You may think that travel insurance isn’t necessary, and that you have planned your vacation perfectly. Things like when to board the flight, where to stay, and when to come back would have been included in your plan; but what if you have to change your plan and get back early? Or what if you met with an accident or fell ill, which of course you were not prepared for? You would end up paying all the medical expenses that are not covered by your health insurance. This is when having travel insurance could save you. It is important that you purchase travel insurance to protect your travel investment.

Types of Travel Insurance:

Most travel insurance companies offer the same packages which include basic travel insurance, and comprehensive travel insurance. There are a few general types of travel insurance, however, depending on the insurance company, the coverage and limitations will be different. Given below are some of the common types:

Trip Cancellation: This is the most common and the most important type of travel insurance. Incase your trip gets cancelled because of any unforeseen circumstances, you don’t have to worry about your tickets not being refunded or bear the burden of the money spent, as this type of insurance will cover all these non-refundable payments or deposits.

Trip Delay: This type of insurance is also very helpful incase of any break in your travel plan, for example, say you have to take a connecting flight only to find that it has been cancelled or delayed for a few hours, what do you do? You take the next flight to get home. You don’t have to worry about the extra money spent by you on the ticket. In this case, if you have trip delay insurance, your money will be reimbursed.

Trip Interruption: If your trip gets interrupted due to any unexpected calamity, you don’t have to bear for the lost vacation. Your money will be reimbursed if you have trip interruption insurance.

Baggage/Personal Effects Loss or Delay: This is also a very common type of insurance. It will cover losses if your baggage is lost or delayed, or if any of your stuff gets damaged.

Travel Document Loss: Having this type of insurance will save you from situations such as a stolen or lost passport. Staying in a foreign country without your password would create problems, but you need not run places looking for emergency cash to get it replaced, as this insurance will take care of that.

Accident/Sickness Medical Expenses: If you fall ill anywhere during your travel, you don’t have to worry about the extra expense. This insurance will cover the cost for you.

Medical Evacuation/Emergency Transportation: In the case of a medical emergency during your travel, this insurance will cover expenses such as the transportation charge to the hospital.

Supplier Default: This insurance will cover any payments or deposits lost because of the bankruptcy of a travel supplier.

So next time you plan a trip, do get travel insurance to ensure a safe trip and peace of mind.

Something the insurance policy .= With regard to insurance policy company agree will compensate amount of money to the the assured , gain receiver or a heir by the the assured will must send the insurance premium to insurance policy company follows the period of time that at fix . Money saving fully receive life protection . which money saving aforementioned . can specify the amount of money and the period of time of insurance insurance policy contract according to can want .

something how is the insurance policy valuable ? = assure financial the strong-hold may give with oneself and a family . Build the discipline in money saving to insurance policy inventor , because of the inventor guarantees must deposit the insurance premium , continuously for the insurance contract is in force , the character then resemble money kind entrustment deposits permanent , with the commercial bank , moreover , insurance some kind contract still give a result to compensate that better , money entrustment with the bank as well . can lead insurance premium money that pay go to break reduce yearly income has arrived at 50,000 a baht ( must be the insurance contract where have period of protection time since 10 year go up ) reward rate that receive to have the stability , because of the condition in the insurance contract where fixes to don’t modify . easy like money entrustment and commercial general bank there are various formats . who take an interest can choose buy insurance straight contract with way of life format and the requirement of oneself such as something the insurance policy , health insurance , guaranteeeing accident , etc. be money saving that have the safety most because the every insurance contract is like must change checking and approve from the Department of Insurance beneath the care of Ministry of Commerce .

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Many international travelers today don’t think they need international travel medical insurance because they don’t realize their company insurance, travel insurance or personal medical insurance may not be valid outside of the United States. And this goes for government-funded health insurance too. Check to see what your health insurance or travel medical insurance policies cover. Make sure to read the fine print and the exclusion clauses.

