Understanding Insurance

February 6, 2008 by Isaac Madengu | Tell a friend | Printer version

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Yes, you can actually come to the point when you love insurance and it becomes a good idea to be covered. Insurance is essential! It is important you understand it so it makes sense to you and covers you when you need it. I have come to a point where I know that whatever I do not understand I hate. It has now become an automatic thing, I simply default to hating whatever I cannot get my head round. Understanding or at least coming to terms with things that affect me has become my number one priority.Insurance was one of those things I hated with a passion until I took time to sit down and read what it is all about. I have now worked in the insurance field for 7 years. Everyday I come across people who ask me the same question “what then is the point of Insurance”. Have you ever asked that question? If you have, let me answer it for you in a very simply way, Insurance is not a maintenance contract.

What do I mean, insurance like many other thing we have has terms and conditions, it will not cover some things and on the things that it will come certain aspects of that cover have to be met. Am I complicating matters? Let me simplify it all by saying that it is important that you read your policy booklet and actually get to know what you are covered for and not covered for. Yes, read the schedule, get time to sit down and read the policy booklets.

You will discover that once you actually take your time to read and question the insurers long before you make a claim, you will discover that it is not complicated and you do not have to wait three to four weeks trying to get another opinion when you are not covered. Reality is that 90% of people never actually read the policy booklets; they take the policy and assume that they are covered for anything; shock comes when you put in a claim and you discover that there is a world of exclusions which are not covered.

Be wise; take your time to first understand why you want the insurance, look at the possible dangers to that thing and seek the best cover possible on the market. It is better to take your time to understand the cover that is on offer and see if it is what you need than to cry when you make a claim.

Here is a shocker for you, on car insurance if you have Third Party Fire & Theft cover or Third party only, you are basically paying your policy for the other person. If you hit another car, your own insurance that you have paid for years will not repair you car but the Third Parties car. How painful is that? You can actually just throw away your hard earned money just like that. The difference between Third Party cover and full comprehensive cover is who is covered. Full Comprehensive will cover both Parties; Third Party cover is basically paying for the other person not you.

The last word I can leave with you is that insurance is an as easy as A B C only if you pay attention to the fine print. It is easier to throw the paperwork away and not bother with much because all is OK now but let me warn you and say the key to safety and security in insurance is the policy booklet, read it. Take your time to know what you are paying for, if you do not understand it ask the insurer to break it down for you in terms that you understand. Make the insurers provide the service that you are paying for; they provide the insurance who better than them can explain it?
Fall in love with insurance, understand it.

Ask Dr. P