Five Crazy But Common Car Insurance Exclusions
Five Crazy But Common Car Insurance Exclusions
You buy your car insurance, you glance at the policy documents, and you assume you’re covered for all eventualities where your car is stolen or damaged. Think again.
Read through your policy documents in detail. Some insurers don’t cover injuries to passengers aged over 75. Others won’t pay out if your car is stolen by someone who deceives you into handing over your keys. A small number won’t cover damage to your car that’s caused in a road rage incident. It’s common industry practice not to provide gap insurance, so if your car is written off or stolen, you won’t receive the full amount you paid when you bought your car.
Every car insurance policy includes some exclusions. Many of the exclusions would be extremely frustrating if they happened to you, and you then discovered that you’re not covered by your insurance firm. Some of them are downright crazy. Five of the most crazy but common car insurance exclusions are:
1. Nuclear Fallout
If Britain was wiped out by a nuclear bomb and you managed to survive, you wouldn’t receive a pay out from your insurer for the damage caused to your car. This is not only because the insurance firm will probably have been destroyed in the blast; it’s because it’s standard practice for motor insurance policies to exclude damage caused by nuclear fallout.
The same applies if your local nuclear power plant explodes and destroys your car, or if your car is contaminated by radioactive waste: you will not be compensated for the damage caused.
Currently this exclusion applies to policies bought from almost all the major motor insurance firms, including Admiral, Direct Line, Aviva, Churchill, Saga, Prudential, Sheila’s Wheels, and Co-operative Insurance to name a few.
2. UFOs
Most car insurance firms will not pay out if your car is damaged by pressure waves from aircraft travelling at or beyond the speed of sound. This includes damage caused by sonic and supersonic UFOs from outer space.
If you are zapped by an alien laser-beam while driving on the motorway, your insurance firm is unlikely to cover your injuries or the damage to your car. This is because such aggression would be considered an act of war. Car insurance firms usually exclude cover for damage caused by war, civil war, acts of a foreign enemy, or revolution.
Currently this exclusion applies to policies bought from almost all major car insurance firms, including Direct Line, Aviva, Admiral, Churchill, Saga, Prudential, Sheila’s Wheels, and LV=.
3. Car Stolen by Jealous Husband or Wife
Motor insurers will not provide cover if your car is taken without your permission by any member of your household or family. This includes your spouse or partner, your children, your parents or a lodger in your home. The only exception to this rule is if you report your car as stolen to the police, and prosecute the person who took your car in court.
Currently this exclusion applies to policies bought from almost all major motor insurance firms, including Direct Line, Admiral, Co-operative Insurance, Sheila’s Wheels, and LV=.
4. Earthquakes
Fortunately for us Brits, the UK is not prone to earthquakes or tremors. However, were the worst to happen and the ground opened up and swallowed your car, or even if a less violent earthquake shattered your windscreen, it’s probable that your insurer would refuse to pay out.
A small but significant number of car insurance firms do not cover for damage caused by earthquakes. Admiral is the most notable insurer with this exception. Other insurers who refuse cover for earthquakes include Saga, Prudential, and Sheila’s Wheels.
As well as looking out for earthquakes, remember to check your insurance policy documents for the phrase “acts of God”. Sheila’s Wheels breakdown service, for example, cannot be held liable if they leave you stranded by the roadside because of an “act of God”.
5. Blind Drivers
Unsurprisingly, there is not a single insurance firm who will provide cover for drivers who can’t see. This is never stated explicitly in insurance policy documents, but insurance companies cover their backs by saying they won’t pay out for claims resulting from damage caused by “unlicensed drivers”.
Being unable to get insurance or a licence wasn’t enough to stop one blind person from getting behind the steering wheel. In 2006, 31-year-old Omed Aziz was banned from driving for three years and given a suspended jail sentence after police caught him driving on the wrong side of the road.
This exclusion seems to apply to policies bought from almost all motor insurance firms.
How do you make sure you’ve got the best possible insurance cover for your car? Firstly, don’t just choose a policy based on price. Research what’s covered and what’s excluded by each company you’re considering. Secondly, if the level of cover you want isn’t available from standard car insurance firms, consider taking out extra insurance, such as gap insurance, from a specialist insurer.
Car insurance exclusions are usually not that hard to find, you just need to have a look at the rarely-read policy documents.
To be sure you’re not hit by a nasty surprise when you need to make a claim, make some time to read through policy documents when choosing your car insurance. Most insurance firms make their policy documents available online as a free download.
