Archive for April, 2006

Why Hire JONAS MONTEMAYOR - an Independent Insurance Consultant?

Thursday, April 27th, 2006

Jonas Montemayor provides choices. I am not tied to one insurance company. Since this is so, I am free to shop from various companies for the best combination of price, coverage and service.

Jonas Montemayor offers one-stop shopping for a full range of insurance products - life, renters, auto, business, health, etc. I am your associate who will properly assess the risks you face and find you an objective analysis of the marketplace. In other words, I am your partner, working with you as you determine your insurance needs.

Jonas Montemayor operates as your advocate when you do suffer a loss. Unlike captive agents and telephone representatives who work for the insurance company, I WORK FOR YOU - ensuring that you are not alone in the claims process.

JONAS MONTEMAYOR - Your Insurance Expert & Buddy

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

I understand that for most things in life we appreciate the need for advice from someone who is truly impartial. With your insurance cover, where there are many options available, why should it be any different?

It is my desire to help you save money
The simplest of motives! I have access to a number of policies and I am well placed to find you a competitively priced product that meets your needs.

It is my desire to help you save time
Of course you could spend days, weeks, even months finding the best policy for you… but do you want to? Let me, an expert, use my experience and systems to do what it could take you months to do.

It is my desire to help you have the right insurance cover
Do you have the right insurance cover if the worst should happen? Are you paying for insurance cover that you do not need? Many people just do not get it right and, unfortunately, many will not find this out when they make a claim. I WILL MAKE SURE THAT THE POLICY YOU CHOOSE WILL BE RIGHT FOR YOUR LIFESTYLE.

It is my desire to help you during a claim
Claims can be a stressful process that is not always helped by having to “negotiate” direct with an insurance company. Having me on your side, someone who knows the processes and talks the same “language” as an insurer, can make this process quicker and easier.

Insurance is a necessity that protects our property and family, as well as strangers we might inadvertently harm. To get the type and level of protection you want, it is important to understand how insurance works, what options are available, and how much coverage is enough.

JONAS MONTEMAYOR gives you the information you need to protect your life, car, home, and health, from the types available to the costs involved. I will also provide you with money-saving tips and low-cost resources.

Do You Need Insurance?

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

If you are wondering whether or not you should buy life insurance, ask yourself this one question: “Would my death leave anyone in a financial bind?” If you answer “yes”, it may be time to get serious about shopping for life insurance. Life insurance can offer peace of mind, ensuring that your debts or loved ones will be taken care of in the event of your death.

The purpose of life insurance is to provide a source of income for your children, dependents, or whoever you choose as a beneficiary, in case of your death. Life insurance can also serve other estate planning purposes, such as giving money to charity on your death, paying for estate taxes, or providing for a buy-out of a business interest.

Whether you need to buy a life insurance depends on whether anyone is depending on your income. If you have a spouse, child, parent, or some other individual who depends on your income, you probably need life insurance. Here are some typical families and a summary of their need for life insurance:

(1) Families or single parents with young children or other dependents. The younger your children, the more insurance you need. If both spouses earn, then both spouses should be insured, with insurance amounts proportionate to salary amounts.

(2) Married Adults with no children or other dependents. If your spouse could live comfortably without your income, then you will need less insurance than the people in situation 1. However, you will still need some life insurance. At a minimum, you will want to provide for burial expenses, for paying off whatever debts you have incurred, and for providing an orderly transition for the surviving spouse.

(3) Single adults with no dependents. You will need only enough insurance to cover burial expenses and debts, unless you want to use insurance for estate planning purposes.

(4) Children. Children generally need only enough life insurance to pay burial expenses and medical debts. Many advisors recommend self-insuring for children rather than buying an insurance policy.

(5) Retirees. There is less of a need for life insurance after retirement, unless it is to be used for estate planning purposes. You may need to provide an income for the second spouse to die if your retirement assets are not large enough. Further, you will need some insurance to pay burial expenses, final medical costs, and debts.

The rule of thumb is once you become a parent, you should have life-insurance coverage that will last until your youngest child completes college. If you have large financial obligations such as high credit-card debt or mortgage, you could use life insurance to ensure that debt is covered. Because life-insurance death benefits are tax-exempt, many financial planners often use clients’ life-insurance benefits to help pay for the estate taxes generated upon the death of a loved one.

Travel Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Travel Insurance Information: Top info to help you decide if you should or should not purchase travel insurance and the benefits of travel insurance.

