Arizona Auto Insurance Comparison Guide

The Arizona DOI has released its "Automobile Insurance Premium Comparison" to aid consumers with comparison shopping for auto insurance. The publication contains auto insurance quotes from 75 insurers for a dozen different driver scenarios.

On average, auto insurance companies offered a $94 discount for Phoenix residents who took the bus to work, although it noted carpooling or alternate means of transportation could have the same benefit. At least 36 insurers offer discounts to customers who significantly reduce their annual mileage by taking the bus to work every day.

The guide also includes a summary and explanation of the different types of auto insurance coverage available, and provides insurer complaint ratios, representing the total number of written complaints the Department has received for each 1,000 policy exposures an insurer has in force.

Unitrin Auto Insurance

Press Release

Unitrin, Inc. has announced that its subsidiary, Trinity Universal Insurance Company has entered into an agreement to acquire Merastar Insurance Company

Trinity will acquire Merastar Insurance in a cash transaction valued at approximately $45 million.

Merastar Insurance is based in Chattanooga, Tennessee and specializes in the sale of personal automobile and homeowners’ insurance through employer-sponsored voluntary benefit programs.

Unitrin is a $3 billion financial services company focused on creating shareholder value by providing a diverse array of insurance and consumer finance products and services for individuals, families and small businesses.

Among the brands in Unitrin’s Property and Casualty Insurance business are Kemper Auto and Home, Unitrin Specialty and Unitrin Business Insuranceand Unitrin Direct, which sells auto insurance directly to consumers.

State Children's Health Insurance Program

Senate Democratic leaders have unveiled plans to dramatically expand taxpayer-funded health insurance to millions more children through the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

Eighteen governors have blamed the White House for weaknesses with the program in its budget by $10 to $15 billion.

Launched in 1997, SCHIP provides health insurance to more than six million enrollees, primarily children in lower-income families. Originally authorized to spend $40 billion over 10 years, the program is set to expire this year unless Congress approves new funding.

Senate Budget Chairman Kent Conrad this week said his plan would expand coverage to 8.3 million more uninsured children and boost spending by $50 billion over the next five years.

SCHIP funds are also used, often, to insure children who are not in low-income families. In New Jersey, for example, SCHIP covers children whose parents earn up to three-and-a-half times the poverty limit.

This misallocation of funds happens because the federal government gives states more money for those enrolled in SCHIP than for those covered by Medicaid, which is designed to provide health coverage to low-income Americans.

Many employer sponsored health insurance plans allow parents to pay extra to put their kids on their own policies. Some parents often can't afford it. This leaves the employer money on the table and means these kids are more likely to receive taxpayer-subsidized health insurance coverage.

Adults should not be eligible for Schip. Covering adults was never the intent of the program, and states that extend health coverage to adults are diverting funds from the needs of low-income children. Second, Schip should focus on America's poorest families. States need to meet the law's intent.

Finally, it must be easier for states to utilize Schip as a premium-support program. It is relatively inexpensive to add children to family policies, but by making the process so bureaucratic, employer-provided plans are underutilized and families are split into private and public coverage plans.

Lets see if they get it right this time.

Michigan Auto Insurance Stats

In 2004, the average annual out of pocket premiums for auto insurance in Michigan was $980.32 per vehicle, making Michigan the 10th most expensive of all states for auto-insurance costs. (Iowa Auto Insurance was cheapest at $579.95.)

Nationwide, the average annual expenditure for auto insurance was $838 per vehicle in 2004. For 2007 it's expected to to an average of $847.

Of the 100 cities surveyed in 2006, Detroit was the most expensive for average annual auto premiums, at $5,894 per vehicle. (Roanoke, Va., was least expensive at $912.) Auto insurance tends to be more expensive in larger cities because of traffic density, likelihood of theft and vandalism, and fraud.

Michigan is one of only nine states that use no-fault insurance, meaning claimants need not prove that others were at fault before recovering damages for an accident.

• 77 percent of insured drivers were covered by both comprehensive coverage and liability coverage and 72 percent had collision coverage.

• $68 of every $100 in premiums for private-passenger-auto insurance was paid out for claims.

• In 2005, claims covered by collision insurance and involving passenger vehicles amounted to an average of $3,937 per claim.
  

