The media is full of stories on how non-life insurers, especially the PSU behemoths, are avoiding taking new consumers in health insurance as the health insurance business is reportedly not profitable. On the other hand, we see widespread campaigns by life insurers, including LIC, advertising the benefits of their newly launched health insurance plans. These new health insurance plans advertised so widely by life insurers have brought much needed public attention to this vital insurance segment.
As a consumer, you could be forgiven for being confused. Allow us to throw some light on this and clear this confusion.
The first aspect you need to understand is that the term 'Health Insurance' is a catch-all term that covers three distinct kinds of health policies.
There is the health policy that reimburses you the actual hospitalization cost for treatment of any disease, offered only by non-life insurers. These kinds of policies are popularly called "Mediclaim" policies (Mediclaim is actually a brand name but has now become a generic term for such policies).
Then there are two other types of health insurance plans offered - by both life insurers and non-life insurers.
One can loosely be referred to as a "Hospitalization Policy," where you primarily get a daily allowance for every day spent in the hospital. Some policies also provide higher daily allowance for stay in intensive care (the ICU). Yet others have a provision for a lump sum payment if you undergo any of the surgical procedures covered in the policy.
The other type of health insurance cover offered by life insurers and non-life insurers are the critical illness covers. Given the increased stress and strain of modern life as well as unhealthy and sedentary lifestyles, most of us are becoming increasingly prone to serious illnesses, such as cancer, heart attacks, organ failure, strokes, etc. Advances in modern medicine ensure that most of us survive these illnesses. This survival, however, comes at a cost - a serious dent in our ability to earn (salary or from business). Critical illness cover steps in here and pays off a lump sum benefit - that helps in protecting your current lifestyle.
Most life insurers have long offered these covers as riders (Riders are covers for additional risks or to enhance existing risk covers). Now these critical illness covers are also being offered as stand-alone policies to cover the risks of specific kinds of critical illness such as say, cancer. These policies are recommended, at the very least, for income earners - contracting a critical illness has a huge financial impact on their future income.
A very relevant question at this point would be:
Do I require a hospitalization policy if I already have a Mediclaim policy?
The Mediclaim policy only reimburses the expenditure incurred in the actual treatment of the disease/illness at the hospital. There are several other expenses that are typically incurred, which the Mediclaim policy does not reimburse. Expenses such as travel, attendant's lodging, loss of income (for both the patient and/or the attendant), pre-hospitalization diagnostic tests, medicines, etc. can run up to as much as 30-40% of the total cost of treatment of a disease or illness. A hospitalization policy takes care of these expenses.
Life insurance companies have done a great job in bringing this topic of health insurance to the forefront of consumer consciousness and hopefully each one of you (unlike our earlier generation which mostly left it to God) will cover your health risks adequately.
We have put together a table that gives you an easy comparison of the various features in each type of policy, and the relative advantages and disadvantages of life insurers and non-life insurers offering these products.
As you will find, the policies offered by life insurers are actually in addition to, not replacing Mediclaim policies.
Remember, it is an absolute must that you and your dependents have adequate cover on your Mediclaim policy. It cannot be replaced by any other kind of policy.
When you are setting up your photography business, you should ensure adequate protection for your business by insuring your profession against any likely risks with Photographers insurance. By opting for a PI Insurance you can cover all your legal and fiscal liabilities. A small expense on Professional indemnity or PI insurance will provide you immense peace of mind and will insure your liabilities, errors and omissions.
In your routine photography business also you require photographers’ insurance coverage against claims made against occurrence of accidences during a photographic session. You are liable for the personal injury sustained by your customer on the way to your studio or home. You become indirectly responsible for the errors not committed by you.
As a professional photographer you may commit errors and omissions from the first stage of taking photographs to the last stage of finishing the image and delivery to the customer. You may lose the film due to your fault or on the part of the processor. The photo images may also be lost or damage while in transit, shipping, private careers or postal system. The images may be lost in the cyberspace or you may send the photo images to an incorrect party.
You need a PI insurance cover according to the type of work environment and your models. It may happen that your model may be struck by a stray horse or lightning at an outside location during a photography session. The insurance policy should ideally cover the photography equipment in the place of your working area. With the photographers insurance you can protect not only camera and lenses, but a host of other equipments such as fax machine, computer and your software.