Comprehensive and Collision Insurances
If there is something important to discuss about cars, it usually has something to do with insurance. Although some of us may consider it unnecessary, insurance is something you should never forget about. Comprehensive and collision insurances are two of the types of insurance that both offer room for savings during unfortunate car incidents.
Although one of them is not really required, drivers usually purchase both types of insurance to protect their vehicles from a wider range of situations. Comprehensive auto insurance is suggested to all drivers for situations which are not covered by collision insurance. If your car is old and potentially has a low resale value, you can probably get by without comprehensive insurance. Needless to say, any car owner cannot possibly drive a car without any insurance at all.
Getting a comprehensive insurance policy is more strictly enforced in many states compared with collision insurance. When procuring a car loan, it would be wise to consider collision and comprehensive auto insurance packages. In the unfortunate event that the car is damaged, the insurance policies should cover the repair fees. These insurance policies help protect the lending institution from fraud or abuse. Lenders require borrowers to have these insurance policies for their loan to get approved.
Of all the types of comprehensive insurance, comprehensive auto insurance offered by Dodge Edmonton dealerships is the most common. It can cover everything except collision damages. Collision insurance, on the other hand, is intended to cover multiple collisions and collision with uninsured motorists. Such insurance also includes services such as towing, storage, and salvage if the car has been badly damaged from the accident.
The standard amount of deductibles in comprehensive and collision insurance packages offered by Dodge Edmonton dealerships is $500. The insured party always requests to increase or decrease the deductibles in a case to case basis. Take note that the higher the deductible is, the lower the comprehensive insurance premium will be required.
When applying for comprehensive and collision insurance, you have to provide several pieces of information such as driver’s age, yearly mileage, area in which the car is driven, and initial value of the car. Always check the insurance policy’s fine print before signing it. You can always visit any Dodge Edmonton dealership to discuss which of the two insurance is best for your car.
[Top]Getting Cost- Effective Auto Insurance in Los Angeles
Summary: California residents are known to pay some of the biggest rates when it comes to auto insurance in United States. Henceforth, all those who reside in Los Angeles are no exception.
California residents are known to pay some of the biggest rates when it comes to auto insurance in United States. Henceforth, all those who reside in Los Angeles are no exception. We all have a goal to keep the insurance rates as low as possible and thus you would have to access the level of coverage, just to make sure that you do not end up being over-insured. The next step after this important assessment would be to compare auto insurance rates from different companies in Los Angeles in order to pick the best rates for you.
Los Angeles is believed to have one of the highest accident ratios in United States and ironically also has the biggest percentage of uninsured drivers. Therefore, it would be mandatory to acquire auto insurance in Los Angeles.
Every state sets a minimum level of auto insurance coverage for all the drivers and thence it becomes extremely important to study the state laws before getting yourself insured. A lot of companies provide you with more auto coverage then you actually need. So it is essential to know your state laws and requirements before applying for quotes from various auto insurance companies in Los Angeles.
People buy all kinds of insurance with the intention of protecting their assets and in cases if you do not own a lot then getting the minimum level of coverage required by the law would be sufficient. On the other hand, if you own a home or land or any other property then it would be highly proactive to take necessary steps to protect these assets from any legal action in you are involved in an accident at any given time.
There are a few ways which can help you keep your Los Angeles auto insurance down. One of them is if you own an older vehicle that has been reduced in value; you could easily cancel your collision insurance. What happens in this case is that such coverage pays only for the damage of your vehicles, regardless of whose fault it was. Here, if your car is fully paid for then you may perhaps be better off by buying a new vehicle all together if your car is severely damaged.
If you happen to be in a situation where you are paying loan payments on your car, a lot of these lenders in the Los Angeles auto insurance market would want to ensure that your collision insurance is bought so that they get paid too if there is any loss.
However, once your vehicle is paid in full and you continue to pay the same amount of premium for auto insurance with less coverage, the insurance company will pay for the repairs after the accident up to the value of your vehicle at the time of the accident. This amount will be higher then what you originally bought the vehicle for. To conclude with, there are loads of strategies that can help you acquire cheaper rates in a Los Angeles auto insurance market. All you need to know is your state laws and research the quotes accordingly.
Author Bio: If you need an insurance but need more information to auto insurance then you can get related information to Cheap Auto Insurance, Los Angeles Auto insurance Then this article helps you to find a good insurance product.
[Top]General Insurance Companies In India – An Excellent Introduction
The full basic Insurance carriers In India business was nationalised by Authorities of India (GOI) with the General Insurance plan Small business (Nationalisation) Act (GIBNA) of 1972. 55 Indian insurance firms and 52 other basic insurance coverage operations of other firms were nationalized through the act.
