Archive for June 2007

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Information on Tatal Insurance and Insurance News

Princeton University Awaits Ruling In Legal Fees Case With Insurance Giant AIG

(June 30th, 2007 by Andrew Smyth)

One of the most prestigious universities in the world and the largest insurer in the world are nearing the end of a heated legal battle concerning insurance for legal fees. Princeton University took American International Group (AIG) to court back over “how much American International Group must pay the school to cover legal fees from a protracted legal battle ...[]

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10 Tips For Driving On 4th Of July From Insurance.com

(June 30th, 2007 by Andrew Smyth)

The New York based consulting firm Accenture released findings from a global study involving “104 North American and European property and casualty executives” according to National Underwriter. The study says, “property-casualty insurers are failing to use technology and alternative sourcing to improve their claims function, reduce their loss ratio and ...[]

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Study Shows Insurers Improving Their Online Dealings With Customers

(June 30th, 2007 by Andrew Smyth)

It’s good news that many insurers have steadily improved their interactions with customers online. According to an article in National Underwriter Customer Respect Group, a Massachusetts consulting firm, said that a study that “evaluated the Web sites of a representative sample of auto insurance companies and ...[]

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My Cholesterol Level Affected My Term Life Insurance Premium

(June 28th, 2007 by inszo)

First off let me just say that there is nothing better than a big juicy hamburger, a couple fries, or a thick slice of pepperoni pizza on an empty stomach on any given day that just makes you feel, well fat and happy. In fact I used to eat all of those on a regular basis in high school before a big football game, you know to “carb up” so that I can perform my best. Back in those days I don’t think any of us really ..[]

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Using Term Life Insurance To Ensure College Is Covered

(June 28th, 2007 by palado)

With all the popularity of 529 Plans and other methods of saving for your children’s educational future, one great way of ensuring that all of college is paid for in the event of anything happening to you is often overlooked. That method is term life insurance. It’s quick, easy and usually very inexpensive to take out a policy on yourself with a term length that ensures that your children ..[]

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Homerweb Search

10 Tips For Driving On 4th Of July From Insurance.com

Know More: Insurance News accenture insurance study, insurance technology, property casualty insurance

The New York based consulting firm Accenture released findings from a global study involving “104 North American and European property and casualty executives” according to National Underwriter. The study says, “property-casualty insurers are failing to use technology and alternative sourcing to improve their claims function, reduce their loss ratio and enhance customer satisfaction.”

It boggles the mind as to why so many insurers would not fully utilize technology to improve their overall operations. According to Accenture “the lack of technology integration and persistence of manual processing results in claim files that are incomplete and difficult for employees to share and access during processing, reducing settlement speeds, increasing error rates, undercutting service quality and driving up costs.”

Sounds like some P&C insurers need to get their act together so business can be conducted in a more efficient manner. One of the more surprising results of the survey is that “Less than one-fifth (17 percent) employ advanced fraud-detection systems, such as data-mining tools that calculate fraud probabilities.” Maybe that’s why so many people commit insurance fraud.

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Free Listing

Princeton University Awaits Ruling In Legal Fees Case With Insurance Giant AIG

One of the most prestigious universities in the world and the largest insurer in the world are nearing the end of a heated legal battle concerning insurance for legal fees. Princeton University took American International Group (AIG) to court back over “how much American International Group must pay the school to cover legal fees from a protracted legal battle over an endowment” according to National Underwriter.

As I’m sure you’re aware AIG is the behemoth provider of life, health, travel, auto insurance and many more financial services. Princeton is suing AIG’s subsidiary National Union Fire Insurance Company because they refused to “pay no more than $5 million to cover defense costs” even though “the university has a $15 million policy.”

The legal fees stem from “litigation with family members of the Robertson Foundation.”



“According to court documents, the family of Charles and Marie Robertson, who established the endowment, accused Princeton of improper expenditures—allegedly spending money from the trust for purposes other than supporting the graduate program of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.




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Study Shows Insurers Improving Their Online Dealings With Customers

It’s good news that many insurers have steadily improved their interactions with customers online. According to an article in National Underwriter Customer Respect Group, a Massachusetts consulting firm, said that a study that “evaluated the Web sites of a representative sample of auto insurance companies and found the sector made progress in a number of areas.

”The most improved areas for insurers were “privacy policy transparency and responsiveness to e-mails” where “auto insurers now provide better and more concise information about policies and practices.”

The two insurers in front in the categories “for clarity and openness were Allstate and Nationwide” while “best policies for customers were from Liberty Mutual and AIG Direct.”The top five companies in the study were first Geico then Progressive Casualty, Liberty Mutual, Farmers and American Family.