Photographers insurance or PI insurance has a unique target market with great potential for growth. Special insurance policies are designed especially to meet the needs of commercial photographers. The PI insurance coverage is essential for every photography business to meet the risks of coverage for photography equipment, cost coverage for replacement of studio contents. To get the best value for your hard earned money you can also combine the PI insurance with other types of insurance. Photography insurance keeps your photography business well and alive should a misfortune happen and cause loss or damage to your equipment, whether at your studio or round the world.
| Americans fear for their life insurance after financial turmoil |
Americans who have ploughed their savings into life insurance and annuity-linked pension funds were running scared yesterday as financial titans collapsed around them.
"We're receiving phone calls that we wouldn't usually get," said Robert Willis, Executive Director of DC Life and Health Insurance Association, part of the national network that guarantees insurance policies.
"Given what's happening with AIG and Lehman Brothers, people are looking at their life insurance and annuity products and are concerned about these companies going under and what the impact would be on them," he said.
Wall Street icon Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in New York on Monday after suffering massive losses from the subprime crisis of loans to high-risk customers.
The following day, the US Federal Reserve stepped in with a $85-billion bail-out of American International Group (AIG) after the insurance giant also fell victim to the mortgage subprime lending meltdown.
In a statement issued Tuesday, AIG assured its life insurance clients that their policies were not at risk.
Willis tried to reassure them, too, by explaining how warranties such as those provided by DC Life and Health work. Most of the guarantees allow the investor to recover his or her initial investment plus any earnings, up to a ceiling of $300,000 in death benefits.
But the ceiling is only applicable once per person. Someone with three separate pension plans, each worth $200,000, for instance, is protected only to the tune of $300,000, said Willis.
Insurance companies across the board are exploring options to branch out into rural areas and enhance their presence in the micro-insurance sector in the country.
Among the major players, LIC, ICICI Lombard, Agriculture Insurance Corporation, IFFCO-Tokio and Tata AIG are seeking ways to consolidate their presence in the sector. Also, MaxLife has launched Max Vijay to tap the micro-insurance potential.
Incidentally, the Indian insurance industry is expected to witness a 500% growth and reach $60 billion in next four years. Insurance firms are keen to exploit this potential; in keeping, ING is planning its entry in India.
The fact that these companies are focusing on micro insurance is crucial as traditionally insurance has never really expanded beyond urban geographies. This has been attributed to poor insurance literacy and awareness, high transaction costs, inadequate regulations, and inadequate understanding of client needs and expectations. According to the Centre for Insurance and Risk Management (CIRM)--which operates under IFMR Foundation-- the Centre and Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority (Irda) need make administrative and regulatory changes to enable penetration of micro insurance, especially in rural areas.
However, Rupalee Ruchismita, coordinator of CIRM, told FE, “The perception that entering rural markets is expensive has been replaced by the possibility of making rural insurance not only commercially viable and sustainable but also profitable. This is provided questions about product design and models of delivering risk hedging products are innovatively addressed.”
She admitted that India is the only country with micro insurance regulation. However, she noted that IRDA should allow more players in the sector. Ruchismita was speaking on the sidelines of a seminar on “Indian Microinsurance: What Works?” organised by Microfinance Insights, IFMR Foundation and CIRM.
She said that while the Micro Insurance Act stipulates an upfront payment of premium for micro insurance policies, people in rural areas have low incomes and are incapable of paying a lumpsum amount upfront. Therefore, allowing them to pay the premium in monthly installments will help in stimulating demand for insurance products, she added.
Ruchismita urged the centre to take administrative measures for promotion of micro insurance. She said that data must be made available to insurance companies so that they can expand their activities in rural areas.
On a family holiday in Switzerland in May, a father's worst nightmare came true.
On a Friday afternoon my son had acute pain in his abdomen, the general practitioner whom we consulted advised us to rush to a hospital. At the hospital he was advised to undergo an emergency appendicitis removal operation. We were apprehensive as we were in a strange country and even communication with some of the doctors was a little challenging as some of them could not speak English fluently. In the late evening after considering the risks of not operating we gave our consent for the operation.
We could afford to pay for the operation on our own but at the back of my mind was a question whether the insurance company (my travel insurance policy was taken from a public sector insurance company) would actually pay up. The policy was part of a package taken through the tour operator who had made the travel arrangements for us. He in turn had used the services of an insurance broker to buy the package policy.
