Insurance

Financial Literacy Month #27

There are other types of insurance you need. If you own or lease a car, you need auto insurance. If you own a home / condo, you need homeowner insurance. If you rent an apartment, you need renter’s insurance. With what is going on in the country (floods, wildfires, mudslides etc.) Make a plan to have your needs assessed so that you’re covered for anything that may happen. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Financial Literacy Month #26

Let’s talk about insurance. Do you have all the insurance coverage you need? Do you have health insurance to cover medical care when needed? Most employers offer this to their employees. If you don’t have it through your job, there are other ways to access health insurance. Every state offers some type of insurance. One major medical incident can ruin a budget without insurance. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Fourth Quarter To Do’s

Can you believe it, it’s fall and the year end is in sight! choices

For me, there is lots to do (and I am not thinking the holidays yet).

This time of year means it’s time to review my health insurance choices. Open enrollment for health insurance is here (or just a week or so away). Medicare is already in the open period, the state of CT will open up the 1st of November and many company plans have the open enrollment at this point too. It’s time to reevaluate and determine if I want to stay on the same healthcare plan or make a change.

If you have a FSA (Flexible Spending Account), start to look at the balance and determine how to use the funds. This is a use it or lose it type of account. You wouldn’t want to lose money, would you? If you have an HSA (Health Savings Account), have you maximized your contributions for 2020? This can be a great way to lower your taxable income. Make sure you pay all your eligible medical expenses with this account.

Take the time now to do your research and make the choices that are right for you and your family now.

Fourth Quarter To Do’s

Can you believe it, it’s fall and the year end is in sight! choices

For me, there is lots to do (and I am not thinking the holidays yet).

If you have a FSA (Flexible Spending Account), start to look at the balance and determine how to use the funds. This is a use it or lose it type of account. You wouldn’t want to lose money, would you? If you have an HSA (Health Savings Account), have you maximized your contributions for 2018? This can be a great way to lower your taxable income. Make sure you pay all your eligible medical expenses with this account.

Take the time now to do your research and make the choices that are right for you and your family now.

Ask Questions

January has been a month of me asking questions. You may be thinking what is she talking about. Lots of items came to light throughout the month that required more information. Here is a sampling of what came up:

I was listed as a “non-owner” on our auto insurance. I had no idea what that mean and had to do the research to find out more.
I received two bills one from the lab for bloodwork and one from doctor’s office for a physical. It was my understanding that this was covered through my medical insurance as a preventative visit at no cost to me. Again, multiple calls and asking for my medical claims to be adjusted.
Receiving less than expected in a paycheck. More calls to get to get to the bottom line
And the list goes on.

Never be afraid or think your questions aren’t worthy of an answer. In my case, it’s my money. Call and ask questions until you are satisfied with the answers.

For me, I was able to save money on our auto insurance after a lengthy phone call, the medical insurance company paid the bloodwork bill in full after appeal, the doctors bill was adjusted and I owed less than 50% of the bill and I am still working to understand resolve the paycheck issue. So far, I with these questions we have saved close to $300. That’s worth my time and efforts.

One call saved $153.00

Two weeks ago, we received our insurance renewals (auto, home and umbrella). They arrived on the day of the snowstorm. We lost phone, TV and internet, but not power. So I read the policy information more diligently than I usually would. (I am being honest).

I found a charge for $17.00 on the auto policy that I had questions about. I made a call last week and discussed this with the company and after a long conversation, she found $153.00 worth of savings (more than the $17). That’s a a little over a 12% savings on our policies and that much less that we have to pay in February.

What bill are you going to look into this week to see if you can save money? Check you bills and question what you don’t understand. You could save some money too!

Vacation Insurance

With vacation season underway, are you covered if something happens?

According to Wallet Hub, 1 in 6 Americans have an illness or natural disaster happen to them. Are you covered so that you don’t lose you hard earned money? Of these 1 in 6, only 22% have insurance to cover their travel costs and expenses.

Some credit cards offer you coverage for lost or delayed luggage, missed connections, trip cancellations and even death sometimes. All credit cards are different and you need to check your individual card for what your offers you. If you are covered, they offer you reimbursements. That means that you pay upfront. Do you have that money? And they come with restrictions. Remember my Microsoft Surface Pro experience from last fall?