Compared to the last quarter results of this ongoing study the overall score of the insurers had risen to 5.4 out of 10 compared to last quarter's average score that put them in “the bottom quartile.”

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My Cholesterol Level Affected My Term Life Insurance Premium

First off let me just say that there is nothing better than a big juicy hamburger, a couple fries, or a thick slice of pepperoni pizza on an empty stomach on any given day that just makes you feel, well fat and happy. In fact I used to eat all of those on a regular basis in high school before a big football game, you know to “carb up” so that I can perform my best. Back in those days I don’t think any of us really cared what we ate, our priorities in life most likely consisted of dating, Friday nights, and loud music. Good times…


The only problem is, I’m not 18 anymore, and my priorities have changed, to family, work, mortgage, gas prices, and sleep. In that order. And thanks to my great eating habits from my adolescents, I have this wonderful thing called “cholesterol” and “blood pressure,” which I’m now supposed to watch. Nah, not this guy, as long as you can fit into your elastic high school gym shorts you’re fine right? I wish! I learned this the hard way when I started to think about Life Insurance, and the needs of my family’s financial security if anything was ever to happen to me (like a clogged artery). So I decided to find out more.


I ended up going to https://secure1.insweb.com/cgi-bin/termlife.exe?id=pQOMDUIhQw3ya22sAXCTVKl-QOq and finding a rate for Life Insurance. After my agent scheduled me for a medical evaluation, I discovered (much to my dismay) that my cholesterol was high. OK it was really high, which attributed to a higher premium than someone with normal cholesterol levels. But hey, the cholesterol levels of approximately a quarter of the adult population in this country are higher than normal according to the InsWeb article “How Improved Health Affects Your Life Insurance Rates”. In fact there were a lot of key factors I didn’t know about that effects how much money comes out of my wallet due to certain health factors, and what I could do to get a better rate. Once I knew what I was up against, I was determined to lower my cholesterol and my blood pressure. With 3 months of hard work I lost 20 pounds and significantly lowered my cholesterol and blood pressure. Here are some tips for lowering your cholesterol, your blood pressure, your weight and your Life Insurance premium that worked for me.





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Using Term Life Insurance To Ensure College Is Covered

With all the popularity of 529 Plans and other methods of saving for your children’s educational future, one great way of ensuring that all of college is paid for in the event of anything happening to you is often overlooked. That method is term life insurance. It’s quick, easy and usually very inexpensive to take out a policy on yourself with a term length that ensures that your children will have all of their college expenses taken care of; including things 529 Plans just can’t cover. Or even better, obtain both a 529 Plan and adequate term life insurance coverage.


What Is A 529 Plan?A 529 college savings plan is an investment account that allows you to set aside money for your child's college education and let it grow tax-free. The federal government won't tax your money when you take it out of the account as long as it's used for higher education.


You can use the money in a 529 plan at any accredited college or university in the U.S. (public or private, graduate or undergraduate). The money can be used for tuition/fees, room/board, books, and supplies/equipment.


How Can Term Life Insurance Cover Educational Costs?One of the many benefits of term life insurance is choice; you can choose the term length and coverage amount and tailor them to benefit you and your dependents. For example, many people may choose a 30-year term length to cover the mortgage on their home. Similarly, a 30-year term purchased soon after your child’s birth can ensure that your children are covered through their college years in case anything happened to you. And a benefit of term life insurance over something like a 529 savings account is that your beneficiaries can choose how they want to spend the money (as opposed to a 529 which must only be spent on things education-related). This way, if anything were to happen to you, your child could cover both education and personal costs, or use the money for something else. Or, if you passed away before the child was an adult, the money could be used to help raise the child up to (and hopefully through, depending on your coverage amount) his or her college years.


Remember to adjust your coverage and beneficiary designations each time something major occurs in your life, such as the birth of a child.


Insure your children’s future with term life insurance; find out how low your rates can be today!
InsWeb Life Insurance Learning Center: http://www.insweb.com/learningcenter/life-default.htm


SEC's Introduction to 529 Plans: http://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/intro529.htm





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Environment minister plans two-storey garage

Laurel Broten faces heat from neighbours



Canadian PressTORONTO - Ontario’s environment minister is under attack from neighbours over plans to build a two-storey garage.


A complaint was filed with the Ontario Municipal Board arguing the garage would dwarf neighbouring properties and could damage a large tree.


But Laurel Broten says the plans call for the garage to be built without harming that tree.
Broten says her family has four cars - a hybrid, a fuel-efficient SUV and two sports cars belonging to her husband.


