Insurance

“We’re not the young people here at work.  When did that happen?  Now we worry about things like…life insurance!”

As we were discussing careers, a colleague and I lamented this thought.  I remember back when I started and was working with people all older than me.  They were all people with spouses and kids and mortgages and real responsibilities.  I was the young kid talking about going out, showing them how to do the Macarena (it *was* 1996) and not worrying about much else.

Now I look around and I’m in the group with the spouse and kids and mortgage and all the other responsibilities that go along with it.  How quickly does it all happen?  In the blink of an eye.

Read moreLife Insurance – Because Dying Is Not So Abstract Anymore

Car insurance can be extremely confusing. There’s of course basic coverage and protection to have.  There are also additional items and sub limits that you need to be aware of. Not every motorist’s situation will call for additional coverage or higher than minimum protection.  However, you never want to guess with insurance coverage. After all, it’s designed to protect your financials in case something unexpected happens. When in doubt, getting an auto owners insurance quote is smart.

Here are some of the more common options that you should be considering with your car insurance situation:

Uninsured and Underinsured Car Insurance Coverage

The law says that every driver must have car insurance.  Still, there are many people who drive without.  Additionally, there are countless more people who are covered but underinsured.  These are scary thoughts.  What if your car is worth $30,000 and when someone slams into you, you find that their minimum coverage only covers $15,000?

Read moreScoring a Deal: Common Car Insurance Quandaries to Be Aware Of

You would never consider buying a car without doing some cost comparison to see how much money you would save. So why would you sign up for an auto insurance plan without doing the same? If you have little to no clue on how to compare auto insurance quotes, here are a few tips that are likely to save you some money.

Gather Up-To-Date Information

If there have been significant changes in your life since the last time you went shopping for auto insurance, make sure all information is updated in your new quotes.  There are many important factors that determine auto insurance pricing.  For example, buying a home or getting auto insurance after marriage usually means cheaper rates for you since homeowners and married people have a tendency to file fewer claims. If you add a teen driver to your household, or looking to move to a new ZIP code, then what you pay may drastically change.

Read moreHow to Compare Auto Insurance Quotes to Get the Best Price

Next year will see a first for me.  My out of pocket health care premiums will not rise next year!  Well, technically, we’ve had a couple of years where they went down, but it was because we chose a plan that had less coverage.  But never before have we kept coverage the same and had costs not rise.

So this is great news.

How did it happen?

Well, I work for a health system herein Detroit.  The insurance company we use is affiliated with our health system, and the plan that we have is somewhat restrictive in that we can only go to doctors that work for the health system.  You can get plans where you can choose outside doctors as your in-network doctors, but they’re a lot more expensive.

Read moreNo Rise In Health Care Premiums Next Year

Not all no exam life insurance policies are created equal. There are two primary differences when it comes to these policies.  These are guaranteed issue and simplified issue. One aims to make the process more convenient while the offer is a last attempt at getting life insurance when you’ve been denied or may be denied elsewhere.

Have you had issues getting life insurance coverage with other carriers?  If so, you might be familiar with these two types of policies. Understanding how these work is important for you to get a good perspective on what to do next.

Comparing the Two

Caps are higher with simplified issue because it’s still geared towards healthy people. This means that the coverage obtained is guaranteed but limited. The bar for declines is higher with simplified issue since it is not meant for people with serious health issues. If you have medical concerns, it is a possibility that you could be declined for coverage with simplified issue. Simplified issue is intended to make the process easier.  However, the challenge with this is that you must still qualify in general.

Read moreNo Exam Life Insurance: Guaranteed Issues vs. Simplified Issue

It’s becoming a very popular question: is life insurance really necessary? Well, not if you do not have dependents. Senior life insurance can be costly. However, if you have a spouse, children, grandchildren, or others that depend on you financially, senior life insurance is well worth the expense. You are ensuring you do not leave any financial burdens and that they have the financial stability to continue on after your death. Forbes has a good article on how to start planning and below are five reasons senior life insurance is definitely worth it.

Couples are Saving for Retirement

Senior life insurance could prove vital for those senior couples saving for retirement. Taking care of your children could prove hard to save money until they are out of the house, and for some families out of college. So you may start saving for retirement quite late. Having a life insurance policy could be the replacement income needed when other retirement sources are just not enough.

Read more5 Reasons Why Senior Life Insurance is Worth It

The past few years have seen a different assortment of health care options for our family:

• 2012 – We were covered under a PPO
• 2013 – We converted to a High Deductible Plan with a Health Savings Account Option.
• 2014 – We had an HMO

Now that 2015 open enrollment is here, it looks as if we will be converting back to a High Deductible Plan with a Health Savings Account.

Talk about back and forth.

The reason we’re doing so much switching has largely to do with our employer.  Prior to 2014, our company out-sourced all IT services, so we technically worked for a different company, and so we had to use their insurance options.

Starting January 1, 2014, we were brought in as direct employees, so we now had the options available to our ‘new’ company.  In 2014, the only real affordable option was an HMO.  But, starting next year, they are also offering a High Deductible Plan, and the cost savings look like they’ll be something we want to take advantage of.

Read moreOur Health Insurance Will Be Changing Again Next Year

Health insurance is one of the most complicated things that many of us have to deal with.  What’s covered?  What isn’t covered?  What’s in network? Out of network?  How much are my deductibles?  Do I have to call someone to get this or get something to see that doctor?  Put twenty people in a room together and ask them to talk about their insurance and chances are you’ll have twenty varying answers.

The temptation is to simply throw up ones hands and just give up trying to understand, and then hope for the best in the time between when you present your insurance card and when you get that bill from the provider.

I’m telling you, that’s a bad strategy.

Read moreThe Basics Of Your Health Insurance You Must Know