Archive for June, 2011

Newer Entries »

News Brief: LA Parish Gets Flood Insurance Break

June 13th, 2011 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in flood insurance

It’s often said that improving property can help save money on insurance, but it’s rare that doing so saves money for an entire neighborhood, and yet, in a sense, that’s exactly what’s happening in Louisiana.

Residents of an unincorporated part of the state, St. Tammany Parish, are going to receive a decrease of $1.9 million in premiums for federal flood insurance, and it’s because the parish’s flood rating has been improved, which translates into an average drop in premiums of 10%.

How did this happen? Well, according to Parish president Kevin Davis, the community has been working very hard on various flood prevention projects.

At the end of the first quarter of this year, there were 35,720 flood insurance policies in place in St. Tammany Parish, at a cost of about $19.7 million a year to the residents.

So far, the federal flood insurance program (NFIP) has paid almost $1 billion in claims there.

Tags: , ,

Friday Filmstrip: Seniors and Life Insurance

June 10th, 2011 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in friday filmstrips, life insurance

As our parents age – and as we age – we often consider cashing in our life insurance policies, especially if we’re living on a fixed income. But is this a wise choice? Many television ads say yes, but this news spot from a couple of years ago offers a different opinion.

Tags: , ,

Life Insurance for Your Mortgage?

June 8th, 2011 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in insurance facts, life insurance

Many people have heard of private mortgage insurance, which pays your lender if you default on your mortgage, but what can you do to make sure your mortgage is paid off if you die?

One answer is mortgage protection life insurance, and it’s essentially just another kind of life insurance.

Originally, mortgage life insurance policies matched the amount of the mortgage balance, and as the balance decreased the amount of life insurance did as well. For most of us, however, it makes better sense to take out a mortgage life insurance policy equal to the original mortgage amount, but at the least expensive level term, rather than anything that decreases.

Alternatively, you can buy return of premium life insurance policies as a form of mortgage life insurance. These policies have more competitive rates and, if you keep the policy, all the premiums you’ve paid will eventually be paid back to you.

The most inexpensive form of mortgage life insurance, however, is a level premium/level benefit term policy. These policies are purchased for a specified period of time, during which the policy amount is guaranteed not to decrease and the premiums can be guaranteed not to change. Typical terms for these policies are 30, 20, or 15 years – the life of the average mortgage loan.

While mortgage protection life insurance is still sold by some banks and some agents, it’s probably a better idea to choose an insurance policy that will pay off your mortgage in case of your death, without having the insurance amount decrease, and with guaranteed lower rates.

Tags: , ,

Coastal Residents: Check Your Homeowners Insurance Now

June 6th, 2011 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in auto insurance, flood insurance, homeowners insurance, hurricane insurance

The Atlantic Hurricane Season officially began last Wednesday, and NOAA (The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) is predicting a busy summer tropical storm-wise.

It should come as no surprise, then, that insurance regulators in coastal states like Virginia are strongly suggesting that homeowners – especially those with coastal property – spend some time this week reviewing their homeowners insurance policies.

Representatives from Virginia’s State Corporation Commission want to remind policyholders that some insurers include a deductible for hurricane or wind losses in their policies, but with other insurance companies such coverage is optional. The deductibles also can be written in two ways: either to be applied as a percentage of the coverage on the dwelling, or as a flat amount.

As well, insurance regulators want people to be reminded that since a lot of the damage from a hurricane is actually caused by flooding, separate flood insurance, which can be obtained through the National Flood Insurance Program, may be required.

Automobile insurance, the Virginia commission says, should also be reviewed to see whether wind or hurricane damage is covered.

As well, Virginians – and all coastal homeowners – should make copies of their vital records such as passports, driver’s licenses, social security cards, and birth certificates, and place them, and copies of their insurance policies, in safe, waterproof locations. A foil-wrapped package, inside a zip-top bag, in the freezer, is generally safe.

Tags: , , , ,

More People Praying About Their Health

June 3rd, 2011 by Iris | Comments Off | Filed in alternative health plans, health care reform, health insurance, women and insurance

Maybe it’s a sign of troubling times in general, or maybe it’s a direct response to the way health insurance costs have risen over the past several years, but apparently the number of American adults who are praying about their health issues rose 36 percent from 199 to 2007.

This information comes from a study recently published by the American Psychological Association. The researchers involved looked at data from the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions’ National Health Interview surveys for the years 1999, 2002, and 2007, and focused mainly on comparing the results of the latter two surveys which included responses from 30,080 adults from 44,540 households in 2002 and 23,393 adults from 40,377 households in 2007.

According to the study’s lead author, Amy Wachholtz, PhD, from the University of Massachusetts medical School, “The United States did have an increase in worship attendance across multiple religious faiths immediately after the 9/11 attack, but that has not stayed elevated. However, people continued to use informal and private spiritual practices such as prayer. There is also a greater public awareness of Buddhist-based mindfulness practices that can include prayerful meditation, which individuals may also be using to address a variety of health concerns.”

Increased prayer was noted in people whose health dramatically declined as well as those whose health significantly improved, suggesting that it was a method of coping with the changing circumstances of their health, according to the study.

A greater amount of prayer was noted in most demographic groups, though those with higher incomes were less likely to pray about their health than those with lower incomes. The most likely people to pray about health conditions were the well-educated, women, and African-Americans.

However, while prayer was used by people with good incomes and decent medical insurance, Wachholtz pointed out that, “People are not exchanging health insurance for prayer.”

Tags: , ,

Newer Entries »