We have one credit card that we always use to rent a car. It gives us coverage so that we can decline the optional rental car company insurances and feel comfortable. We have another credit card that gives us the travel protection of lost or delayed luggage, missed connections, etc. We have done the research for us and you should too.

You should think about what you may need and find out if you are covered with the credit card you already have. Typically, if you don’t charge the trip to that specific credit card, you don’t have the coverage. Then check with your personal insurance, such as auto insurance for rental car coverage, home owners / renter’s for loss of property, etc. Then look into travel insurance, if you need or want more or additional coverage.

You should do this process for your health insurance as well. Most insurance policies don’t cover you when you travel outside the US. All of this pre-planning could offer you the needed assistance in your time of need. So do your research and make the choices that are right for you.

Happy Travels!

Can You Really Save Money With Your Insurance?

You see the TV ads that save your can save money with your insurance. But can you?

I have always been told that if you bundle your insurance – say car and homeowners or car and renters – you can save money. This study breaks it down by state on how much you could possibly save. Read more

For more tips, visit my website.

It’s Time To Update Your Health Insurance

It’s that time of year again for open enrollment for medical insurance. For Medicare you have until December 7 to make any changes to your secondary insurance and/or prescription coverage until December 15.

To enroll and/or make changes to your Affordable Care Act health insurance, you have from November 1 to December 22 in Connecticut. Check your individual state for your specific deadlines.

If you are coverage is through your employer, fall is typically the time to make changes as well. Please check with your individual state or company for possible changes to the deadline date.

If you want some general questions to think about to compare your options, here are some that you can consider when making your health insurance selection that is best for you:

1.   What type of insurance is this?
2.   What is the monthly premium cost and how much am I responsible for paying?
3.   Are there subsidies available for us?
4.   Do I have out of network coverage?
5.   How much are the deductibles for both in and out of network care?
6.   How much do I have to pay to see a healthcare provider?
7.   Do I have medical coverage out of state and out of the country?
8.   Will I be able to use my current doctors?
9.   What additional benefits are included (prescriptions, dental, vision, etc.)?
10.   Are preventative visits (physicals, routine tests etc.) covered without a deductible?
11.   What is the procedure for going to a specialist and/or the emergency room?
12.   How are disputed claims handled?

Ask these and more questions to make sure you have all the information to make the most informed choice for you and your family. Mark your calendar today to do this during your open enrollment each and every year as medical plans changes and so do your needs. If you miss the open enrollment period, you can only make changes if you have a life changing event.

The Importance Of Insurance

We all know we need insurance and probably have all the standard ones in place – homeowners / renters, auto, and umbrella. But it’s those special ones that are in question for us. I am referring to travel, car rental, pet, extended warranties, home warranties and more. We think we don’t need them, but do we?

We just booked a vacation and we have the option to add travel insurance for a reasonable fee. Do we do it? Is it a waste of money? Fortunately, we don’t have to make this choice for a few months. In the meantime, I wanted to share with you my initial research.

	Reasons you might need the coverage	Reasons you might NOT need the coverage
Travel / Trip Insurance	Non-refundable vacations You are taking an expensive vacation with lots of opportunities for losses Your health insurance will not cover you where you are going (anything from a doctor’s visit to medical airlift)	Your credit card that you booked your vacation with gives you the insurance coverage you need If your travel plans are refundable / changeable without or a minimal penalty You can financially afford the cost / loss
Car Rental	If you don’t own a car and therefore don’t have auto insurance If you are going to a location that your car insurance will not provide you the coverage	If you have this coverage on your current auto policy and it extends to your rental car
Pet	If you are the type of person that would do anything for your pet, regardless of the cost	If you can afford to pay for the services
Extended Warranties	If you want peace of mind knowing that your electronic device is covered If you are a person that tends to lose, break or damage things	If your budget can handle the cost of replacement on short notice
Home / Car / Appliance Warranties	If you want peace of mind knowing that you are covered	If the cost of the insurance is more than the cost to replace / repair If your budget can handle the cost of replacement with short notice

As you can see, I have suggested many things for us and you to think about before you make your own choices. Let me know any thoughts I have omitted and what helped you decide.

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