Opposition critics say Broten has a right to own those cars and the big garage, but might have a problem explaining her plans to voters.


New Democrat critic Peter Tabuns says he takes bigger issue with Broten’s inaction on several environmental issues, like failing to protect local water sources.


“There’s all kinds of things that this minister has let go through that are monumental and huge and so if she has four cars ... that’s small potatoes in a larger picture of dereliction of duty,” he said.


Conservative critic Tim Hudak says Broten and Premier Dalton McGuinty are guilty of promoting green causes but not following through themselves.


“Here’s a guy who’s preaching about conserving energy and he takes short-flight hops from Toronto to Hamilton, Toronto to Niagara, Toronto to Peterborough, and you can’t blame Laurel Broten, she’s just following Dalton McGuinty’s example,” Hudak said.


“It’s awfully hard to stand on a soapbox and lecture people when you have a ... two-storey garage looming over you.”


The OMB is scheduled to hear the case next week.





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When will Anglo Racist Tories listen to Aboriginal Peoples?

OTTAWA - The minority Conservative government must listen to the people who will be most affected by a bill addressing the human rights of Aboriginal peoples before rushing it through Parliament, Liberal Indian Affairs Critic Anita Neville said today.


"We support the intent of this bill," said Ms. Neville. "What we object to is the government's determination to see it passed without consulting the people it will most affect."


The Liberal Opposition, along with the members of the other Opposition parties, today voted in a meeting of the Aboriginal and Northern Affairs Standing Committee of the House of Commons to suspend debate on Bill C-44 for a maximum of 10 months in order to allow time for proper consultation with First Nations.


The bill, which was introduced in December 2006, seeks to repeal a section of the Canadian Human Rights Act which prevents First Nations people from lodging complaints of discrimination against the federal and First Nations governments in relation to acts and decisions authorized by the Indian Act.


Some of the central concerns of the Opposition include the lack of consultation with First Nations prior to the introduction of the bill; the possible effects of the bill on the longstanding treaty rights of first nations; the short transition period the bill allows; the balance between collective and individual human rights; and, the possible need for additional resources for First Nations to respond to their new responsibilities as result of the bill.


"Since the standing committee first started hearing testimony on this bill we have heard time and again that it must be changed if the interests of First Nations are to be served," Ms. Neville said. "The Canadian Human Right Commission, the Canadian Bar Association, the Assembly of First Nations, the Native Women's Association of Canada - have called for changes to this bill. Many other witnesses testified in favour of reforms. Why can't the Conservatives listen?"



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Tiger Airways Comes To Australia (More Low Air Fares For Backpackers)

Good news for backpackers travelling around Australia and New Zealand in the near future: Australian low-fare airlines Jetstar and Virgin Blue are about to get some extra competition.
Tiger Airways is coming to Australia in December:
The Singapore Airlines-backed Tiger Airways said Wednesday it would start flights from Melbourne to Darwin from December, with fares starting at $79.99 one way. (The Age)
The more competition there is, the lower the fares are likely to be – something penny-pinching backpackers always like to hear.

What Virgin Blue has, though, that the others don’t appear to have catered for (as yet), is ‘carbon offset’ a recent initiative aimed at reducing the greenhouse gas emissions caused by your flight.
So, for a small fee (it differs for each flight), you can experience that warm fluffy feeling one gets from doing something good for the environment.
You do get that feeling, right? Right?





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4 Ways Most People Overpay for Car Insurance

Tax-Time: you’re either waiting for your gravy train tax refund, or you’re fearing the event of paying even more to Uncle Sam. Car insurance can take on a similar dichotomy, but the difference is that you don’t get a refund for overpaying for coverage — it just renews and overcharges you until you find a more affordable policy. Most people don’t see this, and miss out on hundreds of dollars in savings that could be used like a big fat tax refund.
Auto Insurance Quotes are Not Final: How to Make Them Lower
When you shop and compare multiple auto insurance quotes, recognize that even if the quotes are about the same as your current policy, or lower for that matter, they can still be even lower. There may be too much coverage, or extra options tucked into the quote that you really don’t need.

Although higher limits provide you with greater protection against possible losses, you may be carrying limits that are not in line with the value of your total assets and your lifestyle. As you review your quote, consult with an insurance agent before making any final coverage decisions. Additionally, you may be a member of an auto club that provides towing and labor protection, therefore, paying for it in your auto policy could be unnecessary. The same may hold true for car rental coverage: do you really need it?

