Archive for May, 2005
Ok, I sat down and talked with my State Farm agent. One really annoying thing is that I had certain coverages because I swear I was told I needed them for my $1 million Personal Umbrella Policy. This time, I was told I didn’t need them. I feel somewhat misled, and am seriously considering another agent, but maybe I just misheard. Humph. Here’s what we discussed:
Non-owned Car Coverage - Liability
I drive a company car for work, and also for personal use. This extends my liability (and $1M Umbrella) coverage to that car, so if something happens in it I am covered. It only costs $10/year, and also covers rental cars, so it’s definitely worth it to me. I was told that this was required for the Umbrella Coverage (I think), but it’s not.
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Posted in Insurance | 4 Comments »
My free copy of Automatic Millionaire came today, as would’ve yours if you called in when I posted it (also confirmed by a commenter) =) It came via Fedex Saver, not bad! I have a feeling this book will tell you something like if you save $XXX a month in your 401k/IRA, for XXX years, you’ll be a millionaire. But hey, whatever works, and it was free! The reviews indicate it’s targeted for relative novices. I’ll definitely check out the prospectuses and the book later.
Posted in Deals & Offers | 4 Comments »
(Continued from Part 1 and Part 2.) In addition to liability, collision, and comprehensive coverage, there are a couple other options to choose from in the car insurance world. These include: Personal Injury Protection, Emergency Road Service (Towing), Rental Car Coverage, Full Glass Protection.
Personal Injury Protection
While Liability covers the other person’s vehicle, PIP covers the medical cost for the passengers in your vehicle, no matter who’s fault it was. Chances are if you already have decent health and disability insurance, you won’t need this coverage. Some states require a minimum amount, like mine. I’m just carrying the minimum.
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I hope everyone is enjoying remembering those who have died in our nation’s service along with the eating of charred meat, potato salad, and beans from a can. Oh, and don’t forget to try “white trash champagne” - beer + lemon-lime soda.
On a more serious note, according to USMemorialDay.org:
“To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed on Dec 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time, for all Americans “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps’.”
Posted in General | No Comments »
I guess I’m still on their mailing list from the golf ball offer, but I just got another offer from American Century Investments for a free copy of the bestselling book Automatic Millionaire by David Bach. For more information, please check out their offer page (link fixed). You’ll need to make a 5-minute phone call. I called, person was courteous, no real pressure, just requested some informational brochures and mentioned the book. Easy-peasy.
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Posted in Deals & Offers | 5 Comments »
The most common advice I hear about how to lower your car insurance premiums is either to drop collision on your car, or raise your collision and comprehensive coverages as high as possible. But first, I think you have to put things in perspective first.
What is collision coverage? Will it go up if I make a claim?
Collision insurance will cover costs related to repairing damages to your car due to an accident with another car (including hit-and-run). Usually this type of coverage is only required when you lease or have a loan on your car. In most cases, if you do get in an accident and make a collision claim, your rates will go up. Some companies will forgive the first accident if you have a certain length of accident-free history. For me I think it’s 10 years.
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Thanks for everyone’s comments about insurers, I’m going to whittle it down to 3-4 major auto insurers, I don’t want to deal with the small fries. My policy expires in mid-July, so I have a bit of time. Now I need to examine my policy coverage levels to see if they are appropriate. There are many components of auto insurance, and I actually understood very little about each until recently.
How much liability coverage do I need?
Liability covers damage you may cause to other people’s property and injuries to the people themselves, including your passengers. It offers protection from lawsuits. Usually each state designates a minimum level of coverage that everyone is required to have, something in the neighborhood of $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident, and $5,000 property damage.
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Through the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Open CourseWare (MIT OCW) Project, you can get free, searchable, access to MIT’s course materials for educators, students, and self-learners around the world. From Aeronautics to Women’s Studies, they currently have over 900 courses published online, with a goal of making virtually all course online.
