We all know that auto insurance is necessary while we have a car, but did you ever hear of short term car insurance? This is generally also known as temporary insurance cover is an insurance policy that exists for a short period, about one month – 28 days to be precise. There may be circumstances when you need short term car insurance, like occasions when your car has gone to the garage and you need to borrow your friend’s car to go to an important meeting out of town. You may even be planning a vacation with your family and would like to hire a motor van to move about; short term car insurance comes in very handy at such times. Look at it from the other angle too – your friend may need to borrow your car for a few days, you can suggest that he gets covered with short term car insurance.

Normally all short term policies are comprehensive and are available from the insurance companies at very short notice too. Moreover, a temporary car insurance policy does not disturb the no-claim bonus benefits available on normal auto insurance. So even if your car is having a normal comprehensive auto insurance policy, your friend who would like to borrow your car can still apply for a temporary car insurance coverage for a few days. Take for example a situation where you decide to go on a vacation to one of the picturesque sea resorts and hire a car during the tenure of your stay in order to move around comfortably in the nearby areas. You can just call up the nearest insurance provider who would be willing to provide you with short termed auto insurance on the vehicle that you took on hire.

Some of the major insurance companies provide added benefits to temporary auto insurance policy holders like temporary break down cover, uninsured loss recovery and cover valid throughout the country even if you happen to travel a short distance.

Students and new would-be car owners are well advised to opt for a short term car insurance if they are contemplating a purchase of a new car, since that would be required if the prospective owner would like to have a test drive of the car to finally decide which car to go in for.

By: Robert Linley

If you have plans to rent a car for a short period of time you are going to want car insurance to cover you in case of an accident, but you don’t want long term coverage that last years where you pay a set monthly fee, you are going to want short term car insurance.

While short term auto insurance is great for renting a car there are some disadvantages to purchasing the insurance for your everyday vehicle. One problem you face when purchasing short term car insurance is the price. You can pay up to a hundred or more dollars for renting a vehicle over a period of time, or if you are renting a high end vehicle.

Besides the cost there is the limit in coverage choices. you are given a set amount of coverage that covers your basic proposed accidents, which limits you in those estranged car accidents.

With the price at a set once time no refund fee and the limit in coverage you are going to have to pay more money the longer you have the car. Insurance with your regular everyday motor vehicle will cost you so much per month, but with short term car insurance the longer you have the vehicle the more it is going to cost to insure.

Overall temporary auto insurance isn’t really a bad thing if you are in the right situation, but if you are in any other situation besides the two day rental car you will be faced with extra fees and limited coverage.

By: Robert H. Jones

What is Supplemental Group Term Life Insurance?

Supplemental group term life insurance is an added benefit if you are already covered under a group policy through your employer. Usually group coverage is not as comprehensive as you may desire as policies are written according to what would benefit the group as a whole. As an individual with a family of your own, you may have different needs that are not covered through a group plan. If you find yourself in this position, buying a supplemental term life policy would be a wise decision.

An employee is eligible for supplemental term life insurance if he or she performs all of their regular duties on a full-time basis (check with your employer as some companies consider “full-time” as 17.5 hours or more while other companies require you work the full 40 hour weeks). Again, you must already be covered under your company’s basic group term life insurance policy. Spouses and dependent children are also eligible for coverage if you buy a policy of your own.

What are the Benefits to Adding a Supplement?

There are a couple of benefits to purchasing supplemental term life insurance. The first is a waiver of premium. If you become completely disabled prior to your 65th birthday, the insurance company will continue to keep your policy intact and active until you become 65 years old. The stipulation is that your disability must last for nine consecutive months before the benefit can begin. If your disability continues indefinitely, the insurance company will not collect any further payments of premium from you. An individual is considered “totally disabled” when that individual is unable to work at any occupation collecting wages because of injury or illness. You must also provide proof of continuing disability annually.

A second benefit to taking out a supplemental term life insurance policy is the Accelerated Living benefit. If an individual is diagnosed with a terminal illness and given only 12 months or less to live, that individual may apply for a percentage of their combined basic group and supplemental term life insurance policies. The percentage is usually paid in a lump sum. Check with your carrier, as the benefit is usually 50% of the active face value amounts or $50,000.00, whichever is less. While an employee and their spouse are eligible for the accelerated living benefits, children of the employee are not. In most cases, coverage is portable — which means you can take your coverage with you if you retire, reduce your hours or change jobs.

The only exclusion is the standard waiver of benefit payment should the employee or their spouse/dependents commit suicide within the first two years that the policy came into effect. Check with your carrier as in some states this exclusion applies to both sane and insane individuals while some states only the sane.

How Age Affects Your Policy

While premiums for supplemental term life insurance are literally just a couple to a few dollars per month, the rates are affected by age. The premium is based on attained age and then increases at various steps. You would have to check with your carrier for their specific criteria. Age 70 is a defining milestone for supplemental term life insurance policies.

Beginning at age 70, your coverage is reduced to 65% of original certificate face value.

Beginning at age 75, you coverage is reduced to 45% of original certificate face value.

Beginning at age 80, your coverage is reduced to 30% of original certificate face value.

One thing to keep in mind is that spousal coverage terminates at age 70. If the premiums are current, your spouse may choose to convert their individual coverage to a term life insurance policy of their own. Your dependents may also choose to convert their policies after their dependent status expires. They can obtain term life insurance policies in the amount of $25,000.00 or $50,000.00.

Supplemental term life insurance is a wonderful benefit as you can give your family an additional benefit of up to $270,000.00.

By: Sharon Taylor