Trying to Make “Accidents” More Affordable
Many drivers make the mistake of carrying the lowest deductibles in order to help offset the costs associated with filing a claim. The fact remains, the higher your deductible, the lower your premium. Indeed the cost of an accident will be that much more expensive; however, if the damage is minor, you could be spending the same out-of-pocket amount regardless. Save on your policy, not the accident; raise your deductibles if you can afford to.

Paying for the Policy in Monthly Installments
Just like any bill, it is common to pay for insurance in monthly installments, either by check or automatic bank withdrawal. Be aware that additional administrative fees are commonly applied to payments when you split your premium into installments (i.e. monthly, semi-annual, annual). A monthly fee of even $7 can add up to $84 over 12 months.

Overpaying for Tickets and Moving Violations
Perhaps you deserve a higher rate for your driving record, but don’t let the insurance company unduly punish you. Although having moving violations on your driving record can limit your selection of insurance companies, don't believe that finding affordable car insurance is as intimidating as appearing in traffic court and paying fines. To the contrary, there are companies that specialize in insuring higher risk drivers at reasonable prices. The only way to identify such companies though, is to compare multiple quotes from multiple companies.

Don’t count on your tax refund to save money! Instead, you may be able to save hundreds by simply taking 10 minutes to analyze your auto insurance policy. Even if last year seemed uneventful, the chances are good that your individual circumstances have changed enough to qualify you for lower car insurance rates. And even if nothing changed on your end, many large insurance companies may have reduced their rates since you last shopped.


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Spring Home Improvements: Adjusting Your Homeowners Insurance Accordingly

With the first warm days of the year upon us, spring always brings a renewed motivation for making improvements to one’s home. Whether you’re a “Hardware Store Warrior” building a new deck yourself, or if you’re simply hiring a contractor to add a patio, don’t forget to check what impact such improvements may have on your homeowners insurance policy — before you begin!
Home improvements can quickly add to a home’s value. Accordingly, you should do a quick comparison of the difference in homeowners insurance quotes with the improvements. It is not until a disaster strikes that many homeowners realize they haven’t reevaluated their coverage to include any improvements made to the house.

After undergoing the tragedy of losing your home, you don’t want to also find out that your insurance policy covers only the pre-improvement value of your home. The difference in replacement value can be very significant. Trusted Choice® reports that nearly 40% of homeowners who make improvements to their homes do not update their homeowners policies to reflect these changes.

As the value of your home increases, you may experience a modest increase in your homeowners insurance as a result. There are many discounts available to you that may help offset any such increase. Have you added any new security devices to your home in the last year; perhaps deadbolt locks, window locks, a burglar alarm, or even smoke detectors? Insurance companies highly value the protection afforded by these types of safety devices and are known to reduce premiums by as much as 20% as a result. In the same fashion, you may also experience additional savings on your policy if you upgrade your home’s heating, plumbing, or electrical systems.

There are additional benefits to comparing homeowners quotes before any renovation. If you adjust your policy before the work even begins, you may be covered for any building materials you have in your house during the course of the project. With the increased heavy duty labor, you may be exposed to an increased level of liability and risk of home disasters. Incidentally, it’s a good idea to take “before, during, and after” pictures throughout the renovation. In the event of a claim, you may be required to provide justifiable proof. Likewise, it is also imperative that you make sure any contractors are properly licensed and insured with all corresponding documentation.

Beyond the home improvements at hand, comparing multiple homeowners quotes is an exercise that can uncover new discounts and savings. You should review your homeowners insurance policy at least every 12 months, or more often if your needs change. Significant discounts and savings may have become available since your last policy review. Even if nothing changed on your end, many insurance companies may have reduced homeowners insurance rates since your last review.


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Don’t use life insurance to pay estate taxes?

Now there’s an interesting statement coming from an author of a blog on life insurance!

It was just to catch attention but there is an interesting alternative method. Instead of using the life insurance to pay the estate taxes. Have the life insurance go to the children (estate tax free if set up properly by an attorney in in an ILIT - Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust), then have the balance of the estate placed in a Charitable Lead Trust. A Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) is a unique instrument where the interest on the principal is used by the charity for a number of years. At the end of those years, the principal (in this case one’s estate) goes to the children estate and income tax free. If the charity chosen was a family foundation, then the children can direct funds to help social, health, community and/or religious programs.

Thus you create three “inheritances”: 1. At death through ife insurance 2. At the end of 15 to 20 years where the original amount (plus any earnings in excess of the federal rate) go to the heirs estate and income tax free and 3. An inheritance to help society that can be directed by the children through a foundation. In this solution, no estate taxes are paid. One has, in a way, redirected taxes towards one’s favorite charitable causes. You’ve been able to “dial in” a tax free benefit at death, delay a second inheritance which would have been likely planning anyway (and make it tax fee as well) and help your children contribute to society through your legacy.

