Insurance Fundi

Glass Insurance

Lawrence — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:21:50 +0000

Why on earth would anyone want to insure glass? If that question just popped into your mind don’t feel bad…judging from the number of enquiries (currently zero) we receive about glass insurance, it’s not top of mind with most business owners! But for certain business owners glass insurance is a must… So who should be looking at this type of cover? If you own any type of retail business such as: a supermarket, a café, a restaurant, an optometrist a hairdresser, or a jewellery store …then just maybe you need to rethink your strategy! In fact, right now, stop what you’re doing and step outside of your business. Take a look at it with a fresh set of eyes. Do you see what I see? How many large glass pane windows do you have facing the street…or what about that set of fancy glass sliding doors you open and close every day? Maybe you’ve had expensive signwriting done on the glass? And what about your shop counters, showcases, signs and mirrors? Now imagine for a moment the cost of having to replace all that glass? And the cost of having all that signwriting redone? Spare a thought for it happening [...] Related posts:

How Much Disability Insurance Can I Take Out?

Brendan — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:22:29 +0000

This is a very good question and one that I get on a fairly regular basis. Before I answer this question, I think it is important to note that you get two types of disability insurance cover. The type that pays out as a lump sum at claim stage (the insured benefit amount) and the type that pays out as a monthly income (better known as an income replacement policy). Lump sum disability insurance benefits are very popular in South Africa and in order to estimate what is an appropriate level of lump sum disability cover to take out in order to cover your salary, it’s suggested that the disability lump sum is converted into an equivalent monthly income. I am going to cover that little calculation later in the blog post for you. You see, we take out disability insurance to protect ourselves against the financial loss we would suffer if we became disabled and couldn’t work. No work means no income. No income equates to a financial loss and that is what we are insuring against. It’s therefore important to note that when taking out any disability insurance cover your income is what is used to determine the [...] Related posts:

What Is An Accidental Death Life Insurance Benefit?

Brendan — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:33:06 +0000

Are all life insurance benefits the same? I guess the best way to answer that question would be to ask another question. Are all motor vehicles the same? While all motor vehicles have wheels and an engine, there is a massive difference between a BMW and a VW Beetle. Granted, fundamentally all motor vehicles serve the same purpose (to get you from point A to point B) but the difference is in the detail. Wouldn’t you agree? The same could be said for life insurance benefits. While designed to serve the same purpose (pay out a lump sum of capital on the death of the insured life), life insurance benefits do differ. Again, the difference is in the detail and in this blog post we are going to look a little more closely at an accidental death life insurance benefit. What are the pros and cons of owning a life insurance benefit like this? So what is the major difference between an accidental death benefit and a traditional life insurance benefit? No prizes for guessing right. An accidental death life insurance benefit will only pay out if the life insured dies as a result of an accident. That means no [...] Related posts:

Gap-Cover For Medical Aid Plans with Hospital Limits

Brendan — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 06:04:08 +0000

In my last blog post I really pushed home the need to take out a medical aid top-up product. The extra in-hospital coverage is essential nowadays and the good news is that the premiums are cheap as chips. Medical aid top-up or gap-cover products cover you for a few different types of risks (depending which product you take out). I’ve spoken about the Pro-Care product offered by Turnberry Insurance group which boosts your in-hospital tariff coverage to 400% regardless of which medical aid you belong to. In this blog post I am going to tackle another great product called Maxi-Care offered by the same guys at Turnberry. This top-up product is a must for those of you that have a capped in-hospital benefit on your medical aid plan. Hold on a second, Brendan. What do you mean by a capped in-hospital benefit? Aren’t all my in-hospital expenses covered by my medical aid? Good question. Let me answer that for you. The first thing you need to understand is that your medical aid plan has two separate benefits aimed at covering two different types of medical costs. The first benefit covers your smaller day-to-day medical expenses like GP visits, flu medication, [...] Related posts:

Time to top-up your medical aid !

Brendan — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:27:14 +0000

In a recent blog post I highlighted the need for medical aid top up cover. Let me tell you that I’ve been blown away by the response the article generated! It’s been overwhelming and I’ve come to the following conclusion: There is obviously a growing need for good information on this subject matter and I need to knuckle down and start writing more blog posts. It’s 06H.30 on a cold Highveld winter’s morning, I’ve got my coffee and I’m sticking to my guns (my hands are so cold, I might need to type this blog post out with my toes. So excuse any typos in the copy, I’m not yet a toe typing expert.) So why the need for a medical aid top-up cover product? It’s really simple. Medical aids are covering less and less of the costs associated with in-hospital procedures. Medical aid premiums are going up each year but the benefits aren’t. Actually in some instances, the benefits are being reduced. That means you and I (the medical aid members) are starting to pick up more and more of the in-hospital bills that our medical aids aren’t prepared to settle in full. I’m afraid to say that this [...] Related posts:

Happy Birthday Brendan!

