Life insurance and disasters

Natural disasters abounded the last twelve months, and the ramifications are far reaching and not always obvious. Your life insurance policy may be a victim of the battering insurance companies received last year.

When reviewing your life insurance policy keep in mind some of the insurance companies landed on shaky financial ground and you will be the one to suffer if they go under. Check out the financial health of your insurer and maybe turn to a more secure company this year. Look to the following for your company’s ratings this year.

S&P at www.standardandpoors.com ranks over 600 life insurers and about thirty of them get the triple A rating. Another firm is A.M.Best at www.ambest.com. They rank over fifteen hundred insurers and give the nod to only 67 as the soundest. Moody’s Investors Service at www.moodys.com rates fewer insurers, just over 300, and anoints twelve with a triple A rating.

Look for a company with a history of high rankings in more than one list. And if you have a significant stockpile you want to protect, don’t be shy about going with a couple of companies to be safe. You will pay more with the cream of the insuring crop, but you can have more confidence in the company’s stability.