Compare this to the most common solution (which is still better than no solution). Life insurance is purchased through an ILIT as an estimate of estate taxes. At death, the trust with the insurance proceeds, buys assets from the estate equal to the estate taxes and the estate pays the taxes.

Why not have it all using the “three inheritance” solution. The experts at lifeinsure.com can discuss these alternatives with you in concert with your legal and financial professionals.

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Car Insurance rates and Colorado tort law

Reader question:
I heard that something would change with car insurance rates because of new tort law in Colorado. What’s going on, then? Is it good or bad?
Cheyenne
For consumers, it’s looking pretty good.
Colorado’s new insurance law is reaching four years old and it looks like the customers are the ones coming out on top, this time. Since the change in law, in 2003, insurance rates has dropped as much as 30% for citizens of Colorado who patronize the larger insurance companies. On Monday, the ninth rate decrease was announced by the state, a whopping 7.2%, which most states don’t see in a year. That adds to the rest of the decreases to make up a total of 42% in decreases in the four year period.
Formerly, Colorado had a no-fault system, which meant that car insurance companies paid the medical bills in a crash without regards as to who was at fault. The new law, called a tort law, makes the driver who was at fault responsible for such bills.
Before the law changed, injury coverage alone had gone up 80%, and premiums and general about 30%, in a short period of 18 months. It’s amazing to see that these rises have folded back on themselves with the change in law.
With all those double-digit increases, something had to be done. After the change in the system, Colorado’s insurance rates have stabilized to fit with national rates, which in the same time period had changed less than 1%.
Cheers,


Fashun Guadarrama.

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Auto Insurance Rates Decline As Tort Law Reaches Four Years

Insurance rates have dropped by an average of 30 percent in the past four years among the larger insurers in the state, an insurance official estimates.

Consumers are coming out on top under Colorado's new insurance law.

On Monday, State Farm Insurance officials announced the company's ninth rate decrease -- 7.2 percent -- since the new system became law in 2003.

That marks roughly a 43 percent total decrease in premiums in the past four years.In addition, State Farm officials announced $19 million premium refunds to their insured, equating to about $23 savings per car -- savings derived from fewer claims.

"We've seen across-the-board rate decreases since 2003, and many of the large insurers are seeing the double-digit decreases," said Carole Walker, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association.

"Frankly, I've been surprised we've continued to see them come down this much. It shows a stabilization in the marketplace."Under the former no-fault system, auto insurance companies paid medical bills in crashes regardless of fault, which resulted in system abuses. The new system, called a "tort" system, makes the at-fault driver responsible for payment."We were paying through the roof for all those no-fault claims," said May Martinez Hendershot, spokeswoman for State Farm in Greeley.

"We are now able to translate the favorable claim experiences to lower premiums.

It just shows the market we are doing exactly what we said we were going to do.

We told voters in 2003 that rates would decline and they are."Prior to the law change, personal injury protection coverage had gone up 80 percent in 18 months and overall rates were rising by 25 percent to 30 percent, Walker said."In 30 years in Colorado, the no-fault system was just too expensive," Walker said. "In 2003, we were in a cost crisis. Instead of seeing double-digit decreases, we were seeing double-digit increases.

"Walker said the decreases have helped stabilize Colorado premiums to be more in line with national rates, which have decreased not quite 1 percent.

"They're coming down a little bit (nationally), but this sort of dramatic decrease of rates, adding up to more than 40 percent in four years, is something I haven't seen in the marketplace before," Walker said. "We likely won't see as dramatic rate decreases" in the future.

Walker said in surveys of the Top 5 Colorado insurers -- State Farm, Farmers, American Family, All-State and Progressive -- rates have come down an average of 30 percent since 2003, when the tort system was enacted.

The law's fourth anniversary is July 1.Rate decreaseState Farm's most recent rate decrease will be effective July 16 and be applied to premiums when customers renew their rates. Dividend payments began in April and will continue throughout the year, as customers renew their policies.By Sharon Dunn, Greeley Tribune

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Travelsafe for Safer Holiday Accommodation

We all take out travel insurance to cover unexpected events which might affect our plans or to cover our personal property. However, we cannot always be sure of the safety of the accommodation we are booked into abroad. Who can forget the tragic news reports about the deaths of the two children from carbon monoxide poisoning in Corfu last summer. That awful event highlighted the need for safety checks of accommodations to protect holidaymakers abroad.

