Insurance Quote Pros

HO4-Renter
Created specifically for those who rent the home they live in, this policy protects your possessions and any parts of the apartment that you own, such as new kitchen cabinets you install, against all 16 disasters.

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If you own the home you live in, you have several policies to choose from. The most popular policy is the HO-3, which provides the broadest coverage. Owners of multi-family homes generally purchase an HO-3 with an endorsement to cover the risks associated with having renters live in their homes.

HO-1: Limited coverage policy
This “bare bones” policy covers you against the first 10 disasters. It’s no longer available in most states.

HO-2: Basic policy
A basic policy provides protection against all 16 disasters. There is a version of HO-2 designed for mobile homes.

HO-3: The most popular policy
This “special” policy protects your home from all perils except those specifically excluded. (Click on the link below for a sample HO-3 form; you will need Acrobat which you can download, free of charge, from the Adobe Web site: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/).
 Download/View File: HO-3 Form (160 K)
 
 HO-8: Older home
Designed for older homes, this policy usually reimburses you for damage on an actual cash value basis which means replacement cost less depreciation. Full replacement cost policies may not be available for some older homes.
 
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 Yes. If you are unemployed, self-employed, or decide to return to school you may want to buy an individual health insurance policy.

Here are a number of options that you may consider:

Ask your insurance company if you can convert its group policy to an individual policy. You will pay a higher rate than you did before and your benefits may be limited, but the terms will still probably be better than if you buy your own policy.
If you are married, see if your spouse’s employer will add you to its group plan.
Try to join a group health plan through a trade association or alumni group or professional association may offer reasonable rates. If you are over age 50, you can join the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), which offers an extensive plan. Even some credit card companies offer health insurance coverage.

As a last resort, you can buy an individual policy. The rates will be high and coverage limited, but it is important that you be protected against financial catastrophe if you or your family are hit with a major illness or injury. If you are self-employed, most of the health insurance premium will be tax-deductible.
To find the best policy, contact a health insurance agent or broker who will help you find the contract that gives you the most for your money.
 
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Term Insurance is the simplest form of life insurance. It pays only if death occurs during the term of the policy, which is usually from one to 30 years. Most term policies have no other benefit provisions.

There are two basic types of term life insurance policies—level term and decreasing term.

Level term means that the death benefit stays the same throughout the duration of the policy.

Decreasing term means that the death benefit drops, usually in one-year increments, over the course of the policy’s term.
In 2003, virtually all (97 percent) of the term life insurance bought was level term.

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Instead of buying liability coverage from the car rental company each time you rent a car, you can purchase a non-owner auto liability insurance policy from an insurance company for about $300 a year which might be cheaper if you rent frequently.

In addition, if you’re thinking of buying an umbrella liability policy, a non-owner auto policy may meet the underlying auto insurance policy requirements. Umbrella liability insurance provides high limits of liability coverage above basic policies. Most insurers will not issue an umbrella liability policy unless the basic policies meet certain dollar limits of coverage.

A non-owned auto insurance policy covers you for damage you may cause to some else’s car and liability for injuries to its occupants, or to pedestrian, in the event of an accident. The policy will also provide medical payments coverage for you and your passengers, and under-insured and uninsured coverage. This pays for the cost of an accident involving a hit-and-run driver or a driver who has little or no insurance.

However, non-owned auto insurance does not provide collision coverage. Collision coverage pays for damage to the car you’re driving if you crash into another car or object or the car rolls over. You have to buy this from the car rental company. However, some credit cards provide collision coverage if the rental car is paid for with the card—so check with your credit card company first.
 
 
 Note: If you’re renting a car abroad, you may need an international drivers license.
 
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There are two major types of life insurance—term and whole life. Whole life is sometimes called permanent life insurance, and it encompasses several subcategories, including traditional whole life, universal life, variable life and variable universal life. In 2003, about 6.4 million individual life insurance policies bought were term and about 7.1 million were whole life.

Life insurance products for groups are different from life insurance sold to individuals. The information below focuses on life insurance sold to individuals.
 
