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If you are over 55 years old, chances are you’ve heard of an AARP classroom course you can take to lower your car insurance premiums.  If you live in Nevada, you should really consider taking the course for a few reasons.

Shortened classroom time- The first big advantage to taking the AARP course in Nevada is we are one of only a handful of states where the DMV has worked closely with AARP to encourage 55+ drivers to take the course.  One complaint they were hearing from many attendees is the standard time the course takes is 8 hours, taking up your whole day.  Nevada worked with AARP to create a shorter 4-hour course, half the time required for most other states.  I took the course myself and the format is surprisingly fun and passes the time quickly.

Nevada Insurance Companies required to give discount-  This was interesting to me to learn that in most states while insurance companies may offer a discount for taking the course, they are not bound by law to do so.  Nevada insurance law requires companies to provide a discount.  From what I’ve seen with our own companies, the discount is usually between 5 – 10%, which can definitely help with your insurance payments.

Best Place in town to take the course-  Here at AMS, we volunteer to host courses here in our office the first Wednesday of each month.  The cost is $14 per person and $12 if you are an AARP member, all of which goes back to AARP.  I am proud that the Nevada director for driver safety courses came to our last class and mentioned that it is by far the best venue she has been to for taking the course.  We limit the number of attendees to 10 to encourage participation.  It is also held in our conference room overlooking Lone Mountain to hopefully provide a comfortable and relaxing setting.  And last but not least, we bring Dee’s Donuts!  If you’ve never had one, then what better reason is there to come?

To RSVP for our next class or if you have any questions at all, you can call me at 702-965-3685.

Originally posted 2012-09-22 00:14:55.

If you’ve ever cringed when you’ve opened your auto insurance bill, you’re probably not alone. Depending on your family’s cars and drivers, those policies can get pricey. But if you haven’t taken advantage of discount options, you may be paying more than you have to. We’ve listed a few of the most common discounts below; give us a call to find out even more!

Bundling discounts: Perhaps one of the best discounts you can get is pretty simple, because you likely need at least a couple personal insurance policies. By adding homeowners or renters insurance (to just name two) to your auto policy, you can save a good chunk on that premium.

Defensive/Safe Driver discounts: Has it been years since you’ve had an accident or a ticket? Or have you recently taken a defensive driving course? If so, you may qualify for a special discount awarded to the best drivers. Score!

Safety Equipment discount: By purchasing a car with safety and security features like airbags or a security system, you can save some bucks every month. Even some after-market products can help you get a discount.

Good Student discount: Are you a college student and paying big bucks for insurance because of your age? Good news; being an excellent student can actually help you shave some money off your auto policy. That’s something worth getting an A+ for!

Military discount: Are you currently serving our country? If so, thank you! And be sure to mention this to your agent to see if they offer a discount for military members.

Multiple Car discounts: Got a whole family to insure? Good news; you can save some money doing it. Lucky for you, most companies offer discounts when covering multiple cars. Finally, something that’s cheaper with a bigger family!

Payment Method discount: Some companies will give you a discount for setting up automatic payments or paying the policy in full. Talk to your agent to see if this applies to you.

There’s a few to get you thinking. What’s the best discount you’ve gotten on auto insurance?

 

Originally posted 2012-09-19 03:45:03.

Author : Martin Jeffrey

In the middle of the 1930s a large red London Bus, bearing a “7” route number harassed motorists in the North Kensington area of London.

The Junction of St Mark’s Road and Cambridge Gardens in that area had long been considered a dangerous corner – it was “blind” from both roads and had been the scene of numerous accidents.

The decision of the local authority to straighten out the bend was partially influenced by the testimony of late night motorists. Many claimed that they had crashed while swerving to avoid a speeding double decker bus that hurtled down St Marks Road in the small hours, long after regular buses ceased service.

A typical report to the Kensington Police read ” I was turning the corner and saw a bus tearing towards me. The lights of the top and bottom decks and the headlights were full on but I could see no crew or passengers. I yanked my steering wheel hard over and mounted the pavement, scraping the roadside wall. The bus just vanished.”

After one fatal accident, during which a driver had swerved and hit the wall head on, an eyewitness told the coroner’s inquest that he had seen the mystery bus hurtling towards the car seconds before the driver spun off the road.

