Insurance Company, Choosing An
Consideration should be given to a company's capacity to underwrite a particular risk, as indicated by its financial standing, claims philosophy, price structure, agent representation, loss prevention and reduction services, and risk analysis expertise. Information can be gained in several ways:
- Reputation a prospective insured can fairly easily learn something about an insurance company through business and professional associates (lawyer, accountant, banker), through conversations with others in the same field, and by discussions with agents and brokers.
- Financial capacity larger businesses and public libraries often have up-to-date reference books, such as Best's Insurance Reports(available in Life-Health and Property-Casualty editions) giving detailed analyses of hundreds of companies.
- State Insurance Department information about specific insurance companies may be available from the insurance departments located in state capitals.
Popular Insurance Terms
Same as term Underwriting Gain Loss): profit ( deficit) that remains after paying claims and expenses. Insurers generate profits from underwriting and from investment income. Their chief ...
Clause added to an insurance policy providing waiver of premium (WP) if the premium payer dies or becomes disabled. For example, this option is available on insurance policies on a child's ...
Named peril policy is how it’s called in the Real Estate Industry the insurance policies that specify the perils it covers. Under a named peril policy, if anything that isn’t ...
Policy provision that provides coverage for continuing payroll expense of all employees of an insured business (except for officers and executives) for the first specified number of days of ...
Minimum degree of injury or loss for which an injured party can sue, even though covered by no fault automobile insurance. Traditionally, an accident victim had to prove the other driver ...
In life insurance, the exchange of a series of installment payments, as the result of an installment settlement, for a lump sum distribution. ...
Percentage of total assets set aside by an insurance company to provide for unexpected losses. In general, a minimum of a 5% surplus ratio (5 cents in reserve for each $1 of assets) is ...
Separate trust established by a charitable entity whose purpose is to receive contributions from numerous donors. All the donors' contributions are commingled. Each donor can retain a ...
Specific date determined by the Internal Revenue Service on which a beneficiary has received a death benefit from an insurance company, an annuitant has received an income benefit, or a ...

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