Top 5 Innovative IT Insurance Services

INNOVATIVE IT INSURANCE SERVICES IN A CONSERVATIVE INDUSTRY?

While insurance is not known as an extremely innovative or exciting industry, new technology has created a platform for a number of exciting insurance information technology (IT) services for both consumers and insurance providers. Here we provide an overview of the top 5 innovative IT insurance services.

#1: PAY AS YOU DRIVE

Pay-as-you-drive insurance calculates premiums according to an individual's driving profile, rewarding secure driving while tracking and increasing premiums on dangerous driving styles. Drivers who constantly speed, brake suddenly or drive in bad weather conditions (e.g. snow, rain) find themselves paying higher premiums than those who follow the rules of the road. A "black box" device installed in the car tracks key parameters of the journey and transfers the data to the insurance company, who then regulates the premium rate.

Some insurance companies already offering simplified versions of Pay-as-you-drive solutions:

Aviva
Hollard
Allianz Lloyd Adriatico


Companies such as Accenture are intensively research this topic to be able offer new solutions.

#2: SOCIAL BENCHMARKING

Online insurance quote platforms, such as Kanetix, all offer access to a limited number of insurance providers, allowing consumers to analyze only a subset of prices, which are based on the insurance provider's data.

Social benchmarking of insurance premiums offers independent, consumer-generated data across all insurance providers. As consumers share information about their insurance spending, they can access the collective experience of other consumers, identifying if they pay too much and who offers the best prices for peers with a similar insurance profile.

An example of such a service is the InsurEye Peer Comparison tool, which covers not only spending information for online insurance products (20%-30% of the total market), but also for insurance offered directly by insurers, brokers, and agents.

#3: ONLINE POLICY MANAGEMENT

Online banking has become the norm, but online insurance management? Personal banking finance management tools and other useful online IT services are available for consumers for free. Finally, the insurance industry has started to close the gap. Now many insurance providers offer online and mobile tools to help consumers to manage their policies and provide customer support. One example is TD Insurance, which offers an online service allowing customers to perform many tasks on their own, eliminating the need to call a service line. Examples of such tasks are:

Modify contact information
Modify a car policy
Modify a Home Policy
Modify a payment plan
File a claim


A number of insurance providers both in Canada and the United States offer such tools for their customers e.g. TD Insurance, Nationwide, USAA, and more.

#4: MOBILE DEVICE CLAIMS

Collisions don't happen while you are sitting at home in front of the computer. Instead, many insurance companies have developed solutions to help customers deal with their collisions and claims situations on their mobile devices. Typical example of mobile application offers customers many handy functionalities reducing headaches in case of an accident. A typical set of features for such an IT solution includes:

List of tips in case of an accident
Capture all required accident info (incl. photos)
Find / order towing service
Find a repair shop
Initiate a claim process
Check claim status
Find an insurance agent


Such apps are usually free and users can start using them directly after downloading from an app store. Especially useful is the ability to take a picture of an accident to document what exactly happened and estimate the potential level of damage.

#5: ADJUDICATION FROM A DISTANCE

If you've ever had a road accident, you surely know the range of emotions you experience: fear for the own health and those who are in the car, concerns about financial impact on future insurance premiums, not being sure what to do and in what order, dealing with police, towing services, another car driver etc.

Some companies, e.g. RBC Insurance, have so-called Road Angels - insurance experts who physically arrive at the accident location to support the customer.

Instead of sending an agent to a scene, IT insurance services could potentially provide long distance assistance via video. Modern smartphones are capable of transmitting two-way video, making it possible to show an insurance expert what has happened, and at the same time making the customer feel more secure.

Videoconference providers such as Skype already offer these technical functionalities, and Apple has FaceTime, a new video chat for its iPhone users. It's likely only a matter of time before this technology results in a mature IT insurance service.

Alex Saltykov and Jessica Mineau

Alexey is a Co-Founder and CEO of InsurEye Inc http://www.insureye.com. Alex spent years advising insurance clients both in North America and Europe while he was working for one of the leading management consulting companies. His areas of expertise are insurance, innovation, IT and operations.

InsurEye Inc. is a Canadian company that offers people transparency and insights around insurance using modern technology.

Our new tool InsurEye Peer Comparison will show you what your peers across Canada pay for their insurance. This way you understand if you overpay and what insurance providers you should choose to save on insurance!

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Vision Insurance Information for Your Family

Being responsible for a family can include a plethora of tasks and can take up much time to organize all the insurance policies and papers to ensure that every family member has access to medical, dental, and vision care when it is needed. Finding a good family insurance agency is important to the family as a reputable insurance company will help the family to have protection over assets, property, life insurance, and quality health insurance.

