There was a time many years ago when a company could be paid out on an insurance claim for no reason, other than for being a good and loyal client to the insurance company. Whilst it is possible that even today an insurance company could make a commercial decision when considering a claim from a very large client, many companies are at risk of having claims repudiated.

Contract hire companies nowadays see many cases where insurers have refused to pay out on claims following accidents. Naturally the larger a claim the more closely an insurance company will scrutinise it; if one of your company vehicles has a minor accident it does not make financial sense for the insurer to spend too much time on the claim. If however it is a major accident there are very sound commercial reasons why the insurance company will closely examine all aspects of the claim and the circumstances surrounding it. An Insurance company’s obligation is to its shareholders, which doesn’t include paying out on claims, if they can find good reason to invalidate it.

Many companies with company cars are not aware that the motor insurer’s terms and condition state that a vehicle must not be modified in any way, without advising them of the changes. It is for this reason safer to fit the manufacturer’s recommended tyres, with the correct speed rating. It is important that employees understand that they must not change or modify their company vehicle in any way, in order not to run the risk of invalidating the insurance. Some employers have discovered, following an accident, that an employee has done what is know as “chip” the company vehicle’s engine. This has the effect of increasing the car’s horsepower. The insurer will often, with justification, refuse to pay out a claim, because the car is more powerful than the vehicle they understood they were insuring. It also causes another problem in that it can invalidate the car’s warranty. In this eventuality it could cause the contract hire or leasing company to make a claim against the hirer; if the vehicle were for example on two years contract hire, then the hirer would be returning the vehicle without its third year warranty.

The vehicle must also be roadworthy to comply with the insurance company’s terms and conditions. Contract hire vehicles, as most company car are nowadays, are generally relatively new and regularly serviced. If however a company runs its own vehicles and keeps them for perhaps four or five years, then the condition of the cars needs to be monitored more closely, particularly if they are doing high mileage.

Of course it is not only the lack of maintenance that can cause a vehicle un roadworthy; depending on the circumstances of an accident, having the wrong tyre pressure, where the tyres are unevenly, over or under inflated could cause the insurance company to deem the vehicle to be in an un roadworthy condition. Incorrect tyre pressure can affect road holding, steering, braking and the overall handling of a vehicle and in an accident can often be a contributory factor, particularly in wet conditions. If a vehicle is involved in an accident, it is not unusual for the insurance company to check that the car is roadworthy; it is in their interests to do so. Of course if the circumstances of the accident were such that it is clear that the accident has been caused by another vehicle, this would not be a factor.

If an accident happens under different circumstances, for example where an employee’s car crashes on a bend or skids out of control and causes the accident, then it is quite reasonable that the insurance company will want to ensure that the vehicle was in a roadworthy condition. Incorrect tyre pressure is one of the most common causes of newer cars being un- roadworthy. Employers should advise their employees that tyre pressures need to be checked regularly. This is best done in the morning whilst the tyres are still cold. Another good reason for ensuring that tyre pressures are correct is that it can significantly reduce the company’s fuel bill.

It is also important that tyre wear is regularly monitored to ensure that tyres do not go below the legal limit; with servicing intervals at 18,000 miles and more, one cannot rely on being advised during servicing, that it is necessary to consider changing tyres. Having tyres that are below the legal limit is not maintaining a car in a roadworthy condition. Sometimes only part of the tyre is worn; running the car with the incorrect tyre pressure can cause this.

Another risk to the company is employees driving whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs, an insurance company will not generally pay out if there is an accident under these circumstances. How many of your employees stop of for a “couple” of pints on the way home? In a study carried out in 1998, alcohol was a factor in 10% of fatal motorcycle accidents and 19% of cars and other vehicles involved in fatal crashes. In spite of greater awareness nowadays there are still drivers who seriously believe that they drive better after consuming alcohol. The evidence however shows that alcohol seriously impairs psychomotor skills and affects the brains ability to process information.

The same will apply if the employee is under the influence of drugs. The company should also take into account that an employee may be taking a prescription drug that could affect their ability to drive safely. It would perhaps not be unreasonable for a company to check with an employee if they feel this could be the case. With the new legislation that comes into force in April 2008, the company is responsible for ensuring that its employees are safe when driving on company business.

Negligence is another area where an insurance company will often refuse to pay out. This is quite understandable because when an insurance company agrees to take on a risk, they will not have allowed for the risk of an opportunistic thief taking advantage of a driver’s negligence; where they leave their keys in the car whilst they pay for their petrol, or if they leave it parked on the road, or on their drive with the engine running. In spite of the risks, many company car drivers do this in the winter, so that the heating works as soon as they get into the car. Many have found themselves having to explain to their employer, that the car was gone when they came out of their house.

