Posts Tagged ‘From’
Tragedy near the Bronx Zoo: Insurance lessons from a deadly car crash
May 22nd, 2012
Allie Johnson
When a serious crash makes the news – such as the one in April 2012 that killed seven family members on a highway near the Bronx Zoo – many drivers wonder: Could this happen to me?
Although the odds of being involved in a deadly accident are relatively low, experts say a crash like the one in New York City can remind drivers to get enough of the right insurance coverage and to put safety first.
“About two-thirds of all car crashes don’t involve injury, so the most common type of crash is a fender-bender with no injury,” says Carole Walker, executive director of the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. “However, those catastrophic crashes do happen.”
Even though you’re much more likely to be involved in a small accident than a big one, experts say it pays to think about the what-ifs.
“You don’t have to scare yourself, but you should be thinking about what could happen and if you have the coverage you need,” Walker says.
Insurance for the worst-case scenario
Here are six tips on auto, health and life insurance coverage to protect yourself and your family in case of a what-if tragedy:
1. Carry enough auto insurance.
“Don’t cut corners,” Walker says. “Along with liability coverage, uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is really a priority – and most people carry the same amount as for liability. If you’re in a crash with an uninsured motorist and you’re injured … the chance of you being able to get any money out of them to pay for your medical bills or fix your car is very slim.”
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| The seven victims of the Bronx Zoo crash (clockwise from top left): Maria Nunez-Gonzalez and daughter Jazlyn, Marlyn Nunez-Rosario and mother Maria and sister Naily, and Jacob Nunez and wife Ana Julia. |
2. Get under an “umbrella.”
Consider an umbrella policy, which will give you liability coverage above the limits of your auto insurance policy, experts recommend. “You may think it’s too expensive, but a liability umbrella policy for your home and vehicle can give you that extra protection if you’re driving all the neighborhood kids around and you cause a crash,” Walker says.
3. Add medical coverage.
In some states, it’s optional to buy medical payments coverage as part of your auto insurance policy. The coverage typically can be purchased in per-person limits of $ 5,000, $ 10,000, or $ 25,000 – and sometimes higher – and covers up to that amount in medical bills for each person in your vehicle, says John Gaglione, a Farmers Insurance agent in Illinois.
Experts say this coverage makes sense even if you already have health insurance because it can pay the bills while you’re awaiting a settlement – if another driver was at fault – and it can protect your passengers.
“How would you feel if you’re taking your son or daughter and one of the kids down the street to a Little League game and you get into an accident and find out that child has no health insurance?” Gaglione says.
4. Save enough money to pay your health insurance deductible.
In addition to having health insurance with a reputable company, it’s a good idea to put aside enough money to cover your deductible, experts recommend.
“Today, it’s not uncommon to see $ 2,000, $ 5,000 or $ 10,000 deductibles,” Gaglione says. If a moderate-income person doesn’t have enough money in the bank to pay a deductible, “they’re going to be in a hard spot,” he says. Health insurers sometimes do not allow medical payments coverage from an auto insurer to be put toward a health insurance deductible.
5. Pass up specialized life insurance.
Burial insurance, credit card life insurance and mortgage life insurance are almost always a bad deal, says Tony Steuer, author of the book “Questions and Answers on Life Insurance.”
“There are all kinds of little gimmicks like that,” says Steuer, who says accidental death-and-dismemberment insurance is one of the worst buys.
Instead, he recommends buying adequate amounts of regular term life insurance for both spouses in a family – and tacking on enough to cover funeral costs and other expenses. Steuer says: “That way, you’re covered – you don’t have to guess how you’re going to die.”
6. Re-examine your life insurance coverage yearly.
“The problem with doing insurance planning is there are so many unforeseen changes that can tweak numbers one way or another. You’re always hitting a moving target, so try to do the best you can,” Steuer says.
Tragedy in the Bronx
On the afternoon of Sunday, April 29, Maria Nunez-Gonzalez was driving to a family gathering near her home with six passengers: her 10-year-old daughter; her parents, both in their 80s, who were visiting from the Dominican Republic; her sister; and two nieces, age 7 and 3. She was driving in the left lane of New York City’s Bronx River Parkway when her Honda Pilot SUV struck the middle barrier, then skidded across three lanes of traffic, hit a curb and flew over a guardrail – landing upside down in a wooded area at the edge of the Bronx Zoo. Everyone in the vehicle was killed.
A spokesman for AAA New York says a dangerous road likely contributed to the crash. “The roadway has got a lot of bad features – it’s got narrow lanes, it’s very twisty and hilly with blind curves and blind hills,” AAA spokesman Robert Sinclair says.
