Insurance can be one of your household’s biggest expenses. It is important to make sure you are sufficiently insured, but at the same time, you also want to avoid being overcharged for your insurance. The tips in this article can help make sure you meet all of your insurance needs at the lowest cost possible.
Create and maintain a detailed journal of every event that occurs leading up to and throughout the duration of your insurance claim. This will assist you if there are discrepancies throughout the process. This is the only way that at least you can ensure that you keep your facts straight. Take down everyone’s name and number that you speak with and a brief summary of the interaction.
If you are one of the millions of people who rent rather than own a home, investing in renter’s insurance is a smart way to ensure that your personal possessions are covered in the event of fire, theft or other hazards, as well as to protect yourself from injury or property damage claims. Most renter’s insurance covers the cash value of your possessions, taking depreciation into account, so make sure to upgrade to replacement cost if you want to be able to repurchase your items with no out-of-pocket expenses. Your policy should also include a personal liability clause to protect you from lawsuits if someone is injured in your home or the property is damaged because of your negligence. Talk with an insurance agent to find out all the specifics of a policy before making a choice.
In cases of regional disasters, some insurance companies will send special adjusters into the area to help expedite claims for policyholders, arrange temporary housing, and begin the rebuilding process. When shopping for a new homeowner’s policy, you might wish to go with a carrier that has a history of helping out like this.
Keep in mind what items could cause an increase in your renter’s insurance. Many insurance companies will raise your premiums if you have certain breeds of dogs or if you own a waterbed. Don’t make split decisions on purchasing certain items without checking to see if it will affect your coverage and your premiums.
It may sound silly but some people even invest in pet insurance! I, as an owner of two dogs, also recommenced it. You simply never know what could happen to your dogs, and they are like members of your family. This protects you in the case of a serious health condition that requires regular treatment. For example I had an epileptic dog growing up and we spent thousands on his care which could have easily been mitigated.
When paying for your premium, never send the insurance company cash. Write out a check or get a money order. This way, should any problems arise, you have a record for your purchase. This also prevents thieves from stealing your money, since they cannot cash a check or money order.
Ensure that you review all your insurance policies on a yearly basis. Remember to include automotive, house, contents and life insurance policies in this review. As circumstances change, insurance policies should be increased or decreased on a regular basis to reflect this. An example being that a life insurance policy for a single male would have a lesser sum insured than that of a married with family man.
Many companies will bundle your policies to save you money. Get a quote from them and compare it with a few other companies and simply go with whichever one is cheapest.
Many people don’t realize this but you can consolidate your insurance policies, such as your car and homeowner’s insurance to the same company. Most insurance companies will give you a discount on both policies for doing this and you can save anywhere from 5% to 20% on your insurance just by doing this.
Be sure to familiarize yourself with car insurance lingo. Understand the meaning of various phrases you will encounter such as collision coverage, uninsured motorist protection, bodily injury liability, property damage liability and so forth. If you don’t understand, ask questions. In this way, you will know exactly what you are paying for.
When filing a claim be sure to be completely honest with the insurance agent even if the situation is embarrassing to you. Not being totally honest can lead the agent you speak with to invalidate your insurance policy altogether, or red flag the account and deny your entire insurance claim.
As mentioned, having insurance is very important, but it can also be very expensive. You have to balance your need for protection against emergencies and accidents with your need to keep your household budget as low as possible. Hopefully, the advice in this article has helped you figure out new ways to do this.