Here is my experience described in greater detail:
Friday, May 23: My son got operated at around 10 pm. He was admitted and operated without us having to fill in an admission form or making any deposit. They did not even know whether we had insurance to cover the costs.
Late at night I sent an email to the international TPA, the Indian TPA and the Indian insurance broker informing them of our impending claim.
Saturday, May 24: My son was fine and so started to try and call for activating the claim process. The initial call to the Paris toll-free number was not very fruitful with the male consultant on the other end of the line not giving any satisfactory response. But when I checked my email I had received a response from them indicating a file number for my claim and laying down the documents needed to process the claim.
I also reached a very helpful gentleman called Prakash who was the claims executive with the insurance broker in India. He made several calls to me and also spoke to the TPA in Paris and generally guided me. The hospital was also helpful and provided the necessary facility for faxing the papers to the Paris TPA. However a confirmation from the TPA to the hospital got stuck because they wanted a medical report from the hospital before providing a coverage confirmation (which would have enabled me to avail of cashless facility from the hospital).
The hospital informed me that this was not a usual request and it took a couple of hours before I could get the report and fax it to the Paris TPA. Meanwhile since it was a Saturday I was forced to make a deposit (around Rs. 125,000) to the hospital by using my credit card. While we received no final confirmation from the Paris TPA the Indian TPA had not responded at all.
Sunday, May 25: My son was discharged from the hospital.
The hospital said the deposit was enough to cover the bill and they would refund the balance in due course by crediting the balance to my credit card account. No final confirmations from the Paris TPA, though I must say that by then a very competent lady from the Paris TPA kept calling me to update me on what was happening. She also informed me that she had sent a confirmatory fax to the hospital (this was after the discharge) and as the hospital office was closed we could not confirm the receipt of the fax by them.
Monday, May 26: The hospital confirmed that they had received the fax confirmation from the Paris TPA and would refund the entire deposit amount to my credit card in a few days time after they actually receive the payment from the insurance company. Prakash had been in touch with me through out.
Tuesday, May 27: We return to India.
First week of June: Submitted a claim for expenses paid for the general practitioner in Switzerland, the ambulance charges, and the medicines purchased amounting to about Rs 25,000. This was submitted to the Indian TPA through Prakash.
Second week of June: Got the Switzerland hospital deposit amount refunded in my credit card account. Was shocked to discover that even though in Swiss franc terms I had received the full refund, there was a difference of around Rs. 13,000 in the rupee amount that I had paid and the rupee amount credited to my credit card account. On closer inspection it proved to be because of the huge 3.5 per cent each way commission that the credit card company charges (making it 7 per cent in all) as well as the significant differential in the buying and selling rate of the foreign exchange.
Meanwhile Prakash informed me that my other claim had been approved on June 13 and I could expect the payment cheque in 15 days time.
July 2008: No cheque despite vigorous follow up. Finally in the last week of July sent an e-mail notice to the insurance company that I would complain to the Insurance Ombudsman if I did not receive the payment.
August 4, 2008: Finally I receive the cheque by courier.
My learnings from the whole episode:
1. Never pay by credit card overseas. Only the card issuer goes laughing all the way to the bank.
2. The Indian insurance companies have specific requirements that make the process of pre-approval that much more difficult overseas as it is not in line with local practices.
3. The moment you submit claims to the Indian TPA brace yourself for delays.
4. Use the two magic words 'Insurance Ombudsman' in your letters and e-mails. That's the one thing that makes the wheels move.
5. The insurance broker is worth his weight in gold if they have people like Prakash working for them.
6. While the delays were annoying and the amount retained by the credit card company was scandalous, I don't think I will ever venture outside Indian shores without a proper travel insurance policy.
7. If you have to fall ill do so in a country like Switzerland, where even the general ward is better than the luxury suites of Indian hospitals. The nursing staff actually helped us in booking a hotel for the night and summoned a taxi for us. A level of service that I cannot even imagine in India.
Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for a premium. An insurer is a company selling the insurance. The insurance rate is a factor used to determine the amount, called the premium, to be charged for a certain amount of insurance coverage. Risk management, the practice of appraising and controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice.