We saw a report that some of the top accommodation booking companies, including OnHoliday Group/Jet2holidays and Lowcostbeds are signing up to a new scheme aimed to monitor the safety of holiday accommodation. The Travelsafe health and safety accreditation system will blacklist any hotels, villas or apartments if they don’t pass the new safety standard tests. Under the new system, it will mean the properties they list as safe have been checked via a self-audit or full audit in various health and safety areas such as fire, swimming pool, food hygiene and child safety. Hotels will be rated accordingly and the information made available to travel agents and tour operators. Hoteliers can do a self-assessment, or a full audit may be carried out with resulting ratings of Gold, Silver, Bronze or Non-Compliant.

Any hotels that are found to be unsafe for any reason will be given the chance to make changes and if they still fail to do so they will be blacklisted from Travelsafe member sites. The system cannot guarantee there will never be any problems at all, but the standard it sets should help to avoid any more tragedies like Corfu.

It could also mean changes for those who own and rent out their overseas properties. If the rental is managed through a major UK tour operator or advertised on a holiday letting website and they are members of Travelsafe then the property will have to undergo the health and safety checks prior to being offered for letting. This seems like a good start. Website: www.travelsafe.biz.

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What You Need To Know About Travel Insurance

Are you going on a trip but don't really know if travel insurance is necessary? You can make an informed decision simply by conducting a quick needs analysis.

Ask yourself:
- What is the cost of your trip?
- How long are you going for?
- Where are you going?
- What elements of your trip would you like insurance to cover?
- What time of year will you be traveling?

The answers to these questions will help pave the way for establishing not only if travel insurance is a prudent option, but more specifically, what type of travel insurance you should consider.

For example, you are taking your family on a week-long Caribbean Cruise that you have invested $5,000 in. If your children become ill prior to your departure, would you be concerned about the $5,000 investment being lost? If your answer is yes, then you need to consider a Trip Cancellation Package Policy. These policies cover the loss of your trip investment for a covered reason prior to departure, as well as a host of other types of coverage.

To simplify matters, there are four primary types of travel insurance to keep in mind:

1. Trip Cancellation Package Policies which not only cover the trip investment but also other coverages like trip interruption, baggage, medical and emergency evacuation.

2. Travel Medical Policies which cover travel medical and emergency evacuation.

3. Medical Emergency Evacuation Policies which provide emergency evacuation protection.

4. Flight Accident Policies which provide life insurance while you are flying.

Armed with the knowledge and understanding of the various types of travel insurance protection available, as well as your personal travel details and specific coverage needs, you can successfully navigate the myriad of travel insurance products to get the best policy for wherever your journeys take you.

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Airline and Other Travel News

If you intend to see a lot of the U.S. during your trip you might be wondering which airline to use to hop between States. A new airline called Skybus is now operating with budget domestic flights. These flights will only interest you if you don’t mind flying into airports outside the major ones, such as Burbank instead of LAX (Los Angeles) and Bellingham instead of Seattle’s Seattle-Tacoma International (aka Sea-Tac). Skybus has budget fares but charges for just about everything else. www.skybus.com.

Virgin Atlantic has started flying from Heathrow to Chicago (www.virgin-atlantic.com)
Easyjet is now flying from Bristol to Milan’s Milpensa (www.easyjet.com)
Flybe has started flights from Southampton to Frankfurt (www.flybe.com)
Flyglobespan is now offering budget flights from several UK airports to destinations in Canada (www.flyglobespan.com)
MAXjet, the business-class airline will fly from Stansted to Los Angeles from August 30th (www.maxjet.com)
Claustrophobic travellers won’t be taking up the offer of Indian airline Jet Airways for a private cabin on flights from Heathrow to Mumbai. First class passengers can book a private ‘suite’ with its own flat bed, flatscreen TV, wardrobe and sliding door. At 3’ x 8’ (26 sq. ft) this sounds more like a flying coffin than a suite. It’s okay if you’re sure you can sleep or watch TV for the entire trip, but I think I’d prefer some human company and gratefully sit in the screaming baby section. It’s also not for the budget traveller as fares are over £4,400 round trip! (www.jetairways.com)

We thought this tip was worth passing along… In many Caribbean Islands, including Barbados, Grenada, Antigua and St. Lucia it is an offence to wear camouflage clothing. We saw a report of a traveller having an item of camouflage clothing confiscated in Antigua. As this type of clothing is currently very fashionable we’d advise you to do a double check of the items your children are planning to wear and unpack any of these items pronto or face losing them!