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 Yes. A person who owns his or her home would have a different policy from someone who rents. Policies also differ on the amount of insurance coverage provided.

The different types of homeowners policies are fairly standard throughout the country. However, individual states and companies may offer policies that are slightly different or go by other names such as “standard” or “deluxe”. The one exception is the state of Texas, where policies vary somewhat from policies in other states. The Texas Insurance Department ( http://www.tdi.state.tx.us ) has detailed information on its various homeowners policies.
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Rental car counter insurance can provide the following coverage:

Collision Damage Waiver (CDW).
Sometimes called a Loss Damage Waiver (LDW), this coverage relieves you of financial responsibility if your rental car is damaged or stolen. The CDW may be void, however, if you cause an accident by speeding, driving on unpaved roads or driving while intoxicated. This coverage generally costs between $9 and $19 a day. If you have comprehensive and collision on your own car, you may not need to purchase this coverage.
Liability Insurance.
This provides excess liability coverage of up to $1 million for the time you rent a car. Rental companies are required by law to provide the minimum level of liability insurance required by your state. Generally, this does not offer enough protection in a serious accident. If you have adequate liability coverage on your car or an umbrella policy on your home/auto, you may consider forgoing this additional insurance. It generally costs about $9 to $14 a day. If you don’t own a car, and rent cars often, consider purchasing a non-owner liability policy. This costs approximately $200 - $300 per year. Frequent car renters sometimes find this more cost-effective than constantly paying for the extra liability coverage.
Personal Accident Insurance.
This provides coverage to you and your passengers for medical/ambulance bills. This type of insurance, usually costs about $1 to $5 per day, but may be unnecessary if you are covered by health insurance or have adequate medical coverage under your auto policy.
Personal Effects Coverage.
This provides coverage for the theft of personal items in your car. However, if you have homeowners or renters insurance, you may be covered for items stolen from the car, minus your deductible. You need to have receipts or other proof of ownership. This type of insurance usually costs about $1 to $4 per day.
Some rental car companies combine personal accident and personal effects coverage together as one type of insurance, while others sell it individually.

The cost of insurance at the rental car counter will vary depending on the rental car company, state, and location of the dealer and the type of car you rent.

Some rental car companies may check your credit and driving history and may deny coverage. Check with the rental car company to find out its policy.

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There are two types of disability policies: Short-Term Disability (STD) and Long-Term Disability (LTD):

Short-Term Disability policies (STD) have a waiting period of 0 to 14 days with a maximum benefit period of no longer than two years.

Long-Term Disability policies (LTD) have a waiting period of several weeks to several months with a maximum benefit period ranging from a few years to the rest of your life.
Disability policies have two different protection features that are important to understand.

Noncancelable means the policy cannot be canceled by the insurance company, except for nonpayment of premiums. This gives you the right to renew the policy every year without an increase in the premium or a reduction in benefits.

Guaranteed renewable gives you the right to renew the policy with the same benefits and not have the policy canceled by the company. However, your insurer has the right to increase your premiums as long as it does so for all other policyholders in the same rating class as you.

In addition to the traditional disability policies, there are several options you should consider when purchasing a policy:
Additional purchase options
Your insurance company gives you the right to buy additional insurance at a later time.
Coordination of benefits
The amount of benefits you receive from your insurance company is dependent on other benefits you receive because of your disability. Your policy specifies a target amount you will receive from all the policies combined, so this policy will make up the difference not paid by other policies.
Cost of living adjustment (COLA)
The COLA increases your disability benefits over time based on the increased cost of living measured by the Consumer Price Index. You will pay a higher premium if you select the COLA.
Residual or partial disability rider
This provision allows you to return to work part-time, collect part of your salary and receive a partial disability payment if you are still partially disabled.
Return of premium
This provision requires the insurance company to refund part of your premium if no claims are made for a specific period of time declared in the policy.
Waiver of premium provision
This clause means that you do not have to pay premiums on the policy after you’re disabled for 90 days.
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Coverage for accidental injury, accidental death, and related health expenses. Benefits will pay for preventative services, medical expenses and catastrophic care, with limits.
 
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