In India, insurance features a deep-rooted heritage. Insurance in numerous types continues to be pointed out during the writings of Manu (Manusmrithi), Yagnavalkya (Dharmashastra) and Kautilya (Arthashastra). The basic foundation of the historical reference to insurance coverage in these ancient Indian texts is identical i.e. pooling of sources that might be re-distributed in times of calamities including hearth, floods, epidemics and famine. The early references to Insurance policies in these texts has reference to maritime trade financial loans and carriers’ contracts.
The overall Insurance policies Corporation of India (GIC) was shaped in pursuance of Part 9(1) of GIBNA. It had been integrated on 22 November 1972 underneath the companies Act, 1956 to be a non-public company restricted by shares. GIC was shaped to manage and run the enterprise of common insurance in India.
The GOI transferred every one of the assets and functions from the nationalized typical insurers to GIC along with other public-sector insurance providers. Following a process of mergers and consolidation, GIC was re-organized with four entirely owned subsidiary corporations: Nationwide Insurance policies Enterprise Confined, New India Assurance Corporation Minimal, Oriental Insurance plan Business Confined and United India Insurance coverage Enterprise Limited.
GIC and its subsidiaries had a monopoly to the common insurance policy enterprise in India right until the landmark Insurance plan Regulatory and Improvement Authority Act (IRDA Act) of 1999 came into result on 19 April 2000. This act also amended the GIBNA Act and Insurance Act of 1938. The act as well as the amendments finished the monopoly of GIC and its subsidiaries and liberalized the insurance coverage small business in India.
In November 2000, GIC was renotified as India’s Reinsurer, but its supervisory purpose about its subsidiaries was ended. This was adopted because of the Common Insurance coverage Company (Nationalisation) Modification Act of 2002. Coming into influence from 21 March 2003, this modification ended GIC’s function as a keeping enterprise of its subsidiaries. The possession on the subsidiaries was transferred into the Government of India, which in turn divested its stake while in the companies through listings on Indian inventory exchanges.
Consequently of such reforms, GIC became the only Re-Insurer in India, and it is now called GIC Re. Indian insurance firms are needed by regulation to cede 10% of each policy price to GIC Re, subject matter to some constraints and exceptions. GIC Re has diversified its functions and is particularly now emerging being an significant Re-Insurer in SAARC nations, Southeast Asia, Center East and Africa. GIC Re has also expanded its global operations as a result of branches in London and Moscow.
GIC Re contains a rating of A- (Fantastic) from the. M. Best for its fiscal energy.
[Top]Impact Of Health Care Legislation Hr 3962 On The Outsourcing Industry
President Barack Obama had a hard won victory on Saturday night (the 7-8th day of November 2009) when the landmark health care reform legislation (HR 3962) was passed with 220-215 votes. Now if everything goes the Obama way, then by the end of the year 09 Affordable Health Care for America Act would apply as a law impacting almost fifty million US lives. But what does this Act actually imply? How does it stand to impact an average US life? How does the Act affect the outsourcing industry at large? Through my article below I endeavor to answer these and many more questions.
Ab-initio we will refresh the fundamentals of federalism, stating the Roles, Duties, Nature, Scope and Restrictions on the government in a written federal constitution. Next we proceed to see whether the above attempt by the federal government to accede healthcare legislation is ultra-vires the powers granted by the US Constitution.
What is Federalism?
According to the traditional classification followed by the political scientists, constitutions are either unitary or federal. In a unitary constitution, the powers of the government are centralized in one government viz., the Central Government. In the federal constitution, on the contrary, there is a division of power between the federal and the state governments in a way that they are both inter-dependent and independent at the same time.
As we all know that Constitutions are organic documents which operate as fundamental law. The governments and their organs owe their origin to the constitution, derive their authority from the constitution and discharge their responsibilities within the framework of the constitution. The judiciary has the power to declare a law unconstitutional if the law is found to have contravened any provision of the constitution. The American Constitution is the oldest and a well praised example of federalism.
What are the powers granted by the US Constitution to the State Government?
Powers reserved for State Governments are:
Establishing local governments
Issuing licenses (driver, hunting, marriage, etc.)
Regulating intrastate commerce
Conducting elections
Ratifying amendments to the U.S. Constitution
Providing for public health and safety
Exercising powers which are neither delegated to the Federal Government nor were prohibited from the States by the Federal Constitution (residuary powers)
Framing other domestic law (for example, setting legal drinking and smoking ages etc.)