When the coroner expressed what was perhaps natural cynicism, hundreds of local residents wrote to his office and to the local newspapers offering to testify that they too, had seen the “Ghost Bus”.

Among the most impressing of these witnesses was a local transport official who claimed that he had seen the vehicle draw up to the local bus depot in the early hours of the morning, stand with engine purring for a moment, and then disappear. Eventually the local council straightened out the road there, and the accident rate was greatly reduced. Thereafter there were no more reports of the ghostly red bus.

References
Frank Smythe “Ghosts and Poltergeists”
The Ghost Bus of Kensington By Bob Griffiths “Silver Arrow” – November 1998

Originally posted 2010-11-14 15:25:53.

Have you weighed your health care options and come up more confused than ever? We get it; health insurance plans, deductibles, savings accounts, pre-existing conditions . . . It all sounds like jargon after a while, and confusing jargon at that. If you’re looking into health savings account, you’re on track to saving health care costs. Here we’ve listed the primary benefits of an HSA so you can make an unconfused decision.

1.Opposed to an flexible spending account, an HSA doesn’t lock you in to a set contribution amount. That means you can adjust your contribution a monthly basis, depending on your current medical forecast. Additionally, there is no “use-it-or-lose-it” rule with an HSA, meaning your unused funds will roll over into the next year.

2.HSAs are completely tax-free. You may be accustomed to 401k and other accounts that are “tax-deferred,” but if you follow the guidelines on your HSA and use the funds only for qualifying medical expenses, you’ll never actually pay taxes on the contribution.

3.Your employer contributions aren’t taxed either. Ever gotten a raise and then quickly calculated how much you’ll actually see after taxes and deductions? When an employer contributes to your HSA, you get the full amount – no “net” to speak of.

4.Your office visit payments actually go somewhere. With a coordinating high-deductible PPO, you won’t be paying office co-pays that don’t contribute to your yearly deductible or out-of-pocket maximum. That means you get credit for any payments you make.

5.With growing confusion in the health care industry, HSAs are likely to gain popularity. Many otherwise uninsured individuals will likely enroll in qualifying high-deductible PPOs in order to avoid a penalty. This makes them eligible for an HSA – which, if they’ve been listening to us at all, they’ll enroll in immediately!

Got specific questions on spending accounts? Let us know below!

Originally posted 2013-02-10 02:26:24.

July and August are monsoon season in nearby Arizona, where the warm, moist air from the Gulf of California make their way up into the Desert Southwest and bring torrential rains. At times, those monsoonal formations make their way into the Las Vegas Valley, and that can lead to heavy rainfall, high winds and flash flooding. Las Vegas residents and visitors well-remember the July 2013 flash flood that swept through the Las Vegas Strip and caused a great deal of damage. But worse floods have occurred, which spurred recent flood drainage projects to divert flash flood waters. Still, having flood insurance for homes is an important concern for homeowners despite being located in the Mojave Desert.

Spring Mountains, Rocky Terrain Promote Flash Flooding

The high elevation of the Spring Mountains and Mt. Charleston, which rises to more than 11,900 feet, makes it difficult for rain clouds to pass over without spilling their contents. The steep, rocky terrain along the eastern slope of the Spring Mountains is incapable of absorbing much if any rain water, so what little falls there eventually works its way into nearby Las Vegas. If there is an inch or more of rain that falls in one or two hours, significant flash flooding can occur. And on the rare occasions when there is a heavy downpour anywhere in the vicinity, the water makes its way though Las Vegas until eventually winding up in Lake Mead and the Colorado River on its way to the Gulf of California.

Many Get Coverage from National Flood Insurance Program

Most homeowners insurance policies do not provide coverage for external flooding unless added as an endorsement for an additional monthly premium. But most homes are insured through the National Flood Insurance Program, which provides up to $250,000 in external flood insurance coverage for varying rates. Speaking with your insurance agent can help to affirm what kind of flood insurance you might have on your home and whether or not it would be a good idea to buy external flood insurance protection.

Have you or any of your neighbors every suffered damages from external flooding?

Originally posted 2014-06-15 22:36:55.