To answer the question “is purchasing travel insurance smart?” let’s look at what insurance is.

When you purchase insurance – health insurance, homeowner’s insurance, car insurance, life insurance, or travel insurance – you’re not making an investment. It’s not the same as going to the bank and depositing money and expecting to reap financial rewards at some point. No, any insurance including travel insurance is about sharing risk in case of unforeseen catastrophic events.

For thousands of years, risks have been shared during times of tragedy. The first formal insurance company, Lloyd’s, was formed in 1769, and their insurance concept remains today – to gather the premiums of clients as a pool of resources to return to clients who experience covered events.

Is purchasing travel insurance smart for you, then? Do you need a pool of resources from others’ premiums to help you out in the event of a travel emergency? Or can you take care of any unforeseen circumstance on your own? It’s not just about money, either.

To decide if purchasing travel insurance is smart for you, let’s take a look at just a few of the things that could happen while you’re traveling.

It’s your first time in Europe and neither you nor your spouse speak any foreign language and your wallet is stolen. Your credit cards, your airline tickets, your passport and your money are all gone. What do you do now? Money may not be the primary problem here as you can always call your bank and have a wire transfer completed. Or can you? Do you know the international rules and capabilities for this? Where are the banks and do the tellers speak English? What about replacing your airline tickets? What about money to get to the airport and check out of your hotel? Your passports are the primary issue probably. They took a very long time to get. Now you can’t get out of the country without them. Where do you go to replace them? If you had known this was going to happen, how would you have answered the question, “is purchasing travel insurance smart?”

Your child is involved in an accident and must have medical assistance but you find out your insurance does not cover you outside the Philippines, and medical care is not adequate where you are anyway. How do you get your child back to the Philippines for medical care? If you had known this was going to happen, how would you have answered the question, “is purchasing travel insurance smart?”

So, to answer the question, “is purchasing travel insurance smart?” consider what could happen while you’re abroad and determine if you might be grateful for outside assistance.

Renters Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Renters Insurance Information: Are you renting or planning on renting? Then Renters Insurance needs your consideration. Discover how renters insurance could benefit you.

If you rent an apartment or house, you might consider purchasing renters insurance.

Renters insurance provides coverage for damage or loss of personal property for people in rental housing. It’s to insure the renter’s belongings from theft or damage. In addition, renters insurance also provides liability coverage for people in rental housing if somebody is injured while in the rental place. In this case, the renter is sheltered from lawsuits or liability for the problems cause by him/her.

Renters insurance can help you if one of the following things happens to you: your apartment catches on fire and your belongings are lost or damaged; you get stolen from a theft who breaks into your apartment; a friend of you injures himself while having a party in your apartment; an electrical power surge damages your television, stereo and computer. While renters insurance has a broad coverage, keep in mind that earthquake and damage caused by food are not covered in most renters insurance policy.

Many renters think their landlord’s insurance will cover them. This is not true. In general, the landlord’s insurance only covers the building, but not the renter’s belongings and liability.

Renters insurance is not expensive. For example, a policy that costs around Php 500 - 1,000 a year could cover between Php 500,000 and Php 1,000,000 worth of loss or damage, plus personal liability.

To shop for renters insurance, you should try getting quotes from different insurance providers in order to find the best deal. You can check with your auto insurance company to see if they also sell renters insurance and whether the will give you a discount for buying two types of insurance from them.

Renters insurance is often overlooked by people renting an apartment or house, but it’s a renter’s good friend and it will give you the peace of mind.

Life Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Life Insurance Information: Get to grips with the two main life insurance options, term life and permanent life. Discover which Life Insurance product or policy is the right option for you.

Term insurance and permanent insurance are two basic types of life insurance. Term life insurance is temporary, and it covers only a specific period of time called the relevant term. Permanent life insurance is the type of insurance where the policy is for the life of the insured and the payout is assured at the end of the policy. Term life insurance builds on cash value while permanent life insurance accrues cash value.

Now let’s look at the pros and cons for term life insurance and permanent life insurance.

Term insurance has two advantages. First, its initial premiums are usually lower than the initial premiums of permanent insurance. Secondly, term insurance is better for covering needs such as loans or mortgages, which will disappear in time.

There are a few disadvantages in term life insurance: Coverage might become too expensive to keep or terminate at the end of the term. Also, the premiums increase with ages. Besides, paid-up insurance and cash value are usually not offered.

