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Thumbtacks posted:Thinking about getting insurance for my wife and I directly from the provider and not getting it through an employer, is there any reason to NOT do that? I imagine the employer maybe gets better rates, but I don’t think there’s any huge reason to go through them. I don’t know how long I’ll have this job and I’d rather have something more permanent locked down just in case. Life or health?
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Jun 23, 2023 13:59
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Better negotiated rates seems like a pretty huge reason plus employer insurance is usually partially paid for by the employer but if you’re isn’t I guess that’s less of a reason. I don’t know why you wouldn’t take the better rates now and then shop for standalone insurance after you quit or get fired, it’s not like you’re going to lock in lower rates by getting in early.
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Jun 23, 2023 14:22
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Thumbtacks posted:Thinking about getting insurance for my wife and I directly from the provider and not getting it through an employer, is there any reason to NOT do that? I imagine the employer maybe gets better rates, but I don’t think there’s any huge reason to go through them. I don’t know how long I’ll have this job and I’d rather have something more permanent locked down just in case. If you are referring to life insurance, have you considered both? I get the cheap life insurance thru my employer at 5x salary and also a $1m term life thru my insurance company.
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Jun 23, 2023 14:58
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Def get Long Term Disability separately. ERISA law for employer supplied LTD plans are way more advantageous for insurance companies than the law for independent plans.
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Jun 23, 2023 15:47
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I meant health insurance but I guess life too? Idk. I work full time remote but my remote job that I’ve had for years does not have out of state insurance and I work in a different state. Picked up another job mostly so I can get out of the house, it should have pretty decent insurance but it’ll take 60 days to kick in and they don’t offer the insurance company I would prefer to get it from.
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Jun 23, 2023 20:27
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I can speak to life. If you're young and healthy it's likely cheaper to go get your own. Life insurance benefits are typically offered at a flat rate per $1000 (differing only by smoking status), not even by age in most cases. This means young healthy people subsidize the older less healthy members of the insured pool. For what it's worth, I'm younger and healthy-ish but still just go through work because it's convenient and I'm lazy. I suspect it is costing me a couple hundred bucks a year.
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Jun 23, 2023 22:13
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Thumbtacks posted:I meant health insurance but I guess life too? Idk. I work full time remote but my remote job that I’ve had for years does not have out of state insurance and I work in a different state. Picked up another job mostly so I can get out of the house, it should have pretty decent insurance but it’ll take 60 days to kick in and they don’t offer the insurance company I would prefer to get it from.
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Jun 24, 2023 02:26
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My wife is self employed (tattoo artist) so she can't get them through work, and I'd rather get something consistent if I can, I'm not saying I plan on job hopping necessarily but I don't think it'll cost too much more to get it myself through the healthcare marketplace thing and I feel like that gives me some more flexibility in career stuff. And, like I said, my newer job does not offer the healthcare provider I was hoping for. I was probably going to get health insurance independently and get everything else through the job, but that has to wait for two months anyway.
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Jun 24, 2023 03:33
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Good luck to you and all. When I did this math it wasn't even close, employers subsidize so much of the cost it's hard to say no to it.
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Jun 24, 2023 03:41
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Thumbtacks posted:My wife is self employed (tattoo artist) so she can't get them through work, and I'd rather get something consistent if I can, I'm not saying I plan on job hopping necessarily but I don't think it'll cost too much more to get it myself through the healthcare marketplace thing and I feel like that gives me some more flexibility in career stuff. And, like I said, my newer job does not offer the healthcare provider I was hoping for. I was probably going to get health insurance independently and get everything else through the job, but that has to wait for two months anyway. https://www.healthcare.gov/have-job-based-coverage/
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Jun 24, 2023 04:57
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Thumbtacks posted:My wife is self employed (tattoo artist) so she can't get them through work, and I'd rather get something consistent if I can, I'm not saying I plan on job hopping necessarily but I don't think it'll cost too much more to get it myself through the healthcare marketplace thing and I feel like that gives me some more flexibility in career stuff. And, like I said, my newer job does not offer the healthcare provider I was hoping for. I was probably going to get health insurance independently and get everything else through the job, but that has to wait for two months anyway. Besides what other people have said about cost, the marketplace will require you to sign up every year, and I believe that the options available may substantially change over time and possibly even faster than they would from you switching jobs that provided you health insurance. Definitely check it out if you're interested, but don't assume that the plan you see there is necessarily going to be stable over a long time period.
