My Personal Finance Blog

How can you tell that you really need home insurance? Well, if you’re not planning any illegal things like insurance scam (which is definitely not a good idea, especially these days), it will be really hard to predict any situation when you will actually need some insurance coverage for protecting your house. Until, of course something bad happens and you will need the money to pay for the damage. However, there’s a range of circumstances that make an insurance policy for your house a really welcome if not necessary addition to your paperwork portfolio.

The following are the most typical events that will make having home insurance a necessity unless you have a lot of money and can rebuild your home from scratch without worrying about finances.

Fire

Fire is definitely one of the most hazardous of perils that can happen to a house. It has the potential to completely destroy an entire building within minutes and there’s a very little chance that any of your personal belongings will survive it. Fire is very hard to control and it can happen any time, with most cases of fire being reported when the home owner is actually away. It can be a spark from a malfunctioning home appliance or a cigarette butt that lights up a pile of dry leaves that you’ve left in your front yard. And the moment you arrive home you find nothing but a pile of ashes instead of all of your belongings. A standard homeowners insurance policy provides protection against any forms of fire.

Flood

Living in an area with no large bodies of water nearby doesn’t mean that you don’t have the risk of having flood damage in your house. Things like heavy showers, bad water pipes and even a broken washing machine can flood your house and damage a large part of your belongings beyond repair and restore. Sometimes, the damage from flood can be much worse that that caused by fire. Standard homeowners insurance policies do not carry coverage against flood damage and you will have to purchase such a policy as a weaver to your current one or buy it separately.

Earthquake

Earthquakes are certainly the hardest to predict and hardest to protect against of all natural disasters. An earthquake can destroy an entire town or city within just a few minutes, turning even the most durable of constructions into a pile of dust. And the best thing you can do during an earthquake is to stay away from your house that can collapse over you. Standard insurance policies include coverage against earthquakes, too. However, in order to make sure you will also be paid for the lost belongings you should have an inventory of all the items (especially valuables and electronics) with detailed information on every piece that can further be used for reimbursing the cost of all the lost belongings.

There are other circumstances that can also be a threat to your house and you want to have coverage against them. Having tornado insurance in an area where they are common is definitely a must. However, keep in mind that no one is imposing you to have home insurance, It’s a decision choice that can save you a lot of money and time in case something bad happens to your house.

With Alice back in Wonderland thanks to Tim Burton, we continue this series of articles on how to earn discounts when insuring your vehicle. This time, the trip down the rabbit hole (or through the looking glass as you prefer), deals with the practicality of your use of private transport. Remember the insurance companies want as little risk as possible so they prefer you to have the vehicle parked on your front yard where you admire it from a distance and, when it gets dusty, wash and polish it. In short, the less you drive, the more you save. So lets see how it works. There are three times during the day when accidents are more likely. These are the two main periods for commuting to and from work, and the late night and early morning when driving is often associated with alcohol and other “substances”. The statistics show the more vehicles there are on the road around you, the greater the chance one will collide with another. At peak times for commuters, the roads are suddenly full and the risks of accidents are high. Now change the weather from sunshine and gentle breezes to the first ice and snow of the winter. The majority of drivers have forgotten the risks, made no advance preparations and find themselves on a skating rink without any way of stopping in a hurry. The accident rate goes sky high until people relearn their winter driving skills. At night, its the reverse problem. From 11 p.m. through to the early hours, there are fewer vehicles on the road, but the majority of drivers may be less alert. At best, this is simple tiredness. At worst, its substance abuse and you are in the way.

So, if you agree not to drive at the most dangerous times, you get a discount. For the same reason, agreeing to restrict your mileage also earns a discount. If you only drive a few miles every now and again, the chances of you being involved in an accident are small. The lower the mileage you accept, the better the discount. For the same reasoning, where you drive affects the premium. Although the practice is outlawed in some states, your zip code sets the tone for the premium rate. Some areas of the cities and larger towns are statistically more accident-prone. Equally, if you live in a wilderness area or in a remote part of the prairies, you can go miles without ever seeing another vehicle. Collisions are therefore rare, although some trees are known to throw caution to the wind when crossing the road. Be honest with yourself. Do you have to use the vehicle? Yes, it may be slightly inconvenient to use public transport but, if you are saving money on your insurance, you can be safer and better off financially.

In an earlier article, we mentioned the problem of fraud. The biggest discounts are given to those prepared to prove their honesty. Check the auto insurance quotes for those companies offering monitoring, whether face-to-face or through technology. Some companies ask you to call in once a month to prove your mileage is within limits. Others have devices to fit into your vehicles that monitor when, where and how you drive. This information is then routinely transmitted to the insurer. Sure Big Brother is watching but, if this saves you big dollars, its worth searching through the auto insurance quotes to find these offers.