Special insurance policy to help flood victims BY ADRIAN DAVID

Special insurance policy to help flood victims BY ADRIAN DAVID - 30 DECEMBER 2015 @ 4:11 PM
KEMAMAN: For only RM50, flood victims can obtain immediate compensation of RM1,000 through the ‘Kampung Ku Insurance Policy’ introduced by a company. Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the special insurance policy was introduced to ease the financial burden of flood victims in times of emergencies. “Already, about 6,000 people in Kemaman district alone have subscribed to the policy provided by Allianz General Insurance Company (Malaysia) Berhad. “The insurance company will make the compensation pay out as soon as victims lodges a report with them,” said Shabery, who is also Kemaman member of parliament. He added that the insurance policy did not only cover floods, but other disasters like fire and damage to property by storm or lightning as well.
Read More : http://www.nst.com.my/news/2015/12/119713/special-insurance-policy-help-flood-victims

Kemaman folk buy special insurance against floods

Kemaman folk buy special insurance against floods

KEMAMAN: A special insurance policy has been introduced to ease the financial burden of flood victims, said Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek.
He said that for a start, the Kampung Ku Insurance Policy has been bought by 6,000 people in the Kemaman district of Terengganu.
"If floods occur and the people are evacuated, the insurance company will give them compensation amounting to RM1,000 immediately," said the Kemaman MP after launching and handing over the insurance policy for the constituency at the Kemaman Umno Division office last night.
Kemaman residents had to pay only RM50 for the insurance policy, provided in collaboration with Allianz General Insurance Company (Malaysia) Berhad.
The policy holders were also eligible for compensation if affected by other disasters such as fire and damage to property by storm or lightning. – Bernama

Tax relief for disaster insurance? 19 OCTOBER 2015 @ 11:00 AM

Read More : http://www.nst.com.my/news/2015/10/tax-relief-disaster-insurance

I EXPECT the 2016 Budget, to be tabled in Parliament on Oct 23, will review the Personal Income Tax Reliefs and Rebates. It is hoped that the budget will be generous, especially to lower-income households, after the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which has led to increases in the cost of living, not to mention other factors like the abolition of fuel subsidies, a weaker ringgit, which makes imports more expensive, the recent toll hikes, which pushes inflation up farther, and the unclear effects of the concluded Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement negotiations on consumers.

On the other hand, many of us have forgotten about the impact of the major floods at the end of last year, the worst-ever in the country’s history. It was reported that in Kelantan, 2,660 houses were completely damaged in the floods. Not to mention the thousands of vehicles submerged in water that needed engine overhauls. Flooding is generally excluded from comprehensive motor insurance policies. However, car owners can insure against “Special Perils”, for example flood, typhoon, hurricane, storm, tempest, volcanic eruption, earthquake, landslide, landslip, subsidence or sinking of soil/earth or other convulsion of nature, by paying additional premiums as an extension to the standard coverage. The government should consider tax incentives for personal income, for example a “catastrophic insurance personal income tax relief”, for car owners who extend their insurance policies to reduce risk from natural disasters. In addition, such tax relief could also be considered for houseowners who purchase houseowner insurance for their private dwellings, and householder insurance to cover their household contents as well as those who cover natural disasters by purchasing an extension to their standard fire insurance policies. The catastrophic insurance personal income tax relief would encourage broad participation nationwide, and this extra premium income from the inclusion of natural disasters, which include flood cover, could spur tax revenues for the government because GST would be imposed on total premiums of all general insurance, including general takaful with syariah-compliant approaches, but excluding basic life insurance, a policy that came into effect on April 1. 

In January, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said there was no need to rely on foreign experts for help in solving the nation’s problems, such as floods. Sometimes, the government, insurance/takaful regulators and general insurers/takaful operators need to take a divergent view of things, and considering options that have have not been thought of or done collectively. These are the long-term recommendations as far as insurance/takaful is concerned to ensure that the nation is well-equipped should floods of similar severity occur again, as well as to maximise economic returns. The proposed tax incentives could reduce the burden of federal and state governments in paying compensation to flood victims. In addition, they could also help the government ensure better management of disasters by taking into account the possibility of catastrophic floods happening again and its aftermath, so that we can ensure the people’s welfare is taken care of.   n Raja Ahmad Khiruddin,  Associate of the Malaysian Insurance Institute, Putrajaya
Read More : http://www.nst.com.my/news/2015/10/tax-relief-disaster-insurance

Flood Insurance Facts (Re post from 11/23/09)

With all the flooding that has occurred as a result of Sandy we thought this might be a good time to re post an old flood insurance blog article that gives a few facts about flood insurance.

Posted November 23, 2009 on www.feyinsuranceblog.com:

Flood insurance had its fifteen minutes of fame after the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005. During this time period the media was making everyone well aware that flood insurance is not part of your typical homeowner policy. Today that is still the case and with this post I would like to point out a few more facts about flood insurance.

Flood insurance is run through a government program called FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). You can purchase it through insurance agency such as Fey Insurance Services but the backing is from FEMA. Typically it takes 30 days for a new flood insurance policy to go into effect. The one exception would be for a mortgage closing where flood insurance is required. So you need to plan ahead. Hearing about a big rain on the nightly news and calling your agent the next day will not work. Many people think of flood insurance when they think about what is stored in their basement. Flood insurance will only cover things such as furnaces, water heaters, washers, dryers, air conditioners, freezers, pumps and utility connections. Everything else you store down there (old cloths, furniture, carpet, TV, etc) is not covered unless those items are on the first floor of your house and the flood reaches that level.

In some cases flood insurance is required in order to get a loan. If your home or a home you are about to purchase is in a 100 year flood plain (meaning at least once every 100 years your location is under several feet of water) you will be required to purchase a flood insurance policy to close on your loan.

