer Awareness month. But no don’t click away – spare a few moments of your time, please ……..

If hard words on packets wash over you, let me put the financial case to you for quitting. As well as feeling healthier I can offer you a holiday for two on Paradise Island in the Maldives, for two, for every year of your longer life!!

OK, I know you don’t believe me. Let’s explain.

Say the average smoker is 40 and smokes 20 a day. With cigarettes at Ј5 a packet that’s Ј1,800 a year. Then you’ll save loads on the cost of your your life, critical illness and medical insurance. Just how much was highlighted in a recent snapshot study by www.express-life-insurance.co.uk. This found that the average smoker paid 56% more for life insurance than a non-smoker. Therefore, giving up could easily save you Ј50 per month on your various insurance premiums.

So as a non-smoker you could be Ј2,400 per year better off. Wearing a financial hat I can show you that if a 40 year old man put those savings into a personal pension plan with NFU, then at 5% per annum growth, he’ll have a healthy retirement fund of Ј97,860. On retirement that could give an in the pocket tax-free sum of Ј24,465, plus an annual lifetime income of Ј3,830 (or Ј5,100 per year if the tax-free cash was left in the pension).

On the other hand let’s have more fun!

For Ј2,400 you can have a 5 star 10 day holiday for two on Paradise Island in the Maldives. Give up smoking forever and you could afford to go back to Paradise Island every year!

QED – makes you think doesn’t it?

Insurance seems to be a financial strategy often forgotten in our hustle and bustle electronic world. We spend countless hours scouring the shops for the best notebook computer deal, installing the best computer software and churning out quality product. But how often do we believe that our laptop or notebook will be stolen, or that we might suffer data loss. Do you ever think of an insurance company in relation to your laptop notebook or computer.

Over 600,000 laptops were stolen in the USA alone in 2004.

Have I got your attention? Insurance for your laptop now seems worthwhile looking into. There is the standard financial insurance for your notebook which is similar to an itemized entry in your household insurance. Great for desktop computers that go nowhere, but problematic for your laptop or notebook. Portability is the reason we own them. There are many insurance companies that supply insurance for electronic goods and a quote from a company that you find in your internet search would be a good place to start.

Computer theft-recovery software is the latest insurance for your laptop or notebook. You may well get reimbursed for the cost of the computer, but what about those countless hours you have spent on your projects that only live in your laptop because you meant to backup to disk but never quite had enough time. A quick search on the net will highlight theft-recovery software companies that work in several different ways.

Several insurance companies offer a track it back sticker type of system that enables a good samaritan to call an insurance company that will contact you. The philosophy is that you should never personalize your computer with a phone number or address as they may be combined with other personal info in your laptop to do all sorts of underhand things.

Another insurance against data loss or misuse is software similar to what a company like Orbicule might provide. This type of insurance for your notebook is ingenious indeed. When a thief accesses the internet with your stolen laptop, it silently sends screenshots at regular interval to your insurance headquarters. The concept is that ultimately the thief will be entering perhaps some personal information into an email when that screenshot is sent, thereby identifying the thief’s address. If that fails, another type of software will emulate a software failure that ultimately renders the computer useless.

In conclusion, I suggest that you should definitely check out the insurance cover from your household insurance to see what cover you already have. Secondly a call to your electronic insurance broker for a quote would be worthwhile. If you do carry sensitive data, looking at some of the anti theft software available may also prove to be valuable insurance for you notebook computer.