Poking around for a bit, they have handouts, sample exams, lecture notes, even digital pictures of the blackboards! The only thing missing is the sound of the guy beside you snoring. I always wondered why someone couldn’t just walk into most university campus classrooms, sit down, and learn just about everything I did, minus the diploma. It would take time and some passion, but you could do it…
Posted in Deals & Offers | 5 Comments »
Here are the updates from the Deals & Offers I have posted recently (It’s been a while, my last update was in March). As usual, I try to only post the offers that I think are good enough to apply for myself. I have omitted ones that are no longer available. See original posts for details.
$25 free opening bonus, 3.00% APY from ING Direct Orange Savings Account - Got my $25, decent rate, lots of people have signed up without any problems (or at least nobody had mentioned it to me).
$25 free for registering with GreenZap - Site hasn’t started yet, very vague, but they only require a name and an e-mail, so why not? I signed up.
$20 free opening bonus, 3.05% APY from VirtualBank eMoney Market Account - Same as ING: got my $20, decent rate, lots of people have signed up without any problems.
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Posted in Deals & Offers | No Comments »
Here are the updates from the Deals & Offers I have posted recently (It’s been a while, my last update was in March). As usual, I try to only post the offers that I think are good enough to apply for myself. I have omitted ones that are no longer available. See original posts for details.
$25 free opening bonus, 3.00% APY from ING Direct Orange Savings Account - Got my $25, decent rate, lots of people have signed up without any problems (or at least nobody had mentioned it to me).
$25 free for registering with GreenZap - Site hasn’t started yet, very vague, but they only require a name and an e-mail, so why not? I signed up.
$20 free opening bonus, 3.05% APY from VirtualBank eMoney Market Account - Same as ING: got my $20, decent rate, lots of people have signed up without any problems.
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Posted in Deals & Offers | 2 Comments »
Apparently someone I know knows someone who knows somebody to who knows this woman selling ad space on her body. (Got that?) $11,300!!! Talk about an easy summer college “job”! I’ve worked full-time entire summers for a lot less.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Posted in General | 5 Comments »
I may be purchasing my company car after it goes off-lease. This, of course, means I have to insure it myself along with our current car, and I’ve been meaning to shop around for car insurance again anyways. I’m tempted to get quotes from everywhere, but as I understand it many of the car insurance companies pull “hard” inquiries on your credit report, which will hurt your credit. (Update: I’m not entirely sure about this. This link at Washington Mutual Insurance suggests something different. However, some people have had inquiries from car insurance companies show up on their credit report). So, I’m asking my readers to give me their personal advice and experiences. Which car insurance company do you have? Do you like it? Does it have a good multi-car discount? Which did you switch from? What website did you use to compare prices? Thanks!
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Posted in Insurance | 19 Comments »
As a follow-up to my post on gas expenses as part of budgeting, Flexo at Consumerism Commentary introduced me to Cheap Gas, which lets you locate visually where the cheapest gas around you is (if you live in a major metropolitan area). I found a decent-priced station somewhat along my work commute, gonna check it out later. Cool!
Posted in Budgeting | No Comments »
I have been chosen as a juror for an estimated 3-4 week trial. Balancing this and work is gonna s-u-c-k. I’m intrigued by the whole process though, and I’m not unhappy I suppose. I’m going to bring my laptop and see if I can get some work in during the (many) breaks. Maybe some blogging too. The case? Can’t tell ya, but let’s just say I know why certain Google Adsense keywords are so lucrative…
Posted in General | 5 Comments »
So I’m now finished with Day 2 of jury duty and still going, and as of right now I have a 40% chance of getting picked on a jury for a four week trial! My company does pay me while serving on jury duty, which makes me happy after hearing all the people talk about the lost wages they’ll suffer from if they get picked. I totally feel for the hourly workers… Jury duty pay in my area is like $25 a day. Of course, the courthouse is located right smack in downtown - that’s how much parking + a cheap lunch costs per day!
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