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Jun 24, 2023 05:12
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Hm, noted. I will look into it. In the meantime, until the 60 days probation thing expires, I do not currently have insurance coverage at all. Part of the reason I'm thinking about marketplace coverage is that it can start effectively NOW, or at least way sooner than 60 days, and we have osme stuff that we kinda need coverage to help with. I can't imagine there's month by month plans that aren't INSANELY expensive
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Jun 24, 2023 06:47
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I'm shopping around for new auto insurance and homeowners insurance. I'd rather not waste an entire day calling various insurance companies and ensuring I'm getting apples vs apples comparison so I'd like to use an insurance agent. What's the best way to find one in my area (CT) and also ensure they're not charging an arm and a leg premium over me doing my own legwork?
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Jun 27, 2023 19:00
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nwin posted:I'm shopping around for new auto insurance and homeowners insurance. I'd rather not waste an entire day calling various insurance companies and ensuring I'm getting apples vs apples comparison so I'd like to use an insurance agent. Word of mouth, and you want an independent insurance agent/broker. Ask in whatever peer groups you have, you'll only hear really good or really bad things. Honestly direct typically gets better pricing with the bigs at least, but an independent might have a market quoting well. I'd recommend someone but I'm on the opposite side of the US.
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Jun 27, 2023 23:45
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I realize this is a general insurance thread, but how can I fight back against Geico raising my car insurance rates by 30% year over year during my latest renewal? I have 0 accidents for the past 10+ years, I drive an (almost) 10 year old car (Audi S3) and I carry almost the maximum deductible I can, yet apparently that STILL isn't enough to keep the greedy fucks at Geico from wanting more. I already called and ask about it, and they stated "it's just getting more expensive" which to me is an absolute bullshit excuse for raising rates by 30%. I can excuse maybe 5% per year, but 30% seems like it's worth it to kick Geico the curb and find someone else.
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Jul 21, 2023 21:10
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Wicaeed posted:I realize this is a general insurance thread, but how can I fight back against Geico raising my car insurance rates by 30% year over year during my latest renewal? Good luck, I saw a similar hike from Geico, shopped around, and they remain the lowest priced option for me. Reinsurance costs are up dramatically, the replacement value of your 10 year old car has significantly increased over the last 2 years, and repair costs assuming it's repairable have also skyrocketed. You can't fight back.
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Jul 21, 2023 21:18
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Wicaeed posted:I realize this is a general insurance thread, but how can I fight back against Geico raising my car insurance rates by 30% year over year during my latest renewal? Look at the upside, your Carrier still does business in your state. In CA and FL a good amount are pulling out. Your only option is to get other quotes, but for me Geico was still the cheapest acceptable option.
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Jul 21, 2023 21:20
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You can't really fight against a rate increase. Your insurance company has already filed those rates and the rating algorithms they use and had them approved by your state. All you can do is take your business elsewhere if you can find a place that has cheaper rates for you.
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Jul 22, 2023 00:15
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Wicaeed posted:I realize this is a general insurance thread, but how can I fight back against Geico raising my car insurance rates by 30% year over year during my latest renewal? Your only option is to shop around and see if you can get a better rate elsewhere. You may be interested to know GEICO's auto book had an underwriting loss (premiums - losses - expenses) of something in the neighborhood of $1.9 BILLION dollars in 2022. They will likely turn an underwriting profit in 2023 judging from their first quarter results but a few bad storms can turn that around really fast.
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Jul 22, 2023 00:32
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Wicaeed posted:I realize this is a general insurance thread, but how can I fight back against Geico raising my car insurance rates by 30% year over year during my latest renewal? I'm in the same boat here, but with Progressive. They're trying to "progressively" raise my renewal rate by +33%, completely out of the blue. No tickets, no accidents, no claims, max deductible, 14-year-old vehicle and counting (I thought actuarial tables accounted for depreciation?). I haven't decided what to do and haven't renewed yet. From what I've read, the only way to save is to switch providers, so I'll see what else is out there. Of course we all know who's really to blame for this poo poo "we print it digitally"
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Jul 29, 2023 05:10
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My insurance broker called and said the insurer they put my house on 2 months ago, something called “MAX” is imminently insolvent and has quit processing claims or answering correspondence. The broker wasn’t sure if I would get the remaining 10 months of premium back. Should I be hoping the government steps in? Is my house actually insured right now? Should I be angry at my broker, or is this an extreme circumstance that I should just be happy he’s proactive about?
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Aug 16, 2023 15:12
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eddiewalker posted:My insurance broker called and said the insurer they put my house on 2 months ago, something called “MAX” is imminently insolvent and has quit processing claims or answering correspondence. https://maxinsurance.com/ https://acrobat.adobe.com/link/track?uri=urn%3Aaaid%3Ascds%3AUS%3Abad39bbb-b52b-3bc2-8f99-b886d07229d3  If you can afford to, I would definitely get a new policy with another carrier even without getting a refund. From what I can tell you are still insured, but in the event you have a loss it's probably gonna be a clusterfuck to get the claim paid promptly.