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Star Wars Exhibitions in London and Los Angeles

Sci-Fi fans out there are no doubt very excited about the Star Wars Exhibition being held in London this month and continuing through September. The event is a European celebration for the 30th anniversary of the Star Wars phenomenon. The touring exhibit will give fans a chance to see some of the costumes and vehicles used in the films as well as original film props, costumes and art. The displays include a life-size Naboo N-1 Starfighter and Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder hovercraft. If you always fancied yourself as a Jedi a taste of the training will be available with a Jedi knight, using a green screen and light sabres to put you into the action. There are rumours that bad guy Darth Vader might put in an appearance. The exhibition is on now at County Hall, Westminster (close to the London Eye). For more information visit: www.Starwarstheexhibition.com.

To top off the Star Wars celebrations in London, a ‘Star Wars Celebration Europe’ party will be held at the ExCel London exhibition centre from 13-15 July. It will include celebrities from all six films, exhibits, merchandise, and much more. For information visit: www.celebrationeurope.com.

Star Wars events have been held throughout the U.S. on a regular basis over the years. However, as four of the six films were actually shot in the UK it makes London the perfect place for this first major European Star Wars event. If you’ll be in Los Angeles during May a Star Wars Celebration IV event is planned at the Los Angeles Convention Centre from May 24 through May 28. For information visit: www.gencon.com/2007/swciv.

According to reports from Star City, Russia, cosmonauts would rather stay in space than return to Earth if they had the choice. The problem is that being mere humans they suffer from muscle wasting after any length of time at zero-gravity. Despite daily workouts on the space station they have to re-learn how to walk upon return to Earth. Space tourism is readily available to those who have a few spare million to spend. You’d think with all that money they could afford a crash course at Jedi School to iron out these annoying mortal problems.

For those who don’t have the spare cash Buzz Aldrin, the second astronaut to walk on the moon, announced plans to hold a lottery for a ticket into outer-space http://www.sharespace.org/.



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Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada Debunks Article Claiming Travel Insurance is a Waist of Money

The Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada (THIA) has responded to recent articles in various newscasts represented travel insurance as a waste of money. THIA argues that this assertion provides a disservice to Canadian travelers. Canadian travelers without supplemental out-of-country health insurance often risk a tremendous financial burden.
THIA noted that the advice was especially egregious because the conclusions reported in the newspapers were based on a survey targeted to Americans, not Canadian consumers. The survey suggests many Americans traveling abroad are already covered to some extent by their existing private health insurance. However, Canadians are not in the same situation.
Actually, in my experience, many US insurers do not cover their policy holders outside of the USA, especially for evacuation. For example, seniors on Medicare are not covered outside of the
USA for medical expenses. Also, many people traveling abroad are not covered at all for health insurance. Thus there is a vital need for most Americans to get travel insurance. They can check their health insurance plan to see if it does cover them abroad.
THIA noted that Canadian provincial health insurance plans do not adequately cover out-of-country medical services. Nominal claim benefits range from $75 a day to approximately $500 depending on the province. Payouts compared to a typical US hospital charge of $5,000 to $10,000 a day help underline the importance of travel insurance.
All Canadian provincial governments urge Canadians traveling out of the country to purchase supplemental travel health insurance that fill the gap between government coverage and foreign hospitals charges.
Those newscasts should have clearly stated that the survey was reporting about American consumers, not Canadians with vastly different health insurance circumstances. In this author’s opinion, people who write such articles should be very careful telling people not to purchase insurance products as people may not check their personal situation and may go abroad without proper protection. TFG Global Travel Insurance.com offers travel insurance for Canadians, Americans and people around the world with a variety of travel insurance plans to meet almost any budget.


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Defaqto Reports That Some Travel Insurance May be “Too Cheap” to be of Any Use

