On Thu, 5 Oct 2006 12:43:24 -0500, "anoop" <ghanwani[at]gmail.com> wrote:

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I didn't sign up to get to read the article, although it sure would be
interesting to see what CU's "experts" say about life insurance.

One thing I've read several times over the years is that in the entire
history of the United States no one has ever, ever lost a dime of
their guaranteed cash value or death benefit as a result of an
insurer's insolvency. Some other company has always stepped in to
take over the block of business and made all payments due under the
policies. Payments might be delayed because of legal manuvering, but
not one person has ever not been paid. This is at odds with the quote
you've given; I wonder which is true.

elanamig[at]gmail.com wrote:

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Here's a somewhat dated article that might address this and other
questions.
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/p...view/index.htm
According to this article:
"If the insurer goes bust, guarantee associations in each state
generally repay up to $100,000 in cash value or $300,000 in death
benefits to policyholders."

Anoop

I'm wondering whether there's a chance that other insurance premiums
will go up if we make a claim on one of the insurances.

Also, lets say if we go for a "Life" life insurance (the one that
accumulates over the years, forever), and the company goes bankrupt..
What then? Where do our accumulated $$ go?

Thanks,
Elana

DFIGTREE wrote:
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elanamig[at]gmail.com wrote:

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Since you're asking for opinions I might as well give mine.

The main issue here is grouping life insurance with all the others.
Those that specialize in life insurance may not offer the
best rates for other products. Plus with life insurance one
can get good rates if they stay with the same company for a
certain number of years (based on my understanding you
get locked into a rate based on the age at which you start
the policy, plus if your health changes you may not be able
to switch for the same rate). Not so for the other products -- it
really doesn't make any difference how long you plan to
stay with the seller of your auto insurance policy. They
will adjust rates based on your claim history and value
of the insurance being purchased.

I don't really buy life insurance other than that provided by
my employer (because I don't think I need it), but if I did
I would get it from one of the more highly rated companies.
For auto, home, and umbrella I would group those together
and go with the cheapest and shop for it every year. With
a bad driving record the rates can vary significantly enough
that the discount may not make it worth it to keep them
together. Bottomline, pick the life insurance provider
separately. It probably doesn't hurt to have all of them
from the same company as long as you're sure it's a
good deal.

Anoop

My experience has been that if you want an umbrella policy you need to
have your homeowners and auto policy issued by the same company.

elanamig[at]gmail.com wrote:
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What exactly are you afraid of? Saving money? Since the debacle twenty
years ago (Mutual Benefit) there is more regulation of insurance
companies. It is unlikely that any insurance company is going to
implode without sufficient warning for you to switch insurance
companies. Take the discounts but make sure you are getting a good
deal. Shop around anyway and see if the discounted deal you are
referring to is the best deal you can get from a qualified insurer.

Hello, all,

My husband and I just got pretty decent quotes from an insurance
company who is giving us a multiple policy discount for life insruance,
home owners insurance, umbrella insurance and auto insurance. The
question is: is it wise to "put all eggs in one basket"? I'm not sure
what the risks are, if there are any... What is your opinion?

Thanks,
Elana