Most comprehensive insurance policies offer three types of coverage – financial reimbursement for trip cancellation or lost baggage, medical coverage and emergency medical transportation and they differ from standard travel insurance policies. The cost of international travel health insurance policies depends on the type of coverage you need, your destination, your age and gender and the cost of the trip.

International trips or trips abroad are generally more expensive so you should consider getting additional insurance for any trip outside of the mainland USA, especially one with nonrefundable deposits.

There are a number of unforeseen circumstances that can interrupt your vacation or even cancel it, such as an unexpected illness, bad weather, a sudden death in your family or even a job change or jury duty that you can’t leave.

Any time that you have nonrefundable deposits or purchases you should have travel insurance. You should consider buying international travel health insurance if you have invested a lot of money in your vacation or if you can’t cover any unexpected medical costs or emergency costs at you arrival destination.

If you’re traveling by yourself or with your family at an additional cost to you or if you’re traveling to areas that have known catastrophic events such as natural disasters, extreme political turmoil or health advisories, you should have international travel health insurance. Or if you have an existing medical condition that is cause for concern, then by all means get insured properly.

You don’t want to be sitting in a hospital emergency room in another country and find out that you’re not covered by any of your other insurance policies. And Medicare doesn’t cover any eligible U.S. citizen traveling in Canada or Mexico either.

One of the most important reasons to buy international travel medial insurance is for getting emergency transportation out of an undeveloped country and into a country with proper medical facilities. It can easily cost $20,000 to get airlifted out of a foreign country. International travel medical insurance may seem cheap after an experience like this.

Oftentimes people think when they have travel insurance that they are fully covered for international travel or they think they are covered on their health insurance policy for medical expenses. This is usually not true.

Make sure to read your existing policies thoroughly especially the fine print and the EXCLUSION clauses to fully understand what you have and don’t have. There is a big difference between travel insurance policies and international travel insurance policies. And make sure to get several quotes to get the best low cost international travel insurance. It’s important to think ahead and it can be a tough decision for some but you can’t buy international travel medical insurance when you NEED it!

New York Health Insurance

Health insurance is insurance that pays for all or part of a person’s health care bills. A health insurance policy is an annually renewable contract between an insurance company and an individual. With health insurance claims, the individual policy-holder pays a deductible plus co-payment (for instance, a hospital stay might require the first 1000 dollar of fees to be paid by the policy-holder plus 100 dollar per night stayed in hospital). Usually there is a maximum out-of-pocket payment for any single year, and there can be a lifetime maximum.

The purpose of health insurance is to help people cover their health care costs which usually include doctor visits, hospital stays, surgery, procedures, tests, home care, and other treatments and services.

According to the latest United States Census Bureau figures, around 85% of citizens have health insurance. 59.5% of these people receive their health insurance coverage through an employer, and about 9% purchase it directly from the market. Government sources cover 27.3% of the population. Those without health insurance coverage are expected to pay privately for medical services.

Types of New York Health Insurance (http://new-york.ixs.net/General/New-York-Health-Insurance/index.aspx ) The types of health insurance in New York are group health plans, individual plans, and government health plans such as Medicare and Medicaid. In the United States, government-funded Medicare programs help to insure the elderly and end stage renal disease patients.

Group Health Plans

A group health plan offers health care coverage for employers, student organizations, professional associations, religious organizations, and other groups. The employer may pay for part or all of the insurance cost (premium).

Individual and Family Health Insurance

Individual and family health insurance is a type of health insurance coverage that is made available to individuals and families, rather than to employer groups or organizations. These types of health care plans are sold directly to individuals. For those of you who are unemployed or self-employed, an individual health insurance policy is always an option. Unfortunately rates for these policies are high and the coverage is usually less comprehensive than a managed care plan. The good news is that, in many cases, your insurance premium will be tax deductible. Of course, if you’re married, you can always try to catch a ride on your spouse’s group health insurance benefits plan.

Health insurance can be further classified into fee-for-service or indemnity (traditional insurance) and managed care. Both group and individual insurance plans can be either fee-for-service or managed care plans.