• Between 1996 and 2005, claim frequency fell 17.8 percent for bodily-injury claims and 11.5 percent for property-damage claims. But claim severity rose 16.9 percent and 27.4 percent, respectively.

Health Plan Satisfaction Study

Bill Clarke reports each and every year that, health insurance coverage seem to cost more and more, but it seems more people say they getting less out of their health insurance plans.

The J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Study showed that health plans in the Western scored lower in overall satisfaction and on all seven factors listed.

The factors measured included in the study included 1) coverage and benefits, 2) choice of doctors, 3) hospitals and pharmacies, 4) information and communication, 5) approval processes, 6) health insurance statements, 7) customer service and claims processing.

Consumers in the West rated their health insurance plans lower than anywhere else in the country on all of these categories.

Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans and those run by privately held companies scored higher than companies owned by shareholders.

The publicly held companies ranking high in Colorado include Kaiser and United Health Care. Anthem, Pacific Care and Cigna ranked about average, and Aetna was ranked at the bottom.

Insurance you don't need

Insurance policies provide us peace of mind in the face of the unknown. But that doesn't mean that you should get suckered into every type of insurance out there. In some cases, you're already winning. Here are the policies you do not need.

Extended warranties. They're usually not worth it, especially if you're buying a small electronics item such as a DVD player.

Rental-car insurance. Before you pay the extra cash to insure a car you're renting, check your own auto insurance policy first. According to the Insurance Information Institute, in most cases, the coverage on your personal car policy will apply to a rental car (if it's for pleasure and not business).

Flight insurance. The chance you will be involved in a plane crash is extremely rare. According to the PBS show Nova, the average American's chance of being killed in a plane crash is 1 in 11 million. Besides, your life insurance policy should already cover you in these cases

Life insurance for kids. Life insurance is to make sure that your dependents are secure in the event of your death.

Credit-card insurance. This coverage will pay your credit-card bill if you can't make your payments due to job loss or disability.

Disease insurance. If you're pitched specific insurance policies that cover cancer, heart disease or other serious illnesses, don't buy them. There's a better way to protect yourself -- it's called health insurance.

Mandated Health Insurance Prices set

Health insurance plans with monthly costs of $122 to more than $800 were approved Thursday by the board overseeing Massachusetts' new law requiring everyone in the state to carry health insurance.

The lowest health plan premiums will be paid by young adults, ages 19 to 26; the highest, by those over 55. The least costly premium for those in the middle is about $175 a month. The state aims to cover all uninsured, with subsidies for those below 300% of the federal poverty level, which is about $30,000 for an individual.

Health Insurance in Massachusetts

Massachusetts Commonwealth Care -has enrolled nearly 45,000 MA residents into its individual health insurance plan as of Feb. 1, 2007.

Commonwealth Care is a subsidized health insurance plan for individuals who meet certain eligibility requirements and whose income is below 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.

health insurance coverage via the plan include: doctor office visits, inpatient hospital care, pharmacy benefits, mental health and substance abuse services, and vision. Members in Plan Type 1 also receive dental care. There is no monthly premium for Plan Type 1, and members in Plan Types 2, 3 and 4 have sliding premiums based on income. All members must pay a fee (co-payment) for some benefits.

The Commonwealth Care Health Insurance Plan (Commonwealth Care) is a program run by the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority (the Connector). This program connects eligible Massachusetts residents with approved health insurance plans and helps them pay for the plans.

The Connector helps Commonwealth Care members join a health plan and find providers that meet their needs. A health plan works together with a certain group of providers, hospitals, and other health care professionals to provide specific health-care services.

Commonwealth Care pays the total cost of health insurance for qualified individuals who have income at or below the federal poverty level and helps pay for the cost of insurance for other qualified individuals.

insurance.com acquires 4insurance.com

Press Release

Online insurance agency Insurance.com has purchased personal lines insurance shopper 4insurance.com.

As a result of the acquisition, 4insurance.com will offer car insurance quotes from over a dozen auto insurance companies.

Launched in 1996 by iHomeowners, 4insurance.com offers consumers the ability to shop for auto, life, home and health insurance plans.

At 4insurance.com, consumers will answer one set of questions in order to get multiple insurance rate quotes from top companies, and can then select and purchase a policy online or over the phone with in-house licensed agents.