It is important to ensure that all your drivers have a current driving license and that previous convictions like drink driving, if required by the insurer, have been declared. Some employers have never seen more that a photocopy of their employees’ driving licence, others take a photocopy of the original and hold it on file. This is very unsatisfactory from the company’s point of view. There have been cases of it emerging after an accident that the employee was driving whilst disqualified.

If a contract hire broker is being used to source the company vehicles, most established contract hire brokers offer a licence checking service, if not there are other companies that specialise in providing a licence checking service. Regularly checking an employee’s driving licence is the only way a company can be sure that this type situation does not arise. An employee could be disqualified, or have accrued other convictions after the company has taken a copy of the licence. It is important to have these checks carried out not only to ensure the company’s insurance is not invalidated but also to protect the company in view of the new legislation.

If an insurer refuses to pay out on a claim, one should not be necessarily assume that they are correct in doing so. There is the Financial Ombudsman that will deal with any complaints or disputes in this respect. In a case we are aware of, one of our clients had his vehicle carjacked, the insurance company refused to pay out the claim of 60,000, because they said that they had written to him on a number of occasions telling him that he must fit Tracker to the vehicle, which he had not done. They argued that had tracker been fitted, the vehicle might have been recovered. However when an expert was called in on behalf of the client, things changed. Our understanding is that the expert stated that whilst the insurer had indeed written to the client with regard to Tracker, they had not at any time told him he would be uninsured without it. The claim was settled.

To summarise, it is important to ensure that vehicles are properly maintained and that tyres are regularly checked for wear and the pressures should be checked ideally every two weeks. Employees should be prohibited from making any modification to their company vehicle and should heed any warning lights that come up on the screen of their vehicle. They should also be warned about driving whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs and encouraged to speak to the company if they are on any type of medication that may affect their ability to drive safely. Vehicles should not be started and left to warm up on a cold day and keys should not be left in the car whilst in a petrol station or whilst quickly popping into the shops. Opportunistic thieves only take seconds to steal a car. Speak to a contract hire broker, about licence checking, it is vital that all companies have these checks carried out. The aforementioned will at least go some way, to avoiding a situation where an insurer refuses to pay out on a claim.

Negligence is a major factor when motor insurance companies refusing to pay claims. There was a reported case in the United States, apparently perfectly true, where the purchaser of a new motor home set out on a journey and after setting the vehicle to cruise control, went to the back of the vehicle to fix himself a drink. Understanding that cruise control meant the vehicle would drive itself. Not surprisingly it crashed. Of course being America he was able to sue the manufacturer for not telling him that, cruise control doesn’t work like that.

With the shape of the economy today, more people are losing their homes and renting. So this very short article is about home renters being able to deal with good and bad tenants when it comes to your real estate property.

Be particular about your tenants because you are essentially handing over possession of your house or apartment to a stranger. You may know a little about your tenant but you still wont know as much as you should. We know that most bad tenants pay late or not at all and can destroy your property.

Even worse, their bad behavior can cause good tenants in the same building to leave and completely downgrade your property. When your property is going down hill somehow it gets around to other people.

If you’re not using a management company to screen tenants, check the prospective tenants credit and business references. If you are using a management company, they can also run credit checks through the major credit bureaus.

Most landlords won’t rent to people who smoke or have pets. Prospective tenants who have children tend to stay a little bit longer than individuals or couples once they settle in and have their children in school.

To help prevent alleviate problems in the future, strictly enforce the late fee clause in your lease. In fact, enforce all the clauses in your lease. Otherwise, you could be asking for trouble down the road if you need to enforce the terms and evict a tenant for noncompliance.

A good rule of thumb is to treat all your tenants the same. Be professional and courteous at all times. That way, tenants will feel that you’re being fair with everyone and will be less likely to cause any trouble later.

On the bright side of things, most tenants will be honest and cause no problems for you. Just make sure your tenants are screen to the best of your abilities so you can feel comptable with renting your property out from the start. If a managment company is involved, make sure you keep in touch so you can continue to feel good about what is going on with your property.

There has been a lot of focus on the real estate market in the news lately. The over abundance of bad subprime mortgages is driving the world into a recession, yet people are still getting into the profession of general real estate.

In reality real estate is a lot like the stock market and many people in general real estate are setting themselves up to make a small fortune when the economy cycles back around. It can be difficult to understand why people would still be interested in a career in general real estate even after the real estate market has taken such a downturn.