Defaqto is reporting that some policies charge too little to be able to pay out. Consumers buying travel insurance have been warned not to base their decision just on the cost of the policy in a report published this week by Defaqto, the leading financial research company. The report ‘Travel Insurance in theUK – Cheaper is rarely better’, reveals that some policies are now “too cheap” to be able to offer adequate cover. Analysis of Defaqto’s Aequos database of 986 travel insurance policies found that there are 30 separate single trip policies that charge £10 or less for a week’s travel toEurope, with one quoting £5.49 per person. It urges consumers buying cheap policies to consider whether their insurer would be able to pay any claim made. Consumers should be purchasing quality travel insurance from a reputable source. Defaqto believes the UK Government and the insurance industry need to do more to educate consumers about the risks of travelling overseas without adequate cover. It estimates that around 10 million overseas visits are uninsured each year for a number of reasons including ignorance, unwillingness, or because travellers are ‘uninsurable’ due to their medical history. The familiarity of increased foreign travel is breeding contempt among many travellers who believe that travel insurance is unnecessary. It is believed that many travelers are under the wrong impression that a European Health Insurance Certificate (EHIC) removes the need for travel insurance, says Defaqto. This is probably the same situation in Canada and the United States where travelers may think their government or domestic health plans will cover their emergency medical insurance and evacuation needs. The report author and Defaqto’s Head of Insight,Brian Brown said: “Consumers are being let down by the insurance industry which has made travel insurance policies jargon heavy to the point that the only thing they can easily compare is price. This compounded with increased competition means that too many people are now travelling abroad with inadequate cover. With the continued growth of overseas travel to increasingly exotic places, more people are likely to end up on the wrong side of an insurance claim. “The insurance industry and the Government must to do more to ensure that all consumers are aware that when it comes to travel insurance, cheapest is not always best. Two key areas of particular concern are that consumers do not understand how baggage cover works and we believe that there needs to be more clarity with regards to insurers requiring original receipts for even minor claims” For quality travel insurance plans to meet almost any budget, consumers should check out TFG Global Travel Insurance at http://www.globaltravelinsurance.com/

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Older and those with pre-existing medical conditions face travel insurance problems

Many people think that travel insurance companies are not justified in increasing costs for people with certain medical conditions and also those over the age of 65. Some say that this is discriminatory.But those who sell insurance know that insurance is only fair if the insurer charges the people at higher risk a higher premium and those at lower risk a lower premium. Fact is that if you are older, you are more likely to have health issues – so insurers have to build this into their premiums. Otherwise the insurer will have to charge younger and healthier travelers more and that would not be fair. On the bright side, travel insurance is a very low cost product with lots of competition amoungst travel insurance companies and brokers. But note that you should not be looking for the cheapest rate because that may mean a low level of coverage and denied claims. If you have a pre-existing medical condition, you should ask your travel insurance broker if they have a plan which can underwrite and cover it. Some travel insurance providers offer this. Note that the insurer may not be able to cover you even if your doctor says that you can travel without any medical problems. Bottom line is the doctor doesn’t have to pay the claim if you fall sick, the insurer does. TFG Global Travel Insurance offers a variety of travel insurance policies from a variety of travel insurers. Contact them if you need a plan which covers your pre-existing medical condition(s) as plans purchased online don’t ask medical questions and thus don’t cover pre-existing medical conditions. You will need to provide as much information about the pre-existing medical condition as possible, treatments, dates etc… along with medical forms to be completed by your doctor. TFG Global Travel Insurance has plans that can cover older travelers up to age 99.
Canadian Tourism Stats reports Solid Growth
(Jun 15th, 2007 by palado)
The March 29th issue of the Statistics Canada Daily report indicated that the Canadian tourism industry registered its third consecutive year of solid growth in 2006, with spending reaching$66.9 billion. A large part of this tourism spending was attributed to Canadians, rising at its fastest pace in a decade, whereas spending by foreign visitors fell for the second year in a row. With the increasing cost of gas and the new passport requirements for air travel into the United States, this trend may carry forward into the summer months in 2007. Canadians are continuing to travel, but their choice of destinations is changing. As you may know, travel over provincial borders may place Canadians at greater risk of being burdened with unexpected out of pocket health-care expenses. TFG Global Travel insurance.com has a variety of Canadian travel insurance policies, including Annual and Single Trip policies specifically tailored for travel within and outside Canada.

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How much travel medical insurance is enough?

Well the simple answer is if you have a claim, you will want as much as possible. If you are traveling overseas, the last thing you wan to hear from your travel insurance company is that you only purchased a policy with a $50,000 overall maximum and your medical bills are already at $75,000. You could have purchased a $500,000 policy for only $20 more. It is unlikely that emergency medical expenses will exceed $500,000, but it does happen, so why take the chance. Most insurance agents recommend a travel insurance policy with at least a $1 Million overall maximum covering travel medical and evacuation expenses.Many people only get travel insurance because they need it for visa requirements from some foreign countries, especially inEurope. But why not get a bit extra because you just might need it and the last thing you want to hear when in the hospital is that you have met your maximum allowable coverage amount. If you are traveling in theUnited States, getting a large policy maximum is even more critical as everyone knows the cost of medical services there is much more expensive than anywhere else in the world. Still, more and more facilities around the world are charging as much asAmerica hospitals. Think of this when you get your travel insurance at TFG Global Travel Insurance.com and get the largest possible policy maximum.


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