The Bronx River Parkway was built in 1925, before modern engineering emerged. Sinclair says the stretch of roadway where the crash occurred – which also has been the site of several other serious accidents – lacks a shoulder, has on- and off-ramps that are too short and features a pedestrian walkway protected by a rounded curb.
“Engineers say you don’t put curbs by the side of a high-speed roadway,” Sinclair says. “They can serve as a sort of launching pad, and that appears to be what happened.”
Staying safe on the road
While drivers sometimes must travel on treacherous roadways, experts say they can take steps to reduce the risk of – or the severity of – a crash.
First, it’s a good idea to choose a vehicle that handles well, says Sinclair, who test drives vehicles for AAA’s Car&Travel magazine.
“I always stress good handling, precise steering, good brakes,” Sinclair says. “A vehicle that holds the road well goes a long way to help mitigate bad factors on the roads.”
Russ Rader, a spokesman for the nonprofit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, recommends buying a vehicle that has earned good crash test ratings from the institute and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Crashes happen unexpectedly – so make sure you have the best protection,” Rader says.
Second, it’s important to obey posted speed limits even if other drivers are whizzing past you, experts say.
In fact, New York police said speed likely was a factor in the Bronx crash, as Nunez-Gonzalez was driving 68 miles per hour in a 50 mph zone.
“If you’re on an interstate highway and drivers around you are traveling above the posted speed limit, go into the slow lane. If people are still driving faster, they need to go around you,” says Jacob Nelson, director of traffic safety, advocacy and research at AAA. “Legally – even in the passing lane — you are not supposed to break the speed limit.”
Increased speed means increased risk, according to Rader.
“When you raise your speed, you’re increasing the likelihood of a crash because your ability to respond to an emergency, the amount of time you have to respond to an emergency, is less, and if a crash happens, it’s more severe,” Rader says.
Jason Beans
Q: On the campaign trail, Republican presidential candidates have talked about getting rid of “ObamaCare.” What will happen with health care if a Republican becomes president and “ObamaCare” is dismantled?
A: In theory, talking about the “dismantling” of ObamaCare is a powerful sound bite for a Republican politician. But in reality, it’s not a foregone conclusion. Many factors could come into play to prevent that from happening. Here are three very real scenarios:
1. Full repeal — To “repeal” a law requires the passage of a new law. If the U.S. Senate remains controlled by Democrats, it could be hard — if not impossible — to “repeal” the federal health care reform law. Remember how hard it was for Democrats to pass the law in the first place, with a majority in the House and Senate and a Democrat in the White House? If any of those branches would have been in Republican control, the law would have not have passed. A full repeal likely would face the same hurdles.
2. Attack approach — A likely, effective tactic would be to attack unpopular sections of the law or to not allocate money to carry out the law. Wielding control over the law’s financial mechanisms would make effective implementation of the law virtually impossible.
3. Review requirement — In June 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to rule on the constitutionality of the law. The key provision being reviewed is the mandate for most Americans to buy health insurance. Without this requirement, ObamaCare would be financially indefensible; therefore, this Supreme Court ruling is critical.
Many of the requirements and costs of the health care reform law have been pushed to the state level. As they await the Supreme Court ruling, some states are behind on carrying out the requirements or have not even started. Furthermore, some states lack the funding to carry out the requirements. Stay tuned.
Jason Beans is CEO of Chicago-based Rising Medical Solutions, a medical cost containment/care management company serving the workers’ compensation, group health, auto and liability markets. Beans founded Rising in 1999. Since then, Beans has received a number of honors, including Business Council Advisory Man of the Year and Midwest finalist for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Rising has appeared several times on the Private Company Index’s Top 10 Growth list and Inc. magazine’s Inc. 5000 list.
Beans earned a master’s degree from MIT’s Entrepreneurial Masters Program and a bachelor’s degree in finance from Boston College.
For more information, visit www.risingms.com.
If you have a health insurance question for Jason Beans, please send it to john.egan@insurancequotes.com.
Lori Johnston
For decades, Sam Donaldson reported the news as a correspondent for ABC. In 1995, however, he made news: The veteran journalist underwent surgery to treat melanoma, more commonly known as skin cancer.
In 2012 alone, more than 76,000 Americans will be diagnosed with melanoma, according to projections from the National Cancer Institute, and nearly 9,200 Americans who have the disease will die. Patients, health insurance companies and others spend hundreds of millions of dollars each year to treat skin cancer.