What are the powers granted by the US Constitution to the Federal Government?
Under the Constitution, powers reserved for the Federal Government are:
Printing of money
Declaration of war
Establishing the armed forces
Entering into treaties with foreign governments
Regulating commerce domestically and internationally
Establishing post offices and issuing postage
Making laws necessary to enforce the Constitution
What are the powers shared by Federal and State Government?
Under the Constitution, the shared, or “concurrent” powers are:
Setting up courts
Creating and collecting taxes
Building highways
Borrowing money
Making and enforcing laws
Chartering banks and corporations
Spending money for the betterment of the general welfare
Acquiring private property with appropriate compensation
What is the HR 3962 Act ?
The HR 3962 Act conceptualizes a new, voluntary, public, long-term care insurance program to help purchase services and support for people who have functional limitations. The Act endeavors to form a new national program to provide affordable coverage for those who cant get health insurance today because of pre-existing conditions. Under this, the insurance companies must spend 85 cents out of every premium dollar on medical services, thereby fostering the expansion of Medicaid and improving the Medicare. Under this, the young adults, till the age 26, are covered within their parents policies.
The Obama administration intends to attain this by creating mandates. As a self-sustaining public insurance option (that is financed not by tax dollars but by insurance premiums), this provides an alternative to and competes with private health insurance companies, on a level playing field. Additionally, the Act intends to eliminate the antitrust exemption for health insurers and medical malpractice insurers thereby fostering competition thus targeting the existing monopolies in the health insurance market. It aims to establish a new mandatory essential benefits package that shall become the minimum quality standard for employer plans, with the passage of time. The package places a cap for annual out-of-pocket spending, at a maximum of $5,000 per individual and $10,000 per family to prevent bankruptcies from medical expenses.
This Act requires the employers to either provide insurance to their employees or contribute to the cost of their coverage through the public plan/exchange, though the small businesses are exempted from this requirement.
Arguments regarding Constitutionality of HR 3962
The legal fraternity is divided between two schools of thought about the constitutionality of the Act. First school believes that the Act is unconstitutional and places reliance on Articles I 8 and V of the US constitution and on Tenth Amendment. They claim that their argument is supported by the celebrated case of MARBURY v. MADISON, 5 U.S. 137 (1803) and some federalist opinions. The second school of thought places reliance on Article I 8 and the celebrated case of McCulloh v. Maryland, 4 Wheaton 316 (1819); Steward Machine Co. v. Davis, 301 U.S. 548 (1937); United States v. Butler, 297 U.S. 1 (1936) and some federalist opinions. An in-toto analysis of these school of thoughts would conclude that the true interpretation of the word general welfare in Article I 8 of the U.S. Constitution can only determine the constitutionality of an Act like HR 3962. Till date the court opinions have been more inclined towards Hamilton (Federalist 33, 83 etc.) and Story rather than Madison (Federalist 41, 45 etc.).
Simply put, when the government mandates welfare as a quid-pro-quo for premiums collected, such welfare translates to nothing but a tax liability for the country men. Such an attempt by the government to regulate insurance sector by masquerading as an industry player is inspired from socialism. I personally feel that socialism is a Marxian concept and may not go well in an economy with capitalist foundations. The good thing is that people all over the world should buy insurance; this however turns bad when the government forces people to do so.
What are the implications of HR 3962 on the Outsourcing industry?
The object clause to the Act states that it is meant to provide affordable, quality health care for all Americans and reduce the growth in health care spending.
In reality, the act is a victim of haste. Ideally if the intention of the Obama administration and the object clause of the Act were actually in-sync then the administration should have awaited a confirmed indication of the end-of-recession. The administration should have first looked at strengthening the fundamentals of the economy, by:
better regulating the existing insurance sector,
improving the US agrarian culture and making the country self sufficient regards its food requirements,
checking the cost-of-living index and
creating more jobs in the private sector.
But if the intention is to make more and more Americans dependant on Federal Government for basic requirements, then the attempt is bang on.
Impact on the outsourcing industry:
Prima-facie it may seem complex but there are clear indications for the outsourcing industry to benefit once the HR 3962 is implemented. The benefit roots from the fact that the employees will become expensive for the employers post this Acts applicability. Now given the very competitive market scenarios, thin profit margin and the inability of the employer to transfer this increased cost to the end consumer, the employer is forced to search for the less costly alternatives. It is needless to say here that the Act magnifies the already existing labor arbitrage opportunities internationally. To appreciate the existing labor arbitrage opportunities you can refer to my older blog post.
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