Lawrence — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:22:52 +0000

09 August 2010 marks a tremendous public holiday in South Africa…Women’s Day! So to all the woman out there we hope you made the most of your day – wherever you find yourself in the world! In terms of Insurancefundi today also marks Brendan’s birthday… I hope that all our clients, friends, and acquaintances will join me in wishing Brendan a fantastic year ahead and may you have many, many more! Here’s wishing you an absolutely fantastic 2010! Copyright © 2010 Insurance Fundi. This Feed is for personal non-commercial use only. If you are not reading this material in your news aggregator, the site you are looking at is guilty of copyright infringement. Please contact legal@www.insurancefundi.co.za so we can take legal action immediately.Plugin by Taragana No related posts. No related posts.

Money Insurance

Lawrence — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:07:33 +0000

As I begin typing this post, the refrains of “Money too tight to mention” (The band – ‘Simply Red’. The year – way too long ago!) come wafting into my brain. How does the song go again? …”We’re talking about money, money!” And while it’s OK to blow money (well sometimes it is!) on totally unnecessary purchases, it’s a whole different ballgame when someone steals it before you get to blowing it! OK, enough of my nonsense…let’s get on with it! And to confuse the matter I thought we’d start off with the bad news for a change… So what risks are not covered when it comes to money insurance? Right now, if you’re a shop owner reading this, you might be rubbing your hands in glee at the prospect of eventually being able to claim for all those till shorts. And let’s be honest…if you work in a cash environment there’s always going to be shortages, right? The first bit of bad news is that shortages are not covered. Dishonesty of employees is also not covered unless…you discover it within a specified time period (Usually 14 days is allowed for this but please check your schedule). A further risk [...] Related posts:

Business Interruption Insurance

Lawrence — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 11:35:04 +0000

If you’re involved in any type of business with fixed monthly overheads…then business interruption insurance should grab your attention. The show must go on… Never before have the lyrics of Queen (the rock music group) had so much meaning! Imagine for a moment owning a large industrial concern with 120 staff. One day a fire breaks out at your premises and the entire factory is razed to the ground. Suddenly you’re sitting with: A massive salary bill, Vehicle payments that need to be made, Water and electricity accounts that need to be paid (never mind your Telkom telephone bill) …and no money coming in with which to pay them all! So what would you do? Dismiss all your staff and declare bankruptcy? Well, if you’re a forward thinking business owner you would have made certain that you had business interruption – also known as ‘loss of profits‘ or ‘consequential loss ‘ – cover in place. The purpose of business interruption cover is simple…it provides indemnity against: Fixed costs – those expenses that continue regardless of your loss of turnover. Also known as ‘standing charges’. Net profit – The net profit that would have been earned had the business not been [...] Related posts:

Office Contents Insurance

Lawrence — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 18:04:44 +0000

So, maybe your business is service based which means you only have offices…or maybe you own a factory with adjacent offices for your accounting and sales staff? And what if you’re an attorney or accountant with trust or mortgage deeds in your possession? Whatever your situation you need office contents insurance! What am I insured for under the office contents section? The office contents section provides indemnity against five different risks. The risks in question are: Loss or damage to contents caused by one of the insured perils Rent payable by you as tenant while the premises are uninhabitable as a result of one of the insured perils. This is limited to 25% of the sum insured. Loss or damage to documents kept at the office (Important for attorneys!) by one of the insured perils. This is limited to the cost of restoring or replacing these documents. Legal liability you might face as a result of loss or damage to important documents in your possession at the time of the loss The increased cost of working in order to maintain the normal operation of the business after loss or damage to the contents by one of the insured perils. This is [...] Related posts:

Buildings Combined Insurance

Lawrence — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 14:41:51 +0000

In my previous post we discussed Fire Insurance or as it is commonly known – Property Insurance. If you can recall we mentioned that under the fire section you can insure: Your buildings Your machinery And your stock in trade So why would you need buildings combined insurance? The truth is that you wouldn’t normally. However, if you make your living as a landlord, then ‘buildings combined’ is an ideal way to insure your building and the various risks you face. So what are the benefits for a landlord? There are three main areas of risk which are provided for with this type of insurance. Damage to buildings, outbuildings fixtures and fittings walls, gates, and fences paved or tarred roads and driveways parking areas sports or recreational structures Loss of rent as a result of the property being so damaged by one of the perils mentioned below that the premises becomes untenantable. Loss of rent is limited to 25% of the sum insured. In other words, if your building is insured for R1, 000, 000 (and that the replacement value is also R1, 000, 000!…Don’t say I didn’t warn you about ‘averaging‘) then your cover under this section is limited to R250, 000! [...] Related posts:

