Delt Stories

Whether you are pursuing a higher degree or joining the titans of industry, there is one thing every single graduating brother is going to face next year no matter what major. Insurance will affect everyone’s life, and it is crucial to know how this can affect you. Having insurance knowledge will not only get you the right coverage, but it can also save you money both monthly and in the time of a need.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be discussing four insurance topics: renter’s/home owner’s, auto, group health and life insurance. With each of these discussions, it is important to remember these are just facts; everyone needs to research their own situation and talk with their insurance agent.

To start, we need to build a foundation; these terms will be found in most insurance policies and should be thoroughly researched prior to graduating:

Premium is the dollar amount you must pay for your insurance. This is paid annually, semiannually or monthly. There are different options to control how high or low your premium is (make sure you have this discussion with your insurance agent).

Deductible is the dollar amount you are accountable for after the insurance company pays their portion of a loss. You set the deductible, but going higher or lower will affect your premium. Make sure you can handle this amount financially. There are two types of deductibles, one that occurs during every loss and one that accumulates over the year.

Claim is a notice from you to your insurance company that there has been a loss. It is important to know how your insurance is going to handle a claim and what your responsibilities are during a loss.

Co-Insurance is the percentage of the bill you are responsible for paying along with your deductible. With health insurance, this applies after your deductible. With renter’s/home owner’s, this is the amount you must pay for not having enough insurance. Many times this is applied as a penalty. For further explanation, I recommend having your agent walk you through a claim or search “Co-Insurance Calculator” on the internet.

Each topic throughout the series will have some specific terms and questions to review with your agent as you are creating your policy. Remember, this is a foundation to work off of and to challenge your agent to get the coverage you need.