Health Insurance Plans - Life Insurers vs. Non-Life Insurers

The media is full of stories on how non-life insurers, especially the PSU behemoths, are avoiding taking new consumers in health insurance as the health insurance business is reportedly not profitable. On the other hand, we see widespread campaigns by life insurers, including LIC, advertising the benefits of their newly launched health insurance plans. These new health insurance plans advertised so widely by life insurers have brought much needed public attention to this vital insurance segment.

As a consumer, you could be forgiven for being confused. Allow us to throw some light on this and clear this confusion.

The first aspect you need to understand is that the term 'Health Insurance' is a catch-all term that covers three distinct kinds of health policies.

There is the health policy that reimburses you the actual hospitalization cost for treatment of any disease, offered only by non-life insurers. These kinds of policies are popularly called "Mediclaim" policies (Mediclaim is actually a brand name but has now become a generic term for such policies).

Then there are two other types of health insurance plans offered - by both life insurers and non-life insurers.

One can loosely be referred to as a "Hospitalization Policy," where you primarily get a daily allowance for every day spent in the hospital. Some policies also provide higher daily allowance for stay in intensive care (the ICU). Yet others have a provision for a lump sum payment if you undergo any of the surgical procedures covered in the policy.

The other type of health insurance cover offered by life insurers and non-life insurers are the critical illness covers. Given the increased stress and strain of modern life as well as unhealthy and sedentary lifestyles, most of us are becoming increasingly prone to serious illnesses, such as cancer, heart attacks, organ failure, strokes, etc. Advances in modern medicine ensure that most of us survive these illnesses. This survival, however, comes at a cost - a serious dent in our ability to earn (salary or from business). Critical illness cover steps in here and pays off a lump sum benefit - that helps in protecting your current lifestyle.

Most life insurers have long offered these covers as riders (Riders are covers for additional risks or to enhance existing risk covers). Now these critical illness covers are also being offered as stand-alone policies to cover the risks of specific kinds of critical illness such as say, cancer. These policies are recommended, at the very least, for income earners - contracting a critical illness has a huge financial impact on their future income.

A very relevant question at this point would be:

Do I require a hospitalization policy if I already have a Mediclaim policy?

The Mediclaim policy only reimburses the expenditure incurred in the actual treatment of the disease/illness at the hospital. There are several other expenses that are typically incurred, which the Mediclaim policy does not reimburse. Expenses such as travel, attendant's lodging, loss of income (for both the patient and/or the attendant), pre-hospitalization diagnostic tests, medicines, etc. can run up to as much as 30-40% of the total cost of treatment of a disease or illness. A hospitalization policy takes care of these expenses.

Life insurance companies have done a great job in bringing this topic of health insurance to the forefront of consumer consciousness and hopefully each one of you (unlike our earlier generation which mostly left it to God) will cover your health risks adequately.

We have put together a table that gives you an easy comparison of the various features in each type of policy, and the relative advantages and disadvantages of life insurers and non-life insurers offering these products.

As you will find, the policies offered by life insurers are actually in addition to, not replacing Mediclaim policies.

Remember, it is an absolute must that you and your dependents have adequate cover on your Mediclaim policy. It cannot be replaced by any other kind of policy.

Importance of PI Insurance for Photographers

When you are setting up your photography business, you should ensure adequate protection for your business by insuring your profession against any likely risks with Photographers insurance. By opting for a PI Insurance you can cover all your legal and fiscal liabilities. A small expense on Professional indemnity or PI insurance will provide you immense peace of mind and will insure your liabilities, errors and omissions.

In your routine photography business also you require photographers’ insurance coverage against claims made against occurrence of accidences during a photographic session. You are liable for the personal injury sustained by your customer on the way to your studio or home. You become indirectly responsible for the errors not committed by you.

As a professional photographer you may commit errors and omissions from the first stage of taking photographs to the last stage of finishing the image and delivery to the customer. You may lose the film due to your fault or on the part of the processor. The photo images may also be lost or damage while in transit, shipping, private careers or postal system. The images may be lost in the cyberspace or you may send the photo images to an incorrect party.

You need a PI insurance cover according to the type of work environment and your models. It may happen that your model may be struck by a stray horse or lightning at an outside location during a photography session. The insurance policy should ideally cover the photography equipment in the place of your working area. With the photographers insurance you can protect not only camera and lenses, but a host of other equipments such as fax machine, computer and your software.

Photographers insurance or PI insurance has a unique target market with great potential for growth. Special insurance policies are designed especially to meet the needs of commercial photographers. The PI insurance coverage is essential for every photography business to meet the risks of coverage for photography equipment, cost coverage for replacement of studio contents. To get the best value for your hard earned money you can also combine the PI insurance with other types of insurance. Photography insurance keeps your photography business well and alive should a misfortune happen and cause loss or damage to your equipment, whether at your studio or round the world.