The 78-year-old Donaldson long ago recovered from melanoma. These days, he’s shedding light on the disease as an honorary member of the Melamona Research Center Advisory Board at Philadelphia’s The Wistar Institute.
Donaldson spoke with InsuranceQuotes.com about his bout with cancer and his support of melanoma research and funding.
InsuranceQuotes.com: When you learned you had cancer, you thought you were going to die and had three months to live. What would you tell people who have the same reaction when they learn they have skin cancer?
Sam Donaldson: Well, I’d say I didn’t know what I was talking about. I’m still kicking and had no recurrence. What I would say to people who have a bout of melanoma, whether it’s lesions or whether it’s lymph nodes involved, is it’s not a death sentence. You’re probably going to be all right.
InsuranceQuotes.com: How did your aggressive reporting style affect how you researched skin cancer and your medical options?
Donaldson: Once I discovered from a competent medical authority that I wasn’t going to necessarily die, the next day I delved into it. For instance, there’s a huge two-volume book (“Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology”) that oncologists use. I immediately went to that book at the time and I started reading the charts. I began to look into, “What are the possibilities, what are the treatments?”
InsuranceQuotes.com: What were some of your options?
Donaldson: When I was diagnosed, one of the big problems was “What do you do after they removed the lymph nodes and looked at the tissue, and pronounced the rest of it clean, and basically you went home?”
Now, in those days, there was one FDA-approved therapy. Dr. John Kirkwood was using interferon. I called him up. He was very honest. He said it’s a yearlong treatment, so for the first month, you will feel like you had a bad flu, and for the rest of the time, you have less energy than you normally have and you won’t quite feel up to par. I said, ‘Well, what does that do for me?” He said, “According to our tests and our studies and our field trials that the FDA has looked at, we give you about a 26 percent chance … of a one-year delay in the return of the disease and, therefore, a year of immortality.” So I’m thinking, “Spend the year under the weather, not working so hard… get an extra year.” I don’t know if that’s a great tradeoff, so I didn’t do anything” (in terms of choosing treatment after the surgery, which removed the cancerous lymph nodes and tumor from his right groin).
InsuranceQuotes.com: Why is more funding needed for cancer treatment research and ultimately finding a cure?
Donaldson: At the moment, the National Institutes of Health can only fund 11 percent of peer-reviewed proposals. If one of those funded is the right one and can show that what worked in the rats works on us, then it’s great, but that’s not very good odds. What about the (remaining) 89 percent? Maybe one of them has the one that works on the rats, but we don’t know if it works on us because we don’t have enough money. To cut cancer research is stupid, but they’re trying to do it.
InsuranceQuotes.com: What are promising strides that you see?
Donaldson: There are new drugs that clearly are beneficial to cancer patients in many respects. However, immunotherapy — the people who believe in that, and I happen to be one of them — is seeing great strides already. Patients are responding. They’re getting up to a 70 percent response to melanoma tumors with new therapies. … No one is yelling cure yet, but it is very, very promising.
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What is the best health insurance after separation from the military?
May 12th, 2012
Question by Michael C: What is the best health insurance after separation from the military?
What is the best health insurance after separation from the military?
I am pretty healthy, and for now I’m looking to stay cheap and just cover all the bases. I’m not married, but adding a spouse eventually is important.
Best answer:
Answer by david t
Check out clarkhoward.com. He has two insurances for his pick as best, one of which is just for veterans.
What do you think? Answer below!