Some Insurance Types
Different types of Insurance plans are offered based on your needs. Some of them are
• Life Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Automobile insurance
• Property insurance
Life Insurance
Life insurance or life assurance is a contract between the policy owner and the insurer, where the insurer agrees to pay a sum of money upon the occurrence of the insured individual’s or individuals’ death or other event, such as terminal illness or critical illness. In return, the policy owner (or policy payer) agrees to pay a stipulated amount called a premium at regular intervals or in lump sums.
Health Insurance
The term health insurance is generally used to describe a form of insurance that pays for medical expenses. Basically, the client pays a sum of money called the Premium and in turn the Insurance firm would commit to pay a predetermined sum of money to meet the customer’s claims. Health insurance plans are offered in two categories. They are individual and group insurance policy. The individual plans covers health costs for a single person whereas the group health insurance plan covers medical coverage for the entire family.
Dental Insurance
Dental insurance covers dental costs for an individual or group. The costs include normal dental care cost as well as damage to teeth in an accident. Dental insurance protects people from financial hardship caused by unexpected dental expenses.
Automobile insurance
Auto insurance protects the policy owner against financial loss if he has an accident. It is a contract between policy owner and the insurance company. The policy owner agrees to pay the premium and the insurance company agrees to pay the losses as defined in your policy.
Property insurance
Property insurance gives protection against your property. This includes specialized forms of insurance like fire insurance, flood insurance, earthquake insurance, home insurance etc.
You decide to take that once-in-a lifetime trip, the one you’ve always dreamed of and you want to make sure that nothing goes wrong. As any human being, you are aware that you do not have a total control over your life and that accidents can happen. Travel insurance is a necessary item if you are going on a vacation.
The competition on the insurance market is stringent and there are many companies ready to offer travel insurance suitable for one’s needs and preferences. Remember that is vital that you purchase travel insurance in order to protect your travel investment.
While browsing, decide what type of coverage you require. Take in consideration several factors such as: journey duration, destination and your age and health conditions. You should also check if preexisting conditions are covered by your travel insurance.
Travel insurance is a necessity you cannot do without. It offers coverage for unpredictable situations such as: cancellation of trips, delays of travel, lost of luggage and personal belongings, emergency evacuation or medical expenses. Some travel insurance policies have additional claims for accidental deaths.
For travel to Canada, it is best that you choose to purchase travel insurance for Canada as it has certain advantages. Former English colony, Canada is the world’s largest country by land mass and offers a broad range of cultural and geographical features. This outstanding country offers its visitors one of the most untamed landscapes in the world. Still, all tourists are encouraged to have travel insurance in Canada for safety reasons.
You should also check if the travel insurance you choose has additional features like: travel document loss, optional medical benefits (helicopter for emergency cases), and accidental death during flight. These things are difficult to think about but not impossible to happen. It is best to be prepared and purchase complete travel insurance. In order to arrive to an informed decision search online, compare prices and benefits. In short: canvas and compare.
The tricky part is finding the appropriate travel insurance quotes. You just log on to your computer and go online. There are many insurance companies ready to offer free travel insurance quotes on their sites. Consider the features and compare figures.
Travel insurance quotes can be easily obtained by completing a form with basic information. After filling out the form, you will receive travel insurance quotes from several companies. These travel insurance quotes show in detail different travel insurance options, deductible and other details. This will help you pick out the best plan based on your need and preferences.
Choosing a reputable website can help you obtain instant travel insurance quotes from leading companies and also personalized travel insurance assistance. These travel insurance quotes are always up-to-date and accurate not to mention that there is a wide selection online. You can look at several different travel insurance quotes at the same time online, in a short period of time.
You can find on the Internet various travel insurance quotes for Canada from leading Canadian companies. These companies are the best on the market and they have been meeting the demands of a diversified population for many years. Travel insurance quotes in Canada are easy to find but you have to be careful if they are meeting your needs.
Traveling will always offer lifetime lasting memories. So it is in your best interest to look after yourself and purchase full travel insurance in order to feel safe and have fun. There is no reason to be skeptical; purchasing travel insurance is a must.
As the demand for homeowner insurance is increasing day by day, numerous companies are offering the home insurance policy. Since a myriad of options are available now, an individual needs to be quite careful while purchasing a policy. There are several key points that should be borne in mind and that can actually help you purchase a good policy.