Managed Care Health Insurance

These include HMO, PPO, and POS plans. Managed-care plans typically make use of healthcare provider networks. Healthcare providers within a network agree to perform services for managed-care plan patients at pre-negotiated rates and will usually submit the claim to the insurance company for you. In general, you’ll have less paperwork and lower out-of-pocket costs with a managed care health insurance plan and a broader choice of healthcare providers with an indemnity plan.

There are three main types of managed care plans:

• Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO)

• Point-of-Service (POS)

• Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO)

All of these plans offer substantial health insurance benefits to members and their families. If you’re fortunate enough to have a choice of plan, consider the advantages, and disadvantages, of each. Compare the cost of care, the difference in premiums, deductible amounts and your freedom to choose a doctor outside the plan. There are numerous other coverages to compare as well — from prescription drugs to dental to alternative therapies. Be sure you understand the fine points of each.

Indemnity or Fee-For-Service Plan

Normally it covers the same expenses as managed care. The difference is your doctor is paid for each visit with the claim filed by either the patient or the medical provider. A big advantage– unlike some managed care plans, Fee-for-Service allows the patient a great deal of freedom in choosing which doctors and hospitals to use, but will probably involve higher out-of-pocket costs and more paperwork.

However, you’ll likely be required to pay an annual deductible before the insurance company begins to pay on your claims. An Indemnity plan may also require that you pay up front for services and then submit a claim to the insurance company for reimbursement.

Short-Term Health Insurance

Short-term health insurance plans are designed to protect against unforeseen accidents or illnesses, rather than to provide comprehensive coverage, and, as such, typically do not include coverage for preventive care, physicals, immunizations, dental or vision care. It covers for a limited period of time, and may be an ideal solution for those between jobs or those waiting for other health insurance to start. Typically, short-term plans offer coverage up to six months, although some plans may offer coverage up to 12 months. Purchasing a short-term medical insurance plan will make you ineligible for any guaranteed issue individual health plans commonly referred to as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Plans. HIPAA plans are usually very expensive and are generally intended for people with pre-existing medical conditions who would have trouble getting health insurance otherwise.

Medical Savings Account (MSA)

Medical savings account (MSA) is the most recent development in the area of health insurance. The principle behind the MSA is to take the bulk of the financial risk, and premium payments, away from the managed care and indemnity insurers, and allow individuals to save money, tax free, in a savings account for use for medical expenses. Individuals or their employers purchase major-medical policies, medical insurance policies with no coverage for medical expenses until the amount paid by the patient exceeds a predetermined maximum amount, such as 2500 dollar per year. These policies have extremely high deductibles and correspondingly low monthly premiums and the participants take the money that they would have spent on higher premiums and deposit it in an MSA. This money accrues through monthly deposits and also earns interest, and can be spent only to pay for medical care

What’s The Best Health Insurance Plan?

There is no one “best” plan for everyone. The best match for you and your family may be different than the best match for someone else. In order to help you answer this question, here are a few things to consider:

1. Are you going to need long-term coverage or just something for the short-term?

If you’re between jobs for 1-6 months, you may want to go for short-term coverage options. Alternatively, if you have no prospects of receiving group health insurance coverage through an employer, you may value the stability and increased benefits offered through an individual and family health insurance plan which will provide longer term coverage.

2. Are you looking for basic coverage or more comprehensive coverage?

Some insurance plans offer basic coverage (i.e., primarily inpatient hospitalization and outpatient surgery coverage) to cover you in case of a major accident or illness. These insurance plans typically have a lower monthly premium than plans with more comprehensive coverage, and may be appropriate for people who intend to use their insurance primarily in the event of a serious accident or illness. Other insurance plans that offer more comprehensive coverage may include benefits such as preventative care, physician services, prescription drug benefits and routine office visits. These insurance plans typically have a higher monthly premium than plans that only offer basic coverage, and may be appropriate for people who intend to use their insurance on a regular basis.

