March 28, 2024

Know your insurance

Most of us get up every morning without a thought about our health until we are sick. Then, we realize how important our health becomes to our well-being.

Over the years, our family hase purchased health insurance that we could afford. Yes, we want more coverage, but with a family of four, we could not pay for it. We made selections with our insurance person — what was the best “bets” and selected them.

I do the same thing with car insurance. Yes, there are certain requirements that I must have by state law. However, the real expense of car insurance is on coverage that I select and the deducts that I can afford to pay.

Like everyone, I would love to have 1,000 percent coverage at a very, very cheap rate. It does not work that way. I have to know what the coverage that I can afford.

Last year, our insurance company reviewed all of our coverage with us. We cut some coverage, and we added some coverage. We thank the insurance agent for the time and advice.

Over the years, we have had some claims. The insurance companies that had our coverage have always been fair and straight forward in paying our claim.

Yes, I know it is popular to complain about insurance companies. It was the “small print” or “they didn’t tell me” when the insurance company does not pay the claim is our common-heard excuse.

I was taught in school to ask questions. If you ask questions, there is “no small print” or “they didn’t tell me." When our children became young adults, I discovered from phone calls they had not been taught even about car insurance.

SOME IN OUR WORLD TODAY WOULD HAVE US THINK THAT PROFIT IS A BAD WORD. Well, profit is not a bad word.

In Waterloo I worked part time for Dan Deery car sales. Dan had a statement he made often, “I want a reason to be here tomorrow and turn on the lights.”

Let’s not make the insurance companies out to be the “fall guys” in this huge debate going on right now. They are in business to make a profit. Some lines of insurance do not make profit, and other lines do make a profit.

It is like basketball; in a game the team may be shooting poorly, but the team can always play good defense that may give your chance for victory.

Frankly, the insurance companies are here to cover losses we feel we cannot risk for ourselves. Some people will never have a claim, and others will have a lot of claims. The insurance companies are hoping it will all balance out, and there will be a profit at the end of the year.