Many people assume that dental and vision insurance fall under a good health insurance plan. In some cases, this is true; but this is not always the case. Speaking with your insurance agency will help you to be more informed on exactly which plans are offered and which ones you are currently covered on. Just because a person has medical insurance does not mean that he or she also has dental and vision insurance. A person can also have dental and vision insurance without having medical insurance.

Some people will have access to vision insurance through their employer. Each health plan offered by varying companies differs in one way or another. One health plan may offer the option of the employee selecting medical insurance without having the option of dental or vision insurance. Another health plan through a place of employment may include medical, dental, and vision all in one package. And yet another health plan may offer three separate choices of medical, dental, and vision and allow the employee to pick and choose which ones he wants for himself and his family.

Taking the time to speak to your private insurance company and asking your human resources department at work about the available vision plans can help you to decide which type of vision plan will meet the needs of your family on the budget that you have to work with. There are basic and advanced vision plans that many insurance companies offer. Basic plans will typically include eye exams, contacts, and one set of glasses per year. Advanced vision plans can cover more serious treatments such as treating glaucoma and laser surgery.

A family vision insurance plan can be beneficial for everyone in the family, even if no one in the family currently wears glasses or has eye problems. Long term care on a consistent basis and regular eye check-ups can help to ensure that the members of your family are being well cared for in their vision area. Many times, issues will arise unexpectedly that will require a person to begin needing glasses or extensive eye exams. Vision insurance only costs a few dollars a month per person under most insurance plans and a vision policy, whether through a private insurance agency or through your work insurance, can help to protect and care for your family's eye needs. This will be extremely beneficial on a long term basis and preventative check-ups can help to prevent more serious eye problems from occurring in the near or far future.

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Been To An Eye Appointment Recently? Expensive!

Not long ago, I was talking to a very nice lady who noted that she had laser surgery done some 10 years ago. She now seemed to have what are called "floaters" underneath the lens of her eye. She was worried about that so she went in and scheduled an appointment with the eye doctor, and he confirmed that this was quite common, and these floaters would eventually go away, not to worry about it. That was good news for her, although her appointment cost her $275 to discover this, after a mere 15 to 20 minute visit, and one hour wait in the waiting room.

She didn't have eye insurance, and she was unsure if she could get eye insurance now due to the fact that she had a pre-existing condition, and she already had laser surgery 10-years the prior. Still, you may be surprised that you are still eligible for eye insurance in this case, even if new ObamaCare mandatory insurance purchase for your personal healthcare doesn't cover this, oh you didn't know that, too bad the Congress didn't read the bill before they signed it?

Eye insurance is an add-on type of insurance, or you can get it a la carte. You might be surprised to learn that your employer offers eye insurance, and all you have to do is check off the box and they will deduct the premiums from your paycheck each month.

If you do end up with some sort of on a problem and you don't have insurance for your eyes, you won't believe how much it's going to cost, it could easily run you tens of thousands of dollars before you even realize what happened. Sometimes if you are involved in an auto accident, and your eye injury is caused by the accident, you might be covered, although there are some things auto insurance will pay for, and some that won't. You might want to look into that to make sure that you are covered in this case, but also for yourself and your family. Losing eyesight is about one of the worst things that can happen to someone.

No, I'm not trying to scare you, I'm just being blunt with the reality of the situation. There are plenty of people that sell insurance for the eyes that are out to scare people of all the potential eventualities that can cost them their life savings. That's not what I'm suggesting, I am merely advising you to go look into it, and know what you are dealing with in advance, just in case. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

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Caring for Your Vision - When and Why

Vision insurance is a supplemental benefit and usually taken along with the major medical insurance policy-the one that covers you for doctor visits, hospital stays, diagnostics and surgery. Vision insurance is generally given as a group coverage and is difficult, not impossible, to obtain at a reasonable cost as a stand-alone. Usually dental and vision insurance go together.

So should you have vision insurance?

Before I answer that, let me tell you why vision testing and treatment is important.

According to the Center for Disease Control, the premier government health agency, approximately 11 million Americans 12 years and older have impaired vision. Over 3 million Americans over age 40 are legally blind or suffer from low vision.

Other than the fact that eyesight is one of the most important functions for humans, you should understand that our eye and the placements around it--the capillaries, focusing and receiving mechanisms etc. --are built in a very complex formation.