3. Would you pay for your services before you use them or when you use them?

If you choose a health insurance plan with a low monthly premium, you’re likely to have a higher co-payment or deductible. If you don’t anticipate making frequent use of your health insurance coverage, a higher-deductible plan with a lower monthly premium may suit you best.

4. How important to you is easy access to specialists?

Health insurance plans that require you to coordinate your care through a primary care physician typically require that you obtain a referral before seeing a specialist. So, if you prefer easier access to specialists, you may wish to consider a different type of plan.

5. Do you have a specific doctor or hospital that you would like to visit for healthcare?

Some insurance plans utilize provider networks. Pay special attention to the network of doctors or facilities that each health insurance plan utilizes. Also note that networks utilized by health insurance plans can change, so there is no guarantee that your doctor will always be contracted with your chosen health insurance plan.

6. What is the most you could pay out in case of a serious illness or injury?

Health insurance plans typically place limits on how much a member is required to pay out per year for his or her healthcare. This limit is often referred to as an out-of-pocket maximum. Once you’ve contributed this maximum amount toward your healthcare, the health insurance company typically covers all other costs for the remainder of the benefit year. If you’re concerned about what may happen to you in case of a serious illness or injury, you may wish to pay special attention to the out-of-pocket maximums for the health insurance plans you’re considering.

No matter what insurance plan you may choose, educate yourself and understand all the basics of the health insurance before finalizing anything.

For more information about New York Health Insurance visit: http://new-york.ixs.net

The Canadian mortgage market has been very resilient through the global economic slowdown when compared to the US and Europe.  Some of this has been due to the fact that the Canadian government and lenders have been fairly conservative in the financing options available to homebuyers. 

A step towards more innovation in the market occurred with the introduction of the 40 year and 0% deposit mortgages, however, this change has been reeled back with the July 9th,  2008 announcement of new rules for government-backed mortgages by the Department of Finance:  

Fixing the maximum amortization period for new government-backed mortgages to 35 years;

Requiring a minimum down payment of five per cent for new government-backed mortgages;

These new rules come into effect on October 15, 2008 and a few banks have already removed their 40 year and 0% deposit mortgage products from the market.

The effect of this is that the government has decided to stop insuring lenders through the Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC) for these riskier loans, as they want to avoid a US style housing slump.   

It will be interesting to see whether the private mortgage insurance companies decide to follow suit, or if they will keep insuring these high risk mortgages in order to take market share and have a possible advantage over the CMHC.

As a result of these changes, many people are predicting that potential home buyers who don’t have a 5% deposit or need the longer amortization period in order to afford a house in high price areas such as Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver will be rushing into the market to make their purchase before the October deadline.

If this is the case, it should be an exciting three months for lenders, mortgage brokers and home shoppers buyers and interesting to see how the housing and mortgage markets react once the dust settles.

Home ownership is the dream of many Australians, but taking that first step onto the property ladder is now harder than ever. The current housing affordability crisis puts many properties out of the reach of first home buyer budgets. And spiralling rents make it increasingly difficult to save for a deposit without significantly impacting on lifestyle. As a result, many young people put their dreams on hold and delay buying their first home until well into their 30â??s.

To assist first home buyers overcome these difficulties, many lenders now offer no deposit home loans. A no deposit home loan enables the purchaser to borrow up to 100% of the purchase price of the property, without affecting eligibility for the First Home Owners Grant or first home buyer duty exemptions. The borrower simply needs to be able to afford the repayments and have funds available to cover the transaction related costs such as legal fees, any statutory charges, mortgage insurance costs and the cost of a deposit bond, if required.

To help understand how a no deposit home loan works, hereâ??s a simple example: Say Andrew wants to buy a $350,000 property. Heâ??d usually have to save a minimum 5% deposit (or $17,500) and show evidence of a savings history. Because heâ??s borrowing over 80% of the property valuation, Andrew would normally have to pay mortgage insurance. On this loan amount this would typically be over $6,000. In addition he would have to pay other fees such as legal costs and possibly stamp duty (in some States first home buyers are exempt). Straight away, we can see they he is going to need over $25,000 just to get started.