The advantages of permanent insurance are as follow: You get a guaranteed protection for life as long as you have paid the premiums. Secondly, a cash value is accumulated with the policy and you can borrow from it. Thirdly, you can choose to set the premium costs whether fixed or flexible depending on your needs. Besides, a permanent insurance policy’s cash value can be surrendered for cash value. In addition, you can add a provision to the policy for the option of purchasing additional insurance without having to providing evidence of insurability.

There are a couple of disadvantages in permanent life insurance. First of all, the required premium levels might make buying enough protection harder. Also, if not kept long enough, permanent life insurance might be more costly than term life insurance.

When seeking insurance, don’t rush into buying expensive permanent life insurance before considering if term life insurance sufficiently meets your needs. Unfortunately, in many cases the fees charged for policies with investment features far outweigh the benefits. When you purchase life insurance, you’re betting that you’ll live, but also securing peace of mind in case you’re wrong. Don’t leave your family unprotected in the sudden event of your death - after all, they are your most important assets.

Homeowners Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Discover the benefits of Homeowners Insurance, get advice, tips and insurance resources. Plus learn why lenders require home owner’s to get adequate homeowners insurance cover.

A home owners’ insurance is the cover for the house against natural calamities as well as liability. This covers the house and its contents but also other personal possessions which the house secures. The natural calamities include fires and winds. It covers thefts and vandalism as well.

It is not mandatory, like in the case of automobile insurance to have a homeowners’ insurance. But when one mortgages, the deed of trust or mortgage requires the collateral to be insured. This is because in the event of a default, the lender must not suffer. If in the time span the house gets damaged due to a wind or accident, the value on sale will decrease and thus the lender will not be able to get back the debt balance.

Why does the lender insist on a homeowners insurance?

Firstly, the lenders’ name or the mortgage company appears on the certificate of the insurance policy. The lender is categorized as a ‘loss payee’ or a mortgagee. This ensures that the lender is entitled to the insurance amount if the borrower defaults.

Secondly, the insurance premiums are paid little by little along with the monthly obligations or it is deposited in with impound or escrow account. In both cases the lender can earn the interest which is earned out of this amount. Moreover an escrow requires an amount much more than a single premium to fund the account.

The manner of payment of the insurance premiums differs from lender to lender. Some require that the insurance premiums be paid off in the first year after closing; while others will spread the same throughout the loan term.

What you should keep in mind before taking a homeowners’ insurance?

You should shop for an insurance agent extensively .You must go in for an insurance company which will make an honest evaluation of your home value.

This insurance is not only for a liability security it is important to the borrower as well especially if you aim for a refinance or a remortgage. The collateral remains the same .Thus you can still avail of a loan amount equal to the earlier mortgage amount if not more (due to appreciation).

Health Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Health Insurance Information: Get the health insurance information you need. Gain a greater understanding of the complex subject of Health Insurance with this top Health Insurance Information and advice.

The changing health care and health insurance landscape in the Philippines has resulted in more individuals and families purchasing health insurance coverage on their own. Rather than touch on the number of reasons why this is the case, I would like to provide individuals and families finding themselves in this position with basic ideas to assist them with getting the best health insurance policy for their specific situation. Below is a combination of questions and suggestions that will provide the tools necessary to get a medical insurance policy that will best work for you and your family.

What are your typical health and medical care expenses in a calendar year? Most people are surprised when they go through this exercise to learn that they would be financially better off in most years to purchase a high deductible health insurance plan and use the premium savings to directly offset heath care expenses throughout the year.

How long do you anticipate needing the health insurance coverage? For example, many companies sell temporary policies that can be put in force for 1-6 months and they are relatively inexpensive. If you are in between jobs or in a waiting period for employer coverage, this may be your best option.

What is your budget? If your budget is tight, having a little coverage is better than having no coverage at all. The ability of doctors and hospitals to save and prolong life in our country is in many cases extraordinary. However, their treatment is not free and going without health insurance coverage can in some cases result in you and/or your family losing an entire life’s worth of savings and assets.

Be careful to choose a plan that covers the “big stuff”. It is nice to have a policy that covers items such as: physician office visits, routine physicals, outpatient testing, and blood work. However, it is essential to have coverage for major services such as cancer treatment, transplants, critical illness, traumatic accidents, and infectious diseases. Find out the lifetime maximum amount as well as if the policy contains “internal” peso limits.

Always carefully read and understand the pre-existing condition clause and policy exclusions so that you will not be surprised down the road if a claim is denied. This is important whether you are purchasing a standard medical, temporary, or student health insurance policy.