Fire Insurance

Lawrence — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 09:19:25 +0000

For most businesses, when it comes to insuring against all the potential risks you face, fire insurance forms the foundation. Now I can almost hear you saying: “Fire insurance…Why fire insurance? I’m more concerned about theft cover than fire!” So let me explain… Fire insurance – otherwise known as ‘property’ insurance – indemnifies you in the event of an insured event happening to your buildings, your machinery, and your stock in trade. What is an insured event? Many clients believe that insurance covers for all eventualities where a loss occurs. Here’s an example… Just the other day one of our clients wanted to claim because a staff member ‘stole’ a very expensive set of tools from the workplace. It took some explaining for him to realise that employee theft is not an insured event…in fact, theft itself is not an insured event unless specific cover is taken out for it! So what exactly are you covered for? Under the fire section there are three main risks (or perils) covered: Fire Lightning or thunderbolt Explosion In addition to the basic perils a number of additional perils are added which include: Earthquake damage Storm, wind, water, hail, or snow (normally with a [...] Related posts:

Life Insurance Companies Do Pay Out!

Brendan — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 04:40:31 +0000

“Hello. Hi Brendan, I trust that you are well. Thanks for replying to my sms so quickly. Yes unfortunately you did read the text message correctly. My husband was killed in a car accident and we are absolutely devastated. I have taken a few days out to be with family, but I now need to put in a claim against our life insurance policy. Can you assist me? I just don’t have the strength to do this on my own and I wouldn’t know where to start” That’s the dreaded call I had with a client a few weeks ago. I must admit that the conversation rocked me and reminded me how fleeting life really is. One minute you’re on the way to work on a regular mid-week morning, the next minute your gone. In this case Mr. Smith is survived by his wife and 3 daughters. So why am I writing a blog post about an awful subject matter like this when we have the biggest party in the world happening right in our own back yard? It’s because in the ten years that we’ve been involved in financial services we’ve never had a death claim (and Lawrence and [...] Related posts:

Are You Making This Mistake When It Comes To Contents Insurance?

Lawrence — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 07:20:11 +0000

Do yourself a favour…pull out a copy of your most recent motor and household insurance schedule and page to the section which deals with household contents. Then look for the sum insured amount. Got it? Now here’s what I’d like to share with you…apparently 84% of all policyholders are under-insured on their householders insurance! Here’s what you need to ask yourself: “Are you one of the 16% who are correctly insured?” Of course the only way to find out is by completing an asset register at replacement value, and if you feel that you are indeed correctly insured then read no further, BUT… Wouldn’t you be interested in finding out by how much the 84% are under-insured? What if I were to tell you that approximately 64% of these households are under-insured? “So who cares?” you might be saying at this point, and yes I know…insurance isn’t the most exciting thing in the world, but let’s bring this closer to home by assuming that you’re one of those who fall into the 64% under-insured group. Take a moment to study the sum insured on your insurance schedule. How much are we talking about…R200, 000, R500, 000…a R1, 000, 000? Now [...] Related posts:

Why have we lost sight of the true value of a satisfied customer?

Brendan — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 12:50:32 +0000

I’m livered. Actually that is the understatement of the year. I’m pissed! I have really been messed around this week by a particular service provider and it’s cost me hours of extra work as a result of the downtime. I know you’ve experienced disappointing service at some stage. Who hasn’t nowadays? It’s become the status quo and how truly disappointing is that? Poor service delivery happens so often we just accept it. What’s happened to good old fashioned client service in this country? I tell you what’s happened – It just doesn’t exist anymore. Brendan, face the facts, you’re simply a number in the system old boy and they don’t give two hoots about you. That’s what it really felt like today. This particular service provider I deal with simply collect and collect my hard earned money every month and screw the customer when you need something from them. It’s not what they advertise in their fluffy expensive “We love you so much and are always there to help you” commercials of course, but it’s the reality. Client service’s in South Africa generally stinks and the rotten smell is getting stronger. Yes, this is a bitch session but I need [...] Related posts:

Is there still a place for pushy sales agents?

Should You Go Direct?

Lawrence — Thu, 27 May 2010 09:49:45 +0000

We got the call a little over a week ago… A couple was referred to us by one of our clients. Apparently lightning had struck their home and fried their alarm system. Doing the right thing, they duly notified the insurer who informed them that they – the insurer – would send out their authorised agent as soon as possible to repair the alarm system. Now knowing that we don’t live in the safest of countries, the couple were slightly miffed at the insurer’s refusal to have the local alarm company (who installed the alarm) come in and repair it. After all, what if their house was broken into during the night? What you need to know is that this is the type of client we love…always paid their premiums on time, and had been with their current insurer for ten years with this being their first ever claim! All it took was lousy treatment for them to go shopping. But I had a problem… The couple had been with the same insurer for ten years – never claimed – which meant low, low premiums. Ten years ago the risks were a lot less; insurance rates were also a lot [...] Related posts: