What would happen if you were permanently injured or became too ill to work? You might qualify for disability payments from Social Security, but would you be able to survive on the average payout ($1,165/month as of April 2015)? Maybe you have some savings, but would they be adequate to cover your living expenses until […]
Category: Personal Protection
Preventing Accidental Poisoning
America’s poison help lines received over 3.1 million calls in 2013 alone. While accidental poison exposure of children younger than the age of 6 accounted for nearly 50 percent of incidents, kids weren’t the only ones in harm’s way. Ninety-two percent of reported poison-related deaths were of adults. More than 90 percent of poisonings occurred […]
Rental Insurance Basics for College Grads
Whether you’ve just graduated from college or are the parent of a recent college grad, here’s a fact you need to know: only 37 percent of today’s renters have rental insurance. This means millions are only one fire, natural disaster or burglary away from the financial losses renters insurance was created to protect them from. […]
Insuring Your Bicycle — Why It Might Be a Good Idea
Summer is a lovely time to get outdoors and bike with your family, but before you go, you’ll want to consider protecting the investment you’ve made in recreation vehicles. Bikes are much easier to steal than cars, as even heavy duty locks can be compromised with the right equipment. The FBI estimates that 1.5 million bicycles are […]
Preventing Burglary — What You Can Do to Protect Your Home
When driving down a street at night looking at houses, you are most likely drawn to the house with exterior lighting, neatly trimmed landscaping, and lights on inside. That’s because the house looks inviting and well cared for. Now imagine a burglar is driving down the same street. The things that drew you to the […]
One Homeowner’s Tool You’re Probably Overlooking
Why do you have homeowners insurance? If you’re like many American homeowners, it’s not because you believe anything bad will ever happen to your property but because your mortgage lender or landlord says you must. You signed up for the policy and never gave it another thought. This is extremely dangerous. Disasters can strike at […]
Protecting Your Smartphone is Easy
Can’t live without your cell phone? You’re not alone. According to Pew Research Center, 90 percent of adults in the U.S. own one. Forty-four percent admit to sleeping with it to avoid missing calls and text messages. But as addicted to our devices as we might be, many of us are not taking adequate […]
Protect Yourself from Robocall Scams
The phone rings. You answer—but no one responds. Before you can hit disconnect, a recorded message begins to play. It informs you that you’ve won a free vacation, have been chosen to test a product, are eligible for a reduction in your credit card interest rate, owe money to the IRS, are in trouble with […]
The Easiest Way to Keep Your Home Safe
As the old saying goes, your home is your castle. Unfortunately, few are equipped with drawbridges, motes and guards—historically effective features designed to prevent unwanted parties from entering. Every year thieves gain access to millions of residences as a result, subjecting the owners to property damage, the loss of belongings and, sometimes, even violence. The […]
Time to Insure Your Computer Equipment
Once upon a time, large desktop computers were the golden standard of computing and portable devices were the exception. Today, almost the complete reverse is true. Laptop computers have grown more powerful and less expensive. Where college students considered typewriters to be mandatory equipment a generation ago, most today would not dream of attending college […]