However, with a no deposit home loan Andrew doesnâ??t need to save a deposit, or demonstrate a savings history. Plus he can use his First Home Owners Grant, or a gift from family, towards his remaining costs. This means he can now afford to stop paying rent and buy his first home faster.

So for want-to-be first home buyers stuck in the rental trap, a no deposit home loan offers a flexible alternative.

Whilst many lenders now offer no deposit home loans, itâ??s worth shopping around and checking out whatâ??s on offer, as products do vary. For example, some lenders charge the borrower a higher interest rate for a no deposit home loan than on a more traditional home loan, where a 5% or more deposit is paid. Equally some lenders restrict the borrower taking out a no deposit home loan to just one or two home loans choices, which may not be best suited to the borrowerâ??s circumstances. So when it comes to choosing a lender, a little research can pay big dividends.

As we mentioned in the previous article, universal life (UL) was introduced in 1981-82, in response to a historically high interest environment and a consumer awareness of the value of self-directed investments because traditional insurance could not compete with short-term interest rates.
Here are some characteristics as follow
1. Account Value
The account value of a universal life plan is the sum of the gross values of all the investment accounts within the policy, including income, after deductions for the current month expenses.

2. Cash Surrender Value
The cash surrender value of a universal life plan is the current account value, less outstanding loans and surrender charges. Surrender charges are usually based upon a multiple of the minimum required premium for the policy back-end charges are larger than front-end charges.

3. Premiums & Contributions
Premiums are those amounts needed to pay the cost of insurance charges and other expenses for the policy. Deposits are those excess amounts that are of a pure investment nature.
4. Death Benefit Options
The amount of death benefit payable under a universal life policy is based upon 1 of 4 different options
a)Level death benefit: Level coverage throughout the lifetime of the policy.
b) Level death benefit plus cumulative gross premiums: Death benefit increases by the amount of each gross deposit to the policy.
c) Level death benefit, indexed: The amount of death benefit increases, yearly, by a predetermined percentage.
d) Level death benefit plus account value: The total amount of death benefit is always equal to the initial face amount, plus the gross account value. This is the most popular chose by 90% of universal life insurance policies’ owners because
the gross account value is tax free.

5. Premium Flexibility
The premium deposits, plus accrued investment income, must be sufficient to pay for all expenses and deductions, so as to keep the policy in force, tax exempt life insurance contract, flexible premium.
Universal life is not for every consumer
It’s flexibility tends to be reflected in much higher administration costs than are found in traditional whole life plans and the variable nature of the plan may make it unsuitable for those clients wanting guarantees

I hope this information will help. If you need more information, you can read the complete series of the above subject at my home page:

http://lifeanddisabitityinsuranceunderwriter.blogspot.com/
http://lifeinsurance06.blogspot.com/

http://life-insurance07.blogspot.com/

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Wedding insurance is commonly overlooked as not necessary or is simply forgotten about. Wedding insurance is like any other type of insurance, it doesn’t pay out unless something goes wrong. If everything goes to plan then has wedding insurance been a waste of money?

Wedding insurance will cover you for the worse case scenario. If your wedding had to be postponed due a vital member of the wedding party being taken ill then wedding insurance would cover the delay. If your caterer went out of business two days before your wedding or simply didn’t turn up then wedding insurance will recoup your deposit paid. If the photographer accidentally drops their camera and exposed your wedding film then wedding insurance will cover getting the wedding party back together for a re-shoot.

Obviously it is hoped that everything will go well on everyone’s wedding day but the truth of the matter is – it doesn’t. If you consider the cost of wedding insurance against the emotional cost of a marred wedding day then nothing can compensate you but if you consider the cost of wedding insurance against the cost of lost deposits, then a marred day may just become a little more bearable.

Your wedding day should be one of the happiest of your life and nothing should take that away but when the worst happens and you have wedding insurance at least you know that some of your financial loss can be re-couped.