Every intelligent investor in general real estate understands that the economy runs in cycles and for every bad turn there is a good turn right around the corner. So what many people in the field of general real estate are doing right now is buying property while the values are low and they will cash in when the economy swings back up again.

There are many attractions to getting into general real estate and those that do it for a living are well versed in how to maximize any type of market. To many people this is an exciting way to make a living while others would consider it an invitation to a heart attack.

This is a time to build your real estate portfolio and prepare for the upturn in the economy. If you are involved in general real estate then now is not the time to start to sell and the good investors and developers know that.

Being proficient in general real estate takes many years and a great deal of education and training but there is always money to be made if you know how. You have to know what types of real estate ventures are profitable in different types of markets and know what situations to avoid and recognize a money making situation when it presents itself.

It’s not as Easy as on Tv

One of the new popular types of television shows are the shows that talk about flipping a house. Flipping a house means buying an older run down property for a fraction of its real value, investing in rehabilitating the property, and then selling it for a profit. This is a more specific type of investment, yet many general real estate people get involved in flipping.

When the economy turns bad you are stuck with not only the properties you need to get an inflated dollar for but also you have to pay your contractors, this can be a problem you didn’t see coming. This is the risky side of general real estate that only experienced people should attempt.

As with all business ventures, there is always a risk. Real estate has potential to be a great investment if you know how to manage it. You will need to know when to get in, and when to get out…

Car makers, through their financing arm like GMAC for example, have products and finance plans to meet most market segments. Whether it is a new student, young couple, newly arrived in the country or elderly couples approaching retirement, you can rest assured that they will have a vehicle and finance options for them.

Today you will find that car loans are much more competitive than they were a few years ago the simple reason for this is that more and more are turning to the internet in order to get theirs. In fact those companies which are now providing online car loans are the best option for anyone who is looking for one which not only provides a low rate of interest but if they are also looking for easy repayment terms as well.

Often a person who applies for such a loan will find that they generally check approved much quicker than with any other kind of loan system. Plus with this type of car loan a person will normally have only to fill in an application form which consists of just one page and normally they are only after some very basic information from the borrower as follows:-

1. Your name, your address and telephone number (either landline or mobile or both)

2. Your email id

3. Your date of birth

4. Your social security number

5. Where do you work? How long have you been there? Annual earnings and job title

6. How much do you need ? How fast do you wish to pay it back?

Once you have discovered a great deal from an online company, it is now time to check them out. Go to Google and type in the company’s name and add the following terms, one at a time: BBB, Better Business Bureau, court cases, fraud, reputation, name changes, recommendations etc. As an example of the above, for the ABAY Loans Company start with ABAY Loans BBB, then ABAY Loans Better Business Bureau etc. Search the results for any negative factors. For the next step, do the same searches but substitute the Company Name with the names of the individuals involved with the firm. These searches can all be done in a very short period of time, and will provide you with reassurance about the offer and company which you select.

Tags: wealth building, finance, financial planning

Selling cars in today’s market is a tough game. Many car makers offer great discounts and supply competitive financing options. Take GMAC for example, they are usually able to supply a wide choice of plans and purchase arrangements to suit most prospective buyers.

You always should always shop around. Apart from loans available through your car dealer, you also have the offerings of local banks and finance companies. Check out the terms and fine print and then log on to the internet to view the offerings from GMAC, Ford Credit, Honda Credit or whatever car company you decided to go with. Once you have all the facts, choose the plan for your situation.

Often a person who applies for such a loan will find that they generally check approved much quicker than with any other kind of loan system. Plus with this type of car loan a person will normally have only to fill in an application form which consists of just one page and normally they are only after some very basic information from the borrower as follows:-

1. Your name, your address and telephone number (either landline or mobile or both)

2. your email address

3. Your birthdate

4. Your social security number

5. Where do you work? How long have you been there? Annual earnings and job title

6. How much are you looking for ? Over how long a period?

Once you have discovered a great deal from an online company, it is now time to check them out. Go to Google and type in the company’s name and add the following terms, one at a time: BBB, Better Business Bureau, court cases, fraud, reputation, name changes, recommendations etc. As an example of the above, for the ABAY Loans Company start with ABAY Loans BBB, then ABAY Loans Better Business Bureau etc. Search the results for any negative factors. For the next step, do the same searches but substitute the Company Name with the names of the individuals involved with the firm. These searches can all be done in a very short period of time, and will provide you with reassurance about the offer and company which you select.

Tags: loans, personal finance, currency trading