By John Ingrisano
If you’re like most people, your home is not just your most valuable possession and biggest asset, but it is also your family’s shelter. If anything should happen to your home, you want to be sure losses will be repaired or replaced without unexpected financial surprises. That’s why you carry homeowner’s insurance.
Here are ten reasons to get together with your agent and review your coverage periodically:
1. You want to make sure that new possessions are covered, including and electronic gizmos, jewelry, new dining room furniture, etc. Find out if you need additional coverage.
2. You don’t want to waste money insuring items you no longer own or have in your possession. If you gave your grandmother’s diamond ring to your daughter, or sold your first-edition book collection, you may be eligible for a premium reduction.
3. Safety pays. You may be in line for discounts if you’ve added safety devices. Even something as simple as installing deadbolts may reduce your costs. The same goes for burglar alarms, as well as carbon monoxide and smoke detectors. Tell your agent.
4. There is a good chance your home’s replacement cost has increased, even if the fair market value has declined in the past several years.
5. It’s never a bad idea to review your deductible. A few years ago, a lower deductible might have made sense to you. However, today, if you can afford to cover more expenses yourself in a loss, you may be able to reduce your premium by increasing your deductible.
6. If you’re getting older, your premiums could be getting better. If you’re 55 or older, senior discounts at motels and restaurants aren’t the only perks. You could be eligible for a discount on your homeowner’s premiums.
7. Don’t assume your policy’s cost-of-living provision matches your needs. Automatic increases protect you from unexpected surprises. However, they are not tailored to your individual situation. It often requires a look at your actual policy and home value to determine if you need additional coverage or a reduction.
8. Make sure you’re not insuring dirt. Your home’s value includes the land under it, which should not be insured. Check your policy to be sure only buildings and personal property are covered.
9. Don’t cut corners on any home-business assets you have on the premises. More and more people today are turning that spare bedroom into an office. If you’re self-employed, even part time, your business assets may not be covered under your homeowner’s policy. Consider a business rider.
10. If a year has passed since you last reviewed your coverage, regardless of other factors, it just makes sense to meet with agent and go over your policy. There is no cost for this review. It might even lead to a reduction in your premiums.
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By John Ingrisano
If you have teenagers behind the wheel, you car insurance rates can skyrocket … especially if your teen has accidents. Fortunately, there are proactive steps you can take to control your teen auto insurance costs.
1. Look for discounts. Do your homework. Look for specific ways to help keep your car insurance costs under control without jeopardizing the quality of coverage. These may include teen discounts (including savings for taking driver education classes and maintaining an overall high grade point average); the best way to arrange car and insurance ownership, whether in your name or your teen’s; as well as deductibles and best-choice levels of coverage.
2. Shop around for the right car. The best — and least expensive — approach is often to insist that your teen share one the family’s cars. If you need to add a vehicle, however, the right choice can be a real coin toss. On one hand, picking up an old “beater” can save you money on the purchase price and insurance, especially if you don’t include collision coverage. On the other hand, you want a safe and reliable vehicle, one with all the latest safety features. Possible middle ground: Go for the best deal on an older car, provided it has driver and passenger airbags.
3. Shop around for the best car insurance coverage for the best price. Some insurance companies are much better with discounts. Start by talking to your auto insurance agent and ask for a cost quote.
4. Stress safety. Many teens (especially boys) are fearless. Unless they’ve seen the results first hand of a serious accident, they think driving a car is as safe as playing a video game. Pound the importance of safety into their heads, starting with the fact that texting and talking on cell phones is unsafe (and also illegal in many states).
5. Control use of the car, regardless of whose name it is in. According to information published by the Institute for Youth Development, teen accidents increase dramatically after 10:00 PM. Just as telling, the more teens in the car, the greater the potential for an accident. Stress that an automobile is a valuable and potentially dangerous piece of equipment, not a toy for joyriding. It should be used only for going to specific destinations. Let your child’s friends drive their own cars.
Teens and cars can be a tough call. On one hand, you want your teen to have the freedom of wheels. On the other, you want to keep from going broke on auto insurance premiums. Most of all, you want to keep them safe.
In a few years, they’ll be grown and out of the house … and then your rates will return to a more sane level. In the meantime, consider the above steps to help all of you get through the teen driving years safely and without going broke paying auto insurance premiums. Good luck.
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Want to learn more about how to manage your money and your life? Check out The Back to Basics Book of Money! A Couple’s Guide to Financial Peace. The book contains 10 valuable Couple Money Skills. Plus, the Back to Basics Book of Money Workbook (which dovetails with the main text) offers 31 practical, hands-on Wealth Builder activities that can help you and your partner build financial and domestic stability. Both the book and workbook, which retail for $31.98 plus S & H, are available at the Family Finances Conference Center website for $27.99 total.
The Family Finances Conference Center tailors programs to the unique and individual needs of client organizations and their members and employees, based on the principles of the book and workbook set, The Back to Basics Book of Money! A Couple’s Guide to Financial Peace.
For more information, contact me at the Family Finances Conference Center by email (john@b2bbookofmoney.com) or my direct phone line (920-559-3722).
John Ingrisano
Director
Family Finances Conference Center
204 Lakeview Drive
Algoma, WI 54201
(920) 559-3722
john@b2bbookofmoney.com
