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Claims paying ability rating

Insurance talk — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:06:59 +0000

When shopping for an insurance policy, the key areas most people tend to focus on is the price and the level of cover the policy provides. However, you should also pay close attention to the companies “Claims Paying Ability Rating” as this provides an insight into the companies financial health. The higher the rating, the healthier the companies financial position.

By law, all insurance companies must undergo an assessment on an annual basis. There are three agencies that can award the ratings:

Standard & Poor’s
A M Best
Fitch Ratings

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This insurance rating assesses the insurance companies ability to pay out on present and future claims . The ratings are represented by a letter, number and /or symbol.
An insurance companies rating can generally be found in its written disclosure.

AAA	(Extremely Strong)	BBB+	(Good)	B+	(Weak)
AA+	(Very Strong)	BBB	(Good)	B	(Weak)
AA	(Very Strong)	BBB-	(Good)	B-	(Weak)
AA-	(Very Strong)	BB+	(Marginal)	CCC	(Very Weak)
A+	(Strong)	BB	(Marginal)	CC	(Extremely Weak)
A	(Strong)	BB-	(Marginal)	R	(Regulatory Action)
A-	(Strong)

A++	(Superior)	B+	(Very Good)	C	(Weak)
A+	(Superior)	B	(Fair)	C-	(Weak)
A	(Excellent)	B-	(Fair)	D	(Poor)
A-	(Excellent)	C++	(Marginal)	E	(Under Supervision)
B++	(Very Good)	C+	(Marginal)	F	(In Liquidation)

Insurance claim tools

Insurance talk — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 08:21:25 +0000

Everyone hates having to submit an insurance claim to their insurance company should an incident occur. Let’s face it, it’s well known that p insurance companies have a reputation of taking a hard line when it comes to paying out on insurance claims. A recent survey conducted by RaboPlus called the RaboPlus Financial Confidence Index demonstrated this (you can read more one the post Do New Zealander’s Trust Insurance Companies?)

If you feel you’ve been hard done by when making a claim, remember that you do have other options to turn to for help. Not only can you contact the Insurance and Savings Ombudsman, you can also use our collection of FREE insurance letters to help you engage with your insurance company. Unfortunately, many people commit insurance fraud therefore, insurance companies must go through the proper process and honest people do get caught out. Use our insurance letters and improve your chances of a satisfactory outcome.

What is SNAP?

Insurance talk — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 02:01:48 +0000

Police recover thousands of dollars worth of stolen property each year however, many items cannot be returned. Why is this? well, it’s because people don’t record the serial numbers or mark the property so it can be identified as belonging to them. Why is this important to you? Apart from the obvious benefit of receiving your stolen goods back , some insurance companies waiver the no claims excess for clients who are able to provider serial number records when they report a loss.

To read more about the Serial Number Action Project (SNAP) visit the Neighbourhood Support NZ website or create your own property record by downloading a form here