Health insurance – tips for self employed people

Most of the employees working for any organization find health insurance coverage as a part of the package they receive from the company. The question, however, arises for the one who are involved in their own business or, in other words, are self employed. Who makes health insurance coverage for these people then? When looking at it practically, the self employed people are the soul of their business. If these people are left uninsured, any unforeseen circumstances might render the business itself incapable. Hence, getting yourself insured becomes the first and foremost responsibility for self employed people.

When self employed people are shopping for a health insurance, it is extremely important to research well and opt for the best deal possible. Apart from getting quotes from the insurance companies on foot, you can also try the faster and sure shot method of getting quotes online. While getting quotes is quite easy, what comes next is the biggest challenge in getting you a health insurance.

The market offers many deals and products to the self employed for health insurance. Which product will prove to be the best is the biggest possible question that many users worldwide have faced extreme difficulty in answering. While some made a wrong choice, others were too boggled to finally drop thinking of a health insurance. So what is it that makes for the best health insurance product for a self employed? Read on for more!

While it is easier to find one a health insurance in a younger age without any ailments, as the age increases and the ailments start increasing too, getting yourself a health insurance becomes tougher by the day. For the same reasons, for those who are working alone in their business, getting the advantage of a group insurance will help. Joining an association that provides for insurance to all its group members will help you get the necessary coverage. Apart from this, there are many companies offering various schemes for the risk pools, that is, those people who are in the danger zone. If you appear well on their criteria, you can manage to bag a health insurance scheme for yourself.

Meanwhile, self employed people, who are in the safe zone of the health insurance companies, are also eligible to use the medical savings account (MSA), which is legalized by the rule book offered by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The MSA help in reducing the premiums for the health insurance while also allowing you to use the money from pre-taxation to pay for your medical bills and expenses. By opting for a high deductible plan, you can further increase the pre-taxation amount that you can withdraw for the paying of medial bills.

Finally, while choosing the best health insurance scheme for you does matter, finding yourself the best insurance dealer also matters equally well. Therefore, research the market well and find the dealer who is ready to provide you the kind of plan you are looking forwards to. This will ensure that you and your business remain ensured, in terms of health, as long as you live.

Cheap Car Insurance – Not at Difficult Task to Find One

To find a cheap car insurance one has to take efforts as it may seem simple but requires patience. There are numerous car insurance coverage’s that one can choose from over the internet. A little bit of research is required then one can find the plan that is suitable as per ones needs.

The next step while searching for cheap car insurance is to find out whether you are eligible for the coverage, as normally cheap car insurance is not provided without any conditions. Some basic criteria is a must to avail of such insurance. The insured party has to primarily feel that there is less risk associated with your insurance policy, only then will they be willing to offer low premiums and insurance rates.

To avail of cheap car insurance determine the condition of your car and check out its value. If the car has a high performance value and is esteemed to fetch a high price in the market, then the risk associated with insuring such a car is more, hence it would not fall under the category of cheap car insurance. Next check out if you have any record of traffic violations as this would make a negative remark about you and would increase the level of insurance rate as you would be prone to accidents more frequently than others. Try and install safety devices in the car such as seat belts, anti-lock systems and more as this would help in fetching cheap car insurance rates.

Lastly find out if there are any discount schemes going around or select plans with flexible payment schemes and reasonable rates. Find out about multiple policies and multicar policies which would help in lowering the rates of premium if purchased from the same service provider.

Some insurance providers offer cheap car insurance rates for women as it is considered that women are safe drivers as compared to men and the severity of accidents in the case of women drivers is also relatively less. One can get cheap car insurance rates over the internet by doing a comparison study of various insurance quotes. Insurance quotes can be obtained by filling online application forms and requesting for quotes which are sending to the email account of a person within minutes. Such quotes are free of cost and one can compare them to get the best rate of insurance.

Out of the Ordinary Insurance

When people think of insurance, they most likely conjure up images of cars, houses, travel and pets but there are some not-so-standard insurance policies that you may never have thought about!

Believe it or not there is actually a company in Florida which offers insurance against Alien Abduction! You can insure yourself against being kidnapped by extra-terrestrials, and if you are snatched by a bright light from the sky, then you need to hope you are dropped back on Earth so you can fill in the paperwork and make a claim. So if you're worried about seeing UFO's near your home or have been watching too many X-Files episodes then this type of insurance could be just the ticket.

Many celebrities over the years have insured parts of their bodies that were vital to their success. Michael Flatley insured his legs for millions, Bruce Springsteen covered his voice and Egon Ronay took out a policy on his taste buds. It's unlikely that most of the general public would consider such extreme measures but when there's big money and livelihood at stake, it can often make sense.