Couples who opt for wedding insurance are opting for peace of mind in an uncertain world. Making sure that whatever happens you have done your best to insure that any problems that occur are not followed with financial ramifications must surely make sense. Of course wedding insurance cannot guarantee the weather or your band to perform well but it can guarantee that if extreme weather conditions postpone your wedding or your band never make it then financially you wont lose out.

Wedding insurance is a one off policy and after the day if it is unused then.well basically that’s it. You can congratulate yourself on a fine wedding day with no hitches and no need to use your wedding insurance. If things go badly then you can congratulate yourself on having the foresight to get wedding insurance and thereby safeguard your deposits.

It comes down to what price do you put on peace of mind. Avoid un-necessary stress and get wedding insurance today.

Have you recently seen health insurance policies with health savings account tacked onto them? They are actually gaining in popularity and you will find that many of the big insurers offer these types of plans to their subscribers.

The accounts are commonly referred, as HSAs and they are basically saving accounts used for medical purposes only. Those who have a high deductible healthcare plan are eligible for an HAS.

When cash is deposited into this scheme it is not federally taxed but the cash within this may be used for any health related cost and federal income tax does not need to be paid on the money.

If the money is withdrawn for other purposes that are not medically related then there are penalties that will be applicable on it. These penalties are similar to those that are applied to an IRA should the deposits be taken out earlier than retirement.

If you have an HAS then you are more likely to take advantage of this scheme for your healthcare costs irrespective of whether they are current or future costs. That is because the money deposited into this scheme is not federally taxed and you would rather save the money than have to have it taxed by the government.

There are certainly two sides to the insurance plans that offer these accounts and some people are very supportive of them while others are not at all.

Regardless of which side you are on the majority of big health care providers offer the option of a high deductible policy with the account attached.

Some people look at it as a great opportunity to deposit the amount of money they would typically spend on a monthly policy right into their health savings account.

This is a good idea for those who are very healthy and are unlikely to get ill anytime soon, but it doesn’t work very well for those who are already sick or those at high risk of sickness.

The level of happiness with the account is pretty much up in the air at the moment, too. They have only been around since 2003, so there have not been any lengthy studies on them and whether or not they increase an individual’s’ health care options or make them worse.

It is certainly worth considering, however, for people who are in good health that won’t need major healthcare in the next couple years and who can easily save to take advantage of the tax benefits on health savings accounts.

These are the basics of health savings accounts and insurance policies. For the moment you will only be eligible for an HAS if you have a high deductible insurance policy, but that may not always be the case.

Only time will tell how things will work out for the health savings account. But, there will surely be some changes during the meantime as well to ensure the system is working as smoothly as possible and that people are getting the biggest benefit.

Today, many small businesses operate without liability insurance â?? with the exception of the workersâ?? compensation insurance, which is required by law. In many cases, business owners simply want to cut down on operating costs, but in todayâ??s climate in which worker compensation claims have skyrocketed, operating without any liability coverage is a highly volatile practice.

With just one claim, what took years to build can be wiped out. Without liability insurance, the business can take a major hit from the litigation process and the ownerâ??s personal assets can become vulnerable. Consider that in 2007, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were more than 335,000 cases of employees injured on the job due to contact with objects and equipment.

Workersâ?? compensation, which is required by law in all 50 states, protects employers from liability for an accident involving an employee. This coverage will pay medical expenses and lost wages on injured employees. In cases of disability, it will provide a lump sum or annuities. It is increasingly important employers review their general liability insurance policies to ensure the coverage protects the business against claims made for bodily injury or property damage. Coverage should include medical expenses, defending the lawsuit, settlements and in appeal procedures, bonds or judgments.

Premiums on General and Professional Liability insurance can be costly, and often the cost alone dissuades businesses from purchasing it. The cost, however, of operating without liability insurance can prove to be much more extreme. The out-of-pocket costs of filing a claim alone can escalate quickly and the number of damages that can occur such as fire or theft could nudge a business towards severe debt. If a worker is harmed on the job, the employer will face medical and legal fees. Workmanâ??s comp insurance, which is required at varying levels by state, will provide a safeguard to the company.