Before you start looking around for a policy, decide amongst yourself what all coverage and the coverage amount you want. Then look for various companies and their offers. In this you can take help of agents, friends and family members. Internet too is a good source for information. You can obtain various price quotes from there. While comparing rates make sure that they are for same coverage’s.
Deductibles play a crucial role in choice of a policy. Deductible is the amount a person needs to pay before the insurance company to pay for him. Higher deductibles are instrumental in lowering the premium rates. So it is better to look for high deductibles though you will have to pay if you have a claim.
Never think and try of giving fake information to acquire the insurance policy. You can land yourself in grave trouble. So be true while obtaining a price quote and applying for insurance. For wrong information can lead to denial of coverage and incorrect price quotes.
But don’t just get carried away with the price (premium rates etc.) as most people do. Other factors such as company’s financial ratings and stability, its reputation in the market, customer service record, complaint index and the like also do matter a lot. Thus make sure you check these things out.
Also see if the agent offering the policy is licensed or not. It is in your interest to purchase a policy from certified i.e. licensed companies and agents.
Usually it is very difficult for people who reside in high-risk zone and defaulters to acquire a homeowner’s insurance. High-risk zone stands for areas prone to floods, hurricanes and other natural calamities and also areas where the crime rate is quite high. In such a case you need to make an extra effort to get a homeowner’s policy. You need to speak to other people living in the zone and any previous insurers. If you propose to shift to one such place then ask you current insurance agent to help you get one such insurance.
You should also know that usually the homeowners insurance covers personal items such as jewelry, fur, watches, silverware, valuable papers and securities etc. If you seek to have coverage apart from this then you have to fill up the Personal Articles Form. Speak with your agent about the coverage that is already there and about what additions you require.
When it is time to renew your homeowner’s insurance policy, ponder again over the coverage issue. Check your personal details in the policy and see if it is up to the mark. In case you require more coverage for any expensive items you purchased such as electrical appliances etc., ask your agent to get your policy changed accordingly.
Life insurance is an important aspect of everyone’s lives and is something which everyone will have to face at some point in time throughout their lives. This point may come sooner rather than later for some individuals because of the job they perform on a daily basis.
While some individuals start everyday by putting on their suits and racing to get to the coffee shop for their morning coffee, others are strapping on their work boots and preparing themselves for a day of excruciatingly hard labor. As scary as it may sound, there are many individuals who are willing to put their lives in danger every single day when they get up and go to work.
The following is a list of the top 5 jobs which are considered to be the most dangerous jobs in the world. Individuals who perform these jobs are highly recommended to have a life insurance plan incase (god forbid) anything goes wrong on any given day. These are the 5 occupations which made the list:
1.Police/Detectives - Police Officers face life threatening situations almost everyday. They are highly trained to defend themselves and are equipped with protective equipment at all times. Life insurance and disability insurance are crucial for individuals working in the field of policing.
2. Airplane Pilots - Believe it or not, airplane pilots require life insurance because they are dealing with such powerful machines which have been known to have mechanical glitches. Airplane pilots are also highly trained in their field to make sure they do their best to fly safely.
3. Construction Workers - Construction workers are somewhat unappreciated for the amount of hard work they do everyday. They not only put their lives in danger from all the machinery they are expected to operate, but they also face many factors which will affect their health in the long run. Overexposure to sun, heat and excessive lifting are just a few of these factors.
4. Farm Workers - Much like construction workers, farm workers are at high risk of injury or death due to the fact that they are constantly operating heavy machinery. There are hundreds of farm work related deaths a years and thousands of injuries for individuals working in farm fields. Life insurance and disability insurance are important for individuals in this occupation.
5. Fire Fighters - It is a known fact that fire fighters put their lives on the line everyday to save the lives of others. Knowing the potential consequences and performing the job anyways indicates that these workers deserve the highest level of respect from others. Individuals who have chosen careers in firefighting are also likely to have a life insurance policy.
Is your job dangerous? Is your life on the line everyday? Maybe not, but there are many other factors other than your occupation which may indicate you need life insurance. Life insurance is a plan which will ensure your loved ones are taken care of incase anything happens to you. Wouldn’t you like to know your family would be looked after should this type of situation occur?