Does the insurance company you are considering have a substantial network of preferred doctors and hospitals in your area? In addition to family doctors, what type of access will you have to specialists and the best hospitals in the event you or a family member is diagnosed with an illness that requires specialized care? Also, what are your options for preferred health care providers when traveling?

If you need to go “out of network”, will you still have coverage? Most insurance policies will have coverage in the event you need to go outside of their network for care. However, review how these out of network claims will be paid. Will there be an additional deductible? How are reimbursement levels determined for out of network claims? What is your maximum out of pocket for out of network claims?

What are the financial ratings of the insurance company you are considering? A.M. Best, Standard & Poor’s, and Moody’s are organizations that rate the financial stability of insurance companies.

What type of customer service will you get from your insurance agent? Do they specialize in health insurance? Do they have a staff that is willing and able to assist you in the event you have a claim, billing, or other customer service problem?
If you do not have the time or patience to look into all of the items mentioned above, develop a relationship with an independent insurance agent that specializes in evaluating and servicing health insurance policies. A good independent insurance agent will be able to save you time, money, and be an excellent resource for evaluating all of the items mentioned above.

Disability Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Disability Insurance Information: Discover the benefits of disability insurance, how and when disability insurance could be of use to you and the benefits of disability insurance cover.

Disability insurance will allow you to keep a usable income even if you are disabled.

Disability insurance is the best way to make sure that your income will be protected. While everybody can benefit from disability insurance, it is especially important for people who have jobs that require a lot of mobility. If you are disabled in some way that will prevent you from working your old career, then disability insurance will make sure that you will still get enough money.

There are two major types of disability definitions that are used with regard to disability insurance. The first is just that you can become disabled in a way that will keep you from working your own job. In this case, you might still be able to work another job; all that matters is that you will no longer be able to work in your chosen career. This type of insurance is best since in a lot of cases it will also result in you getting enough disability money after your business starts back up again so that you will end up with the same income despite your disability.

The other type of disability insurance only applies if you are disabled to the point where you cannot work a steady job at all. This disability insurance is generally cheaper and is less useful. However, if you cannot afford the other type of insurance, this is better than nothing. In any case, no matter what type of job you work, you should definitely have at least the most basic disability insurance. That way, you’ll be able to have an income even if you are unable to find a job that you are capable of working.

It is very difficult to figure out which type of disability insurance you should consider. There are a lot of different factors that need to be considered – for instance, your current income, the type of career that you have, and what type of insurance company you are going to be buying insurance from.

Another thing that you should consider is that even if your employer is offering group disability to you, it might not be enough. Even if you think that you already have disability, then you should look at your existing policies and make sure that they will actually cover you in the event that you are disabled and unable to work.

Car Insurance

Wednesday, April 26th, 2006

Car Insurance Information: Free car insurance information and advice, for all you need to know about car insurance and how important it really is to have car insurance.

Driving without car insurance is illegal in most parts of the world!

Car insurance is one of the most important types of insurance that you can get. If you are going to drive anywhere, then you are most likely required by law to have at least a minimal amount of car insurance. Once you are required to have that minimal amount, you might as well make sure that you get enough insurance to cover most of the possible things that could happen to you or your car while you’re driving.

There are several things to consider when you are looking for car insurance. The first is what amount you’re required to have by law – though usually you will get that information when you register your new vehicle and get your license plate. The second is that you should make sure that you know exactly who needs to be insured for your car.

Essentially, when you insure your car, most insurance policies want to know who is going to be driving it, and what their driving record is like. Then, depending on the driving records of the people you intend to put on your car insurance policy, the price may fluctuate. For this reason, you may want to limit the number of people you insure for your car, or limit who gets to drive it. This is another reason why you should be careful with your driving record. Serious violations can cause your car insurance rates to go up.

Most car insurance companies will give you a quote if you ask, and it is a good idea to get several quotes before you make your decision. Insurance is an important thing to shop around for because there are a lot of different factors that can differ from one insurance company to another.

Luckily, you can even get quotes from insurance companies that may or may not have a branch located near you. Most major insurance companies now have online sites which can give you a quick quote, or can direct you to a live person to get a more in depth insurance quote. If the company does not give quotes through its site, then you should be able to at least find a phone number to call for more information.

While car insurance may be expensive, in the end, it is almost always worth it. Just remember to look at several different companies before making a decision – and think about getting more than just the minimum amount of insurance.