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Auto Insurance and Homeowners Insurance From Chandler Insurance Agency
May 3rd, 2012
Do you live in Greenville, South Carolina and are you looking for auto insurance, homeowner’s insurance, life insurance, business insurance or any of the many insurance policy coverage types you may require? If so let Chandler insurance agency, a Division of Correll Insurance Group help you out – www.correllinsurance.com Since it’s birth in 1945 Chandler Insurance has continued to grow and serve the upstate of South Carolina. Chandler Insurance is a Trusted Choice® independent insurance agency committed to providing you a comprehensive insurance program that includes quality homeowners, car, and business insurance products at competitive prices. Throughout the years, Chandler Insurance has helped members of the community safely and confidently enjoy the vibrant Greenville culture and spectacular outdoor lifestyle. We’re able to provide coverage for unique and sophisticated needs, such as high-value home insurance, second home insurance, and watercraft or ATV insurance. Were located @ 3449 Pelham Road Greenville, SC 29615 Below, you’ll find some of the many insurance categories we provide. # Car insurance # Commercial auto insurance # Homeowners insurance, including high-value homes # Vacation and second home insurance # Watercraft, ATV, RV, and motorcycle insurance # Flood Insurance # Umbrella policies # Renters insurance # Business insurance # Group health plans # Workers’ compensation insurance # Property and liability insurance # Errors and omissions insurance # Life …
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More IUL Choices for More Clients From Pacific Life Insurance Company
May 2nd, 2012
More IUL Choices for More Clients From Pacific Life Insurance Company
ALISO VIEJO, CA, May 02, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — Indexed universal life insurance (IUL)(1) sales have more than doubled since 2008.(2) To further address the needs of buyers in this expanding market, Pacific Life Insurance Company introduced …
Read more on MarketWatch (press release)
Online Insurance Marketplace Site Announces New Feature, Online Videos
Online Insurance Marketplace Announces New, Online Videos on (www.onlineinsurancemarketplace.com) Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) May 02, 2012 Online Insurance Marketplace, the premiere site for life insurance saving tips for no medical exam insurance …
Read more on San Francisco Chronicle (press release)
Colonial Life Launches New Group Term Life Product
COLUMBIA, SC, May 02, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Employers now have a new life insurance product to offer their employees. With life insurance ownership at an all-time low in the US(1), Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company's new group term life …
Read more on MarketWatch (press release)
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CATEX News April 10, 2012: Radioactive iodine from Japanese nuclear disaster found off US West Coast
April 18th, 2012
Alternative world and financial news for the risk industry; encompasses coverage of real time events likely to lead to eventual insurance and reinsurance claims. Interviews with newsmakers. News of potential claim events for the insurance and reinsurance industry including updates on wars, catastrophes, plane crashes, ship sinkings, earthquakes, profit warnings, product recalls, hurricanes, tsunamis and any natural or manmade event having an impact on insured risks worldwide. 1. Radioactive iodine from Japanese nuclear disaster found off US West Coast 2. Rescue operation to save trapped miners in Peru 3. Storm hit Fiji slow to recover 4. Texas storm losses in tens of millions 5. 100 years after Titanic fears of large cruise disaster
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Obama gets MSNBC to fire Matthews and Oberman from election coverage. Is the Obama campaign in damage control ?
April 14th, 2012
Question by Obama Bin Biden: Obama gets MSNBC to fire Matthews and Oberman from election coverage. Is the Obama campaign in damage control ?
mode?
I wonder if Matthews still feels that tingle up his leg?
ROFLMAO!
HAHAHAH OHHH HAHAHAH HEE HEEE HEEEE 2 more programs go the way of Air America!
Best answer:
Answer by ARLENE B
I’m not sure it’s Obama who requests that they be fired. That could be another Dem. ploy to make him look “good”. They’ve done stuff like this throughout the whole campaign. Let’s face it, he’s running scared. Thank God!
McCain/Palin 2008
Add your own answer in the comments!
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Learning from Disasters
April 5th, 2012
Learning from Disasters
List Price: $ 62.00
Price: $ 49.99
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What’s the limit on what you can earn from a disaster State Farm insurance in SD?
April 5th, 2012
Question by turtleman924: What’s the limit on what you can earn from a disaster State Farm insurance in SD?
My house was damaged by a tornado (severely). State farm offers $ 25 an hour for cleanup and repairs the customer makes on the house.
My total was $ 250.
Is there a cap on how much you can earn?
There are other people who earned money too. So is the cap only per person? Or does it go for everyone?
And I’m not doing repairs, I’m just cleaning up debris. And by my house I meant my parents house. I’m 13. Apparently there is no age limit.
Best answer:
Answer by Smokies Hiker
Very likely there is a cap. I’m sure that they took photos when they came to inspect the damage. If you attempt to turn in excessive time for cleanup or repair of the damages, they will produce their photos of the event and an estimate from contractors to do a cleanup and repair job like yours. They took the photos as proof of what type of structure you had and the type of materials used for the construction. You should be getting your information from State Farm so you know what’s going on!
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
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Can I claim my $500 deductable from home owners/flood insurance on my taxes?
March 30th, 2012
Question by deoarby: Can I claim my 0 deductable from home owners/flood insurance on my taxes?
We had a basement flood and had to cough up a $ 500 deductable. Can I claim it on my taxes? Any other tips on my tax return & floods?
Best answer:
Answer by Ryan M
Nope….casualty losses require you to eat the first $ 1,000 that comes out of your pocket.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
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1968 Farmers’ Almanac from the Home Insurance Company
March 22nd, 2012
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