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Aug 16, 2023 15:36
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MAX is covered under pacicc which acts as the guarantor for home insurers in Canada, similar to the US state guaranty funds. They'll cover a portion of unearned premiums (the early premiums you paid) as well as any claims that may arise Look here to understand the level of coverage: https://www.pacicc.ca/what-we-do/coverage/ I don't have any details in terms of timing, e.g. when do you need to get a new policy? An insolvency isn't normal. I hadn't heard of MAX but they seem like a bit of an insurtech startup deal? So probably riskier than a bigger insurer. I don't know enough to say I'd your broker should take some I'd any blame here, at the least they could've conveyed who you were doing business with. On the other hand, theyve also been hosed b by MAX here. This could be the first insolvency theve dealt with, but it does feel like it's their job to know how this will impact you. I'd be ok with them not having answers right away. I would not be ok with them doing anything less than everything they possibly can to get those answers immediately.
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Aug 16, 2023 15:39
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My broker said he just became aware of the situation and started calling his clients. He also said he’s in the process of finding a replacement carrier. I guess I should just sit right and let it play out? I was on Madison Mutual for the last two years, then in July the broker called and said my rates were jumping $700, but “Max” could keep me paying a very similar premium. A month and a half later, here I am. eddiewalker fucked around with this message at 15:55 on Aug 16, 2023 |
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Aug 16, 2023 15:53
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eddiewalker posted:My broker said he just became aware of the situation and started calling his clients. He also said he’s in the process of finding a replacement carrier. I guess I should just sit right and let it play out?
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Aug 16, 2023 17:44
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Reporting back regarding my home insurer going insolvent. It’s only been about a month but I just got a check for the balance of my policy from the state “Property and Casualty Insurance Guaranty Association.” Now my rates are much higher, and I’m sure having 3 different insurers in 3 months doesn’t look great, but at least I got a refund.
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Sep 5, 2023 20:56
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eddiewalker posted:Reporting back regarding my home insurer going insolvent. It’s only been about a month but I just got a check for the balance of my policy from the state “Property and Casualty Insurance Guaranty Association.” Jeeze, wonder what they were AM Best rated like a year prior to making GBS threads the bed.
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Sep 6, 2023 01:09
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My wife and I have some life insurance through work and some through an agent. We haven't updated the amounts in probably 10 years and just had our first kid. What should we look at as far as making sure the kid is covered? Do we need to get a separate policy for him, or just increase ours? What other considerations am I missing?
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Sep 18, 2023 16:42
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Sleepytime posted:My wife and I have some life insurance through work and some through an agent. We haven't updated the amounts in probably 10 years and just had our first kid. The general considerations with child life insurance is funeral expenses, plus loss of income that would potantiall occur due to taking time off of work in the event of tragedy. You'll probably want to up life insurance amounts as now you'll have significantly more expenses. Not just loss of income and the normal cost of living, but also new/additonal daycare expenses that would be necessary for a single parent, and finding alternative health insurance. And the surviving parent may not want to move, which lessens the amount they might save from downsizing residence.
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Sep 18, 2023 17:11
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Would any of you happen to be knowledgeable about Medicare and/or Medicare Advantage?
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Oct 8, 2023 22:07
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two fish posted:Would any of you happen to be knowledgeable about Medicare and/or Medicare Advantage? There's a lot to know. What are you wondering about?
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Oct 9, 2023 00:13
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I'm on a dual eligible advantage plan, what do you want to know? Makes a big difference if it's SSDI or retirement age Medicare eligibility.
