“Insurance” Archive
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Did you recently have a child? Get a divorce? Get married?
If so, it’s time to change that beneficiary on your life insurance policy.
Your life changes a lot. Make sure to update your life insurance policy (and your will).
Don’t be like us. Baby boy was born 6 months ago and we haven’t updated either one. Oops! But we are updating them today!
Get to it!
I’ve been hanging on budget wise by the hair on my chinny chin chin. Added healthcare and daycare eat up everything we were applying to debt. Add diapers, wipes, and therapeutic wine, and the budget is pretty tight.
I’d been holding on, waiting to hit my milestone year at work. Once past the milestone, healthcare costs are greatly reduced – we’re talking a couple hundred a month.
…Until they released the 2012 rates and took away milestone benefits for longtime employees. My benefit package is nearly $200 more than I budgeted each month.
Sure, I get it. Healthcare costs are skyrocketing and I can’t expect my employer to cover it, but I was oh so sad to hear about the rate adjustment.
Hubby and I have to sit down and take a hard look at what we can adjust. I’m just hoping for a raise to clear the difference so we won’t have to cut the food budget. I’m not ready for a season of Ramen… again.
I was called by our HR department to review my latest health insurance information for the new year. They like to confirm everything is correct before the new policy begins. She checked off my information and then asked, ‘Is your beneficiary the same for your life insurance policy? We haven’t reviewed that in a few years.’
‘Life insurance policy?’ I asked.
‘Of course. I have your husband listed. Is that OK?’ she asked.
‘I’m sorry. Remind me. How much is this life insurance policy?’
Click. Type. Click. Pause.
‘We have a policy on you for $98,000.’ She started rattling off the salary ratio that determined that amount and explained how it changed with each increase in pay, and I stared at the floor, trying desperately to remember when I signed up for insurance… and how I was paying for it.
As if reading my mind, she pulled my application from her files and showed it to me.
There is was, the policy I signed up for on my very first day… and paid for by my company.
Of course, I called my husband to share about the unexpected policy and he said, ‘Well yeah hon, I have one at work too. It’s like $50K or something.’
Well, I guess we’re a little over insured. Something to keep in mind when deciding on additional insurance – know how much you already have!!
I was reading an interesting article about auto insurance and discovered the average rates increased an estimated 10% between 2008 and 2010 thanks to the increase in medical costs and a higher number of uninsured drivers.
I went through a couple years of my auto insurance bills and discovered…
my rates went DOWN about 7% during those years, and decreased another $2 a month this year. Why? It’s a combination of multi-line discounts, accident/ticket free discounts (great, now I just jinxed myself), and driving age discounts but I the reality is, I don’t care why, I’m just glad they did what they did. Plus, the article shared the industry estimates of the average annual auto insurance cost in 2010 ($865) and mine hovers slightly less than that with great coverage. Whew!
Still looking to save? The writer suggests allowing your insurance company install a device in your car to monitor your driving habits. Progressive and Allstate both offer the device and State Farm and Nationwide are testing similar devices as well. Safe drivers can save up to 30%.
Rather not share your Indy style driving with your agent? The writer suggests calling your insurance agency and asking, ‘How can I lower my premiums?’
My parents purchased five tiny pine trees from the grocery store and planted them in their front yard…30 years ago.
I don’t know if my father didn’t realize how HUGE the trees would get or if he simply didn’t think he’d still be living in the home 30 years later, but they took over the front yard. He was forced to cut them down one by one as snow storms threatened to push them onto the house but two remained.
One of the trees was leaning precariously toward the house and would unlikely survive another winter season. My father is stashing cash for his start-up and couldn’t spend the money on a tree service so my husband and brothers decided they’d take the task on.
Not realizing my husband was planning on flirting with danger, I didn’t activate his disability insurance policy. We’ve been shopping around and haven’t nailed one down yet. Eek. I was out shooting photos and shouting, ‘Please don’t get hurt! We’ve got NO INSURANCE!!!’
Remarkably they got the tree down without injury (this proves there IS a God) and my parents have enough firewood to take them into 2020.
A reader asked how much time I have off in paid disability leave from the state of California. Well…
The short answer?
None.
The state of California does provide disability insurance – to those who pay into it. My employer chooses not to contribute.
Fortunately, I discovered this fact shortly after becoming pregnant and was able to stash as much cash as possible. I feel badly for other employees who are not aware of this until it is too late.
The lesson? Ignore what your friends and relatives say about your coverage. ASK YOUR EMPLOYER! Don’t assume you are covered and don’t assume you won’t need it if you are male. Accidents can happen at any time.
I do have a short term disability policy that covers a small percentage of my salary for 6 weeks but that’s it. But it’s better than nothing!
Go TODAY and get a short/long term disability policy. You never know when you’ll need it.
I’ve never looked in to life insurance before but I’m at the point in my life that an unexpected death could ruin the finances of those I love. After a few months of nagging from my husband, I finally made the call to our agent.
If you haven’t searched for life insurance before, here’s a quickie…
My insurance agent now knows more about me than my husband. Yup, it can be that personal.
They asked questions about medications, smoking habits, age, height, and weight. When I answered the weight question, my agent replied, ‘According to our system, you are 13 pounds underweight.’
‘I’ll buy it!’ I shouted.
Hmm. Perhaps computer generated flattery isn’t the best reason to purchase insurance…but I won’t judge you if you consider it part of the equation.
Once we sign the paperwork later this week, our agent will send a nurse to our home to ensure the accuracy of the information submitted and to run tests on cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure. While my blood pressure has always run very low, I’ve never had my cholesterol or blood sugar measured. I guess this means I will be eating spinach and blueberries while running for the next 5 days.
Things you should consider before getting life insurance:
1. Have a goal – it will help you figure out how much you need. Know what you want to fund with your insurance proceeds. Do you want to pay off your mortgage? Fund your kid’s college? Provide income replacement for your spouse?
2. Buy it sooner rather than later. Life insurance makes significant jumps in five year blocks. If you are about to hit 30, 35, 40, 45, etc, get it before you do.
3. Research the type of insurance you need. My husband and I settled on Term life insurance with a fixed premium for 30 years. It’s cheap, especially for those in good health, and will provide the peace of mind we need while we are trying to reduce debt.
4. Quit smoking. You should quit smoking for lots of reasons, but smokers pay exceptionally high premiums.
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My Debt
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