The term ‘moral turpitude' is not one you hear every day but it refers to a type of insurance policy that covers celebrity endorsements when they go wrong. If, for example, a company paid a celebrity millions of pounds to endorse a product and then during that time the celebrity was convicted of wrongdoing then the policy would protect the company's investment.

Sporting events also come into play within the insurance market and not just in the way you might think with regards to sponsorships. Big sporting events like the Olympics and the Superbowl are often heavily insured against things going wrong and the event not being able to take place. One policy even covered Scottish football fans for trauma should Scotland ever go on to win the World Cup. Another possibility could be to insure against being hit by a stray ball at a golf event or cricket match, because you just never know.

In recent years insuring your pets has gone from being considered rather quirky and unnecessary to being a must have item for animal owners, so who knows what areas of insurance may grow in popularity in the future? All it needs is one or two confirmed Alien abductions and a whole new market could open up!

For most people however, such insurance is nothing short of fantastical and the likelihood of finding insurers to cover such bizarre potential occurrences is likely to be slim at best. There is of course a more down-to-earth side to insurance however than all of these extreme policies and remembering to get a home insurance quote for example before you move house will prove much more useful in your day-to-day life than wondering if E.T. is going to pay you a visit.

Cheap Car Insurance Australia

The increasing cost of repairs and other damage to your car is a result of the number of car accidents increasing in Australia. Car insurance will help cover the cost of repairs and other damages to the car. Having adequate car insurance is a necessity for all drivers in Australia and you must insure your car to protect both your car and yourself when driving. Cheap car insurance makes sense if you are looking for a low premium option, with the security of the protection insurance provides. Having car insurance will help if you have repair costs and you may be offered car replacement or other extras if the mistake is not on your part.

A cheap car insurance policy that provides minimum coverage is the third-party insurance policy. With such a policy, if there is damage caused by you to someone else's property is covered by your policy. Fire and theft coverage will protect your car in case of any sudden calamities which cause serious damage to the car. Your insurance company will cover your losses if your car is damaged by such unforeseen accidents. If you opt for a full comprehensive insurance then you will be covered for all major insurance needs. Property liability and additional needs are provided by the motor/vehicle insurance with a full comprehensive policy.

The cost of your car insurance is influenced by several factors and it is worth understanding how this works. Factors influencing the cost of your insurance premium can include the type of car and the protection you select to take out. Additionally, the location where you park the car impacts upon the cost of theft coverage; owners parking in an unsafe area will face a higher insurance cost. Factors such as age and sex of the driver also determine the premium you have to pay, as teenagers and men are more likely to cause accidents and consequently the insurance company will ask higher premiums to cover the higher risk.

Budget car insurance is a good option if you are on a low budget, but be aware that there is a lesser coverage that you obtain with this option. If you're a good driver with demonstrated experience controlling your car then you can also find it easier to obtain cheap insurance. Higher premiums can often be a consequence of a poor driving record or when a new driver hasn't had time to build a solid rating. The insurance companies will also charge higher premiums if the car owner has committed motor offences.

Having a cheap car insurance policy means you pay lower monthly premiums, while protecting your vehicle and yourself in the case of accidents. To select the best policy for your needs it is worthwhile getting quotes on cheap car insurance from a number of different insurance vendors. Today car insurance companies offer online support, which provides you with quotes from several vendors at the same time to choose the best one for you. Before taking out car insurance, assess what coverage you need and then include this when asking for the quotation from the insurance companies. Comparing car insurance quotations is the key to making a wise decision; which a broker can help you with if you are still unsure of your needs.

Health insurance may get new law

The government is examining various amendments to the insurance law, including a special statute for health insurance, aimed at improving the functioning of domestic companies and increasing their penetration.

"There are several amendments being considered such as allowing foreign reinsurers to set up branches in India, allowing insurers to raise hybrid capital and having a special statute for health insurance," Tarun Bajaj, joint secretary in the Union finance ministry, said on the sidelines of a seminar here on Tuesday.

In 2004, a committee set up by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) had suggested that the minimum capital requirement for standalone health insurers be reduced to Rs 50 crore from Rs 100 crore. In addition, a reduction in the solvency requirement and providing other regulatory flexibilities were suggested. The move was proposed to make the business a more viable proposition for standalone players.

Though the government and Irda have not implemented the recommendations so far, standalone players have already entered the market. "Increasing health insurance penetration and ensuring affordable premium rates remain the key challenge," Bajaj said.

"Health insurance has been growing at 50 per cent." We have started seeing some product innovation. But the need of the country is very varied. Another issue is taking care of senior citizens, improving the coverage for senior citizens as suggested by the Sastry Committee Report." he added

The government is working on a Bill to amend the Insurance Act, Irda Act and laws governing the Life Insurance Corporation and public sector general insurance companies. Among other things, amendments to the LIC Act are proposed to increase the company's paid-up capital base from Rs 5 crore to Rs 100 crore.