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Oct 9, 2023 00:20
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Awesome, thanks. So, this is not for me as much as it's for my mother, who I handle the insurance for since she's not very good at English. The open enrollment period is coming soon, and I want to set her up properly for next year. We're in New Jersey. She's 68 and lives with me in my apartment. Right now she's in an awkward spot where she doesn't qualify for Medicaid because she's just above the income/resources level to get it, and she's still working part-time and understandably does not want to yank her assets out of the bank and keep the cash under her mattress. At the same time, she doesn't have enough money to pay for proper Medicare, just for the premium, since she badly messed up her retirement and only gets about 200 a month in Social Security. I went with setting her up with a Medicare Advantage plan for this year, and it's been fairly mediocre in terms of coverage. Are Medicare Advantage plans really the best way to go in her situation? Should I try doing something different for 2024? two fish fucked around with this message at 03:08 on Oct 9, 2023 |
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Oct 9, 2023 03:01
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two fish posted:Awesome, thanks. So, this is not for me as much as it's for my mother, who I handle the insurance for since she's not very good at English. The open enrollment period is coming soon, and I want to set her up properly for next year. We're in New Jersey. She's 68 and lives with me in my apartment. That's pretty much it. Traditional Medicare without supplementary insurance like Medicaid or a Medigap is a bad idea, and Medigap (Medicare Supplement) plans are going to be much higher premium than MA plans, and you'll still need to buy the separate Part D Plan for drugs. Among MA plans there is quite a lot of variance, so if you haven't done so already you should shop around. There are often Medicare advisors through the state health insurance programs. You might want to try them if you're trying to think of options, and if she speaks a common foreign language it's possible they'll have someone there who can talk to her. https://www.nj.gov/humanservices/doas/services/ship/index.html
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Oct 9, 2023 05:00
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two fish posted:Awesome, thanks. So, this is not for me as much as it's for my mother, who I handle the insurance for since she's not very good at English. The open enrollment period is coming soon, and I want to set her up properly for next year. We're in New Jersey. She's 68 and lives with me in my apartment. Generally speaking, traditional Medicare with a supplement is what I would recommend retirees. I think there is only a brief window on entering Medicare where supplement plans are guaranteed without an exam and health based premiums, though. Not qualifying for Medicaid itself doesn't mean she might not qualify for Medicare Savings Programs like QMB or SLMB, as they have larger resource allowances, but can still help. Advantage plans for Dual Eligibles are much nicer than what is available to non-DE, and MSP status makes you Dual Eligible, at least for some plans. Details vary state to state. But I'd start there in shopping for different plans. https://www.nj.gov/humanservices/doas/services/slmb/ Sub Rosa fucked around with this message at 14:27 on Oct 9, 2023 |
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Oct 9, 2023 14:25
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Unfortunately a family member recently had a serious medical emergency within the past few weeks involving a trip to the ER followed by a ~1 week hospital stay and a fairly delicate surgical operation. We live in the US and have relatively "good" health insurance (United Healthcare Point-of-Service Plan) but expect this to all be extremely expensive. Is there a general reference on how to get prepared for the inevitable fight with the health insurer over covered expenses and procedures? Additionally we have access to a "health advocate" service through employer benefits. Are they generally regarded as useful?
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Oct 11, 2023 15:46
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I basically went through exactly everything you just said and it ended up costing me my out of pocket max for the year ($4,000) plus like $2,500 in out of network ambulance rides. Half of which I just said F U and never paid.
bird with big dick fucked around with this message at 06:39 on Oct 12, 2023 |
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Oct 12, 2023 06:29
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These were the main things I had to fight over. They were all resolved in the end but I absolutely spent a lot of time on the phone to get there. bird with big dick posted:This. bird with big dick posted:Got a $4009 medical bill out of nowhere, from the car accident 18 months ago. Apparently they billed the car insurance and they told them to get hosed, so then they billed my BCBS and they said "lol you can't just send bills in 16 months later, we ain't paying poo poo."
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Oct 12, 2023 06:38
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Nocturtle posted:Unfortunately a family member recently had a serious medical emergency within the past few weeks involving a trip to the ER followed by a ~1 week hospital stay and a fairly delicate surgical operation. We live in the US and have relatively "good" health insurance (United Healthcare Point-of-Service Plan) but expect this to all be extremely expensive. Is there a general reference on how to get prepared for the inevitable fight with the health insurer over covered expenses and procedures? Additionally we have access to a "health advocate" service through employer benefits. Are they generally regarded as useful? Hopefully, most of the expensive stuff was done through in network providers and facilities. The horror stories you hear about usually involve out of network issues. But really there's not much to do besides wait and see what comes in.
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Oct 12, 2023 09:33
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Thank you both for the Medicare Advantage advice, and sorry for my late response, it's been a busy few days. I looked into the QMB, SLMB, and QI programs, unfortunately, she wouldn't qualify for any of them because she's just above the limit. Her assets are about 20k total. Perhaps I can convince her over the coming year to bleed her savings a little bit. Would it be possible for me to hold onto some of her money, or is that wildly illegal and/or do they have methods of tracking that? The other thing is that she's still married on paper but has been separated for years now, so I don't know how that impacts things. With regards to picking out a suitable Medicare Advantage plan, what are some things to look for, and what are some things that would be red flags? Companies are already bombarding us over the phone and in the mail, but I'm ignoring the pretty brochures and telling her not to answer the phone because their job right now is to try to sucker her into something that might be terrible.
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Oct 12, 2023 12:19
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