Water In Your Basement?

This rain has caused one common phone call for our agency this spring, “I have water in the basement”. Whether it is a home, business or rental property, water has been finding its way into places it should not be; so what better topic to blog about today than water in your basement.

The first question we are asked is whether or not it is covered. This depends on a few factors. The two main factors are the source of where the water is coming from and the type of insurance policy you have. If water is coming into your basement through window wells or other opening in your basement (excluding drains), then that would be considered a flood loss which often is not covered by your normal insurance policy. In fact, even if you had a flood policy it normally doesn’t cover contents located in parts of a building that are underground, i.e. a basement. If the water is gathering in your basement because of a sump pump failure or a backed up drain or sewer than there could be coverage, as long as you meet the second factor which is having the type of policy that covers those things. Rental property policies have the most limiting coverage for water in the basement. The main coverage you need is called “Water Back up of Sewers and Drains” and many insurance companies don’t offer that on rental properties. Commercial building insurance policies have the “Water Back up of Sewers and Drains” endorsement as an optional coverage so it just depends if you purchased that option or not if you would have coverage. Homeowners polices more often than not have the “Water Back up of Sewers and Drains” included in their basic policy but if someone tried to skimp on the premium they may have taken that coverage out.

There are a few tips that we would like to let you know about as far as dealing with such a rainy spring. First, if you don’t go to your basement very often make sure that during this time of year you do take more frequent trips for inspection purposes. If you have a sump pump, check it regularly to make sure it is functioning properly. Also, make sure that drains are clear of anything that might cause blockage.

If you do have the bad luck of finding standing water in your basement make sure to give your insurance person a call. Whether it is covered or not they would have advice as to who to call for clean up. It is a good idea to try and clean the water up as soon as you can since mold can settle in after a few days. Also, if the basement is in a commercial building that stores chemicals of any kind it might be best to stay clear from the water. The water may have caused leaked chemicals to mix and could be harmful.

If you happen to be in the service area of the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati you are one of the lucky few that could get free help with your water problem. Again, depending on the source of the water, they may take care of the water clean up at no cost to you. Their phone number is 513-352-4900 and their website is http://www.call.msdgc.org/.

Flood Insurance Facts (Re post from 11/23/09)

Floods have struck the Ohio area once again. We thought this might be a good time to re post an old flood insurance blog article that gives a few facts about flood insurance.

Posted November 23, 2009 on www.feyinsuranceblog.com:

Flood insurance had its fifteen minutes of fame after the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005. During this time period the media was making everyone well aware that flood insurance is not part of your typical homeowner policy. Today that is still the case and with this post I would like to point out a few more facts about flood insurance.

Flood insurance is run through a government program called FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). You can purchase it through insurance agency such as Fey Insurance Services but the backing is from FEMA. Typically it takes 30 days for a new flood insurance policy to go into effect. The one exception would be for a mortgage closing where flood insurance is required. So you need to plan ahead. Hearing about a big rain on the nightly news and calling your agent the next day will not work. Many people think of flood insurance when they think about what is stored in their basement. Flood insurance will only cover things such as furnaces, water heaters, washers, dryers, air conditioners, freezers, pumps and utility connections. Everything else you store down there (old cloths, furniture, carpet, TV, etc) is not covered unless those items are on the first floor of your house and the flood reaches that level.

In some cases flood insurance is required in order to get a loan. If your home or a home you are about to purchase is in a 100 year flood plain (meaning at least once every 100 years your location is under several feet of water) you will be required to purchase a flood insurance policy to close on your loan.

Feel free to get in touch with a Fey Insurance Services representative to learn more facts about flood insurance or to get a quote today.

Avoiding Insurance Mistakes: Five Tips

Here is a great video from the Insurance Information Institute about five mistakes to avoid with your personal insurance policies. Our Oxford and Cincinnati, OH insurance offices strongly agree with these items.

National Flood Program Expired... Again

On May 31st Congress allowed the national flood program to expire once again. As of today, June 10, 2010, there has been no renewal of the flood insurance program. This is a key issue especially since a number of areas in Ohio are being resurveyed and rezoned on the national flood insurance map. Homes that were once in Zone C or X which mean they are not in a 100 year flood zone are now being classified as a Zone A or other Zone which puts them in a 100 year flood zone.

What is the significant of this? Well, if you own a home in the rezoned area that is now in a 100 year flood zone and your home has a mortgage on it, you will be required by the bank or other lending institution to purchase flood insurance. A lot of times this can be a costly policy.

What happens if you don’t buy a flood policy? The mortgage company will purchase it for you and then bill you. Unfortunately there is no way around it as long as you have a mortgage on the property.

The ironic thing about this whole situation is that right now, as of the day this blog entry was written, you can not purchase flood insurance. Flood insurance is purchased through the national flood program (FEMA) and as mentioned above the program is temporarily expired. We will be sure to keep you posted on our blog as to when the program might be back up and running. In the mean time if you have received notice from your bank that you are now in a flood zone and must purchase flood insurance feel free to get in touch with your friendly Fey Insurance Representative.

Federal Flood Program Expires

On March 26th the Senate closed for a two week recess with out approving an extension for the Federal Flood insurance program that would have carried the program through until April 30th. Because the extension was not put through the current program has expired. Any flood insurance customers that are either renewing their policy between now and April 12 (when the Senate meets again) or that need to purchase flood coverage to close on a house will not be able to. This will cause a few home closings to be pushed back until the situation is resolved.

For those that already have flood insurance in place and are not renewing anytime soon the program will still function as normal if claims arise. There are currently 5.6 million policies in force with this program.