Cost of no insurance

In September 2007, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued a report detailing employee compensation. On average employers paid $28.03 per employee per hour. Of these costs, approximately $2.35 (8.4 percent) of total compensation went towards life, health and disability insurance â?? a nominal expenditure when compared to the cost of disputing or paying on a claim.

Lawsuit expenses alone can vary radically depending on several variables such as the type of claim and whether it was filed by a customer or an employee. Employers can count on spending a significant amount to defend the case. Typically costs and procedures include:

* A summons and complaint filed against the company, which results in several meetings and attorney fees, including consultation, transcript and research costs, all billed at an hourly rate.

* The claim will then progress to the deposition phase, which entails a settlement conference and a trial date. In addition to the billable hours and other various fees, the attorney will also bill for the deposition paperwork.

* During the trial, the attorney charges hourly and thereâ??s no telling how long the trial could last. It could go from several days to several weeks. In addition to the hourly fees, the defendant is also being billed for various legal fees.

* Legal fees can include transcript fees, witness fees, court reporter fees, consultation and deposition fees, research fees and mailing fees.

In the event the employee wins the case, the defendant â?? the employer â?? will brunt the burden of not only paying the settlement, but also any medical, attorney and other expenses the prosecuting party has incurred. For those organizations operating without insurance, this can put them at risk of going into major debt or bankruptcy.

In one 2004 workersâ?? compensation case in California, a wood products company was ordered not only to pay its employees medical expenses, but also entitled the employee to, â??â?¦medical treatment as is reasonably required to â??relieveâ? from the effects of his industrial injury, even if such treatment will not â??cureâ? that injuryâ?¦â? In effect, the company will be paying for medical treatments indefinitely. The company did, however, have insurance coverage and did not have to foot the bill.

In a separate case, in 2006, an employee who suffered industrial injuries to the neck in the form of fibromyalgia was awarded payment of medical costs, in excess of $14,000, disability reaching nearly $100,000, plus life pension, which paid just over $45 per week.

Protecting assets

Insurance protects businesses against more than just worker-related claims. It can also cover disasters such as fires, natural disasters and theft.

According to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, compensation awards to victims are now being determined for the recent Metrolink train crash in Chatsworth, Calif. and itâ??s expected the awards could easily exceed the $200-million cap Congress implemented on railroad liability in any one accident. If the cap is removed, Metrolink will be in an extremely vulnerable position.

While most businesses will never experience a disaster of this magnitude, insurance coverage beyond workersâ?? comp insurance may be necessary in ensuring the organizationâ??s assets are protected. A workersâ?? compensation insurance quote should outline what coverage will include. From there the business owner can determine whether additional liability insurance is needed. Typically, liability insurance coverage includes:

* Legal costs â?? general liability insurance will cover litigation costs such as attorney and witness fees, as well as settlement payments.

* Medical costs â?? insurance will cover medical costs for individuals who may have been injured on company property, this includes employees as well as customers.

* Property damage â?? insurance will cover fire, theft or other incidents that damage the assets of the business. It insures the company from physical damage to the property as well as the customerâ??s property.

* Business interruption â?? insurance will cover the business in cases of major disasters, such as a fire, that render the business inoperable. If the business is unable to operate, the insurance would reimburse the company for its losses and the profits that would have been made during that time.

Business operators should shop recognized, established insurance providers to find the best coverage for their needs and the best price for their budget. All companies can provide general liability and workersâ?? compensation insurance quotes to help businesses budget for the expense.

References:

www.bls.gov/ect
http://www.dir.ca.gov/wcab/wcab_panel.htm
http://www.dol.gov/esa/owcp/energy/regs/compliance/weeklystats.htm

â??Metrolink collision; Liability cap could be tested,â? Los Angeles Times. Page 3. September 17, 2008. By Carol J. Williams