Here is what your eye insurance or vision insurance should cover at the minimum:

1. Eye exam

The most commonly covered vision basics are annual eye examinations where there is a complete evaluation of the eyes, including tests for eye health and a refraction to determine the need for glasses.

2. Vision correction

This involves ensuring you are properly fitted with right types of glasses--b or tri-focals, reading glasses, glasses for distance etc.

3. Medical condition related vision exam

This could involve lack of oxygen in the eye area due to excessive sugar in the blood. This can affect your vision and eye muscle

4. Other medical conditions

This includes cataract, glaucoma or retinal disorders. They should be checked and if surgery is indicated, covered by insurance.

As you can see, there are many types of conditions that, depending upon your age and medical history, you need covered. Unfortunately, most vision insurance policies will only cover vision examination and partially cover medical condition related treatments. However, you can shop around.

Also, look at higher deductible policies. They may actually be better for you if they have expanded coverage for medical condition related treatments.

Next, be choosy when picking your eye doctor. Know the difference between Opthalmologist, Optometrist and Optician. An Opthalmologist is an eye doctor. He or she has an MD with nine years of medical education and can not only diagnose but treat even severe conditions including eye surgery. An Optometrist is a diploma holder with 4 years of medical education and is limited mostly to diagnosis of eye related conditions.

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The Million-Dollar Insurance - What You Need To Know

The million dollar insurance cover is a policy that encourages you to save for a certain time/term to earn a million dollars at the end of it all. It is a good way of putting your money aside as well as having long-term savings. This final payment is tax-free and is paid either at the end of your term or after your demise due to natural causes, disease, murder but never suicide. The fact that it comes in two packages (the term and life packages) makes it a product that is market-sensitive, because people have different needs.

What you need to understand

The first things you need to understand are the terms and conditions; it is one of those policies that you have to absolutely read the finer print. You need to understand the terms and conditions of the term and the ones for the life package so that you fully understand what you want and choose the right one to fit your circumstance. You also need to pick the one that is most pocket- friendly; that is, the one you can afford to pay even after your daily earning activity stalls.

Long-term vs short-term

You need to understand that for insurance companies, the longer the term of the insurance premium, the higher the risk and therefore you will have to pay a higher premium to cover them from this risk. You therefore need to decide on the kind of policy you want to take considering the amount of premium and if you can afford it.

The short-term payments are affordable considering that you will continue paying the same amount of premium without fear that it will increase on the fifth, tenth and fifteenth as they do in the long-term cover. This means that you will be in a position to plan your budget easily unlike someone paying the long-term premium.

The rates and the premium depend on other factors apart from the long-term and short-term issues; they depend on your health, gender, work, smoking, or nonsmoking, and lifestyle. You will have your quotation prepared depending on the questioner you fill and the answers you give, especially concerning your health. However, these requirements are different in different insurance companies.

This insurance policy offers you a big payout when you pass on and you can use this as a way of leaving your family an inheritance or ensuring a way of taking care of them.

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Secure Your Finances With Three Simple Actions

Millions of people do not understand how important it is to be financially stable. Financial stability does not necessarily refer to having a well paying job and a lot of money. In order to be secure, one has to know how to handle their monetary resources. You need to be able to determine how you will spend, save and invest your money. This will make sure that you are financially secure.

How to use your money

There are simple tricks you can apply to your life to ensure you are utilizing your money well. The three main elements are to make sure you can;

· Spend

· Save

· Invest

When you get your salary or profits from your business ventures, you must be willing to pay attention to all these three areas. The secrets to maintaining a constant structure that will ensure you are financially stable is by following the pointers below.

1. Budget

Always budget whenever you get your money. Be logical when you do so. Write down all your expenses and needs. When you budget, always indicate payments you have to make to insurance companies or loan payments if they are not part of your net pay. Once you have a clear picture of how much you are spending, you can now know how much to save.

2. Saving

Choose a savings account that will generate more funds for you. You may need to do some research before you settle for one. If you have dependents, you may want to put money aside for their needs as well such as tuition savings. Allocate your savings according to your needs.

3. Invest

Investing ensures that your future is secure. Once you have done your savings and budgeted well, make sure you take a leap of faith and invest your money in other ways. For instance, you can put some money into company shares.

For the sake of your family, you can also apply for insurance. Life insurance is the best since it covers both you and your loved ones. There are many options available for such insurance covers like new policies that offer life insurance without medical.

With these three factors in place, you can begin to take charge of your finances. In the event that you have extra money to spare, hiring a financial manager will ensure you keep track of all your expenditures. Be sure to prioritize in the first stages so that you meet your goals and live within your means.

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