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Your insurance needs change over time. The policies that work for a single, 20-something professional renting an apartment with three roommates may be completely wrong for the same person after marriage, babies, and a cozy mortgage in a good school district. If youre struggling to determine how your coverage should change over time, the following guidelines can help. Auto insurance: Follow the bell curve Basic car insurance offers liability coverage, in case you cause an accident that injures a third party or damages their property. This is the kind of insurance that nearly every state in the nation requires drivers to carry. While liability coverage protects your finances if you cause an accident, its legally mandated because it offers protection for accident victims. But drivers can also purchase full coverage car insurance. This typically includes collision coverage, which pays for damages from a collision that doesnt include another vehicle (such as running into a tree), and comprehensive coverage, which pays to repair or replace your car if its damaged by something other than an accident, such as extreme weather or theft. Deciding how much auto insurance you need can feel overwhelming, especially considering the high cost of car insurance coverage. While all drivers must carry no less than the minimum required liability insuranceand should also consider increasing the liability limits to further protect themselves and othersit can be difficult to figure out if you need full coverage or other optional add-ons. To help you figure out your changing need for auto insurance coverage, think of this kind of insurance as a bell curve that corresponds with age. Young drivers Young drivers pay the highest premiums of any age demographicsince these wet-behind-the-wheel motorists are the most likely to get into accidents. That means purchasing full coverage when youre young is going to cost a pretty penny. In addition, teens and 20-somethings are more likely to be driving beater cars. (No, your cousins 1992 Buick Le Sabre is not vintage even if it does qualify for historic plates.) These vehicles have low actual cash values, which means a minor fender bender could render it a total loss. In other words, if your vehicles cash value is lower than the cost of your favorite Starbucks order, theres no reason to purchase collision and comprehensive coverage. Midlife motorists The auto insurance calculation changes as you hit your 30s and beyond. To start, the cost of auto insurance starts to go down for most middle-age drivers, provided they have a clean driving record. Midlife also represents your prime earning years, as well as the time youre most likely to be starting a family. Not only does that mean the interior of your vehicle will be permanently covered in a thin layer of crushed Goldfish crackers, but youre also more likely to be driving a car that is worth the cost of fixing. In other words, you have more to lose financially as a midlife driver than you did while you were still rocking the Le Sabre. That means carrying higher levels of coverage makes more sense in midlife than it did in your 20s. Seniors on the road Since older drivers tend to have the most experience and are least likely to make impulsive driving decisions, they enjoy the least expensive auto insurance of any age group. Seniors are also more likely to have a higher net worth and easier access to cash, which means theyre in a better position to pay out of pocket for a car repair (or even replacement) after a collision. All of which is to say that most senior drivers have a lower need for auto insurance coverage than their middle-age counterparts. Adjust your deductibles Your insurance deductible is the amount of money youre responsible for paying before the insurance coverage kicks in to pay for the rest. Nearly every type of insurance has a deductible, from health insurance to auto insurance to homeowners, renters, umbrella, and business insurance. And for each type of insurance you carry, you need to be prepared to pay the deductible if you make a claim. But insurance policyholders have some control over the size of their deductible. You can lower your deductiblemeaning youd pay less before your insurance company has to open its own wallet when you make a claimby paying a higher premium. You can also lower your monthly premium by increasing your deductible. Typically, most people will opt for the higher premium and lower deductible when they are young, since dealing with a monthly premium cost thats a little higher is easier than keeping a spare $1,000 (or more) kicking around in case of an emergency. But as you age, you are likely to become more financially settled, which includes having a more robust emergency fund. Once youre in a place where you can afford a higher deductible, you can lower your premiumwhich reduces your monthly outflow. Since we can all be victims of set-it-and-forget-it thinking, it can be easy to forget to check the deductible levels on long-standing insurance policies. But theres no need to pay your insurance company a higher premium when you can easily afford a higher deductible. Self-insurance Just as your financial stability can help you outgrow the need for a low deductible, increasing wealth may also allow you to self-insure instead of relying on insurance policies. With this strategy, which is similar to creating an emergency fund, you set money aside to use in case of an unexpected loss, rather than paying a premium to an insurance company to assume the risk for you. If you dont experience a loss, self-insurance saves you money, since youre not out the cost of premiums and you still have the full pot of self-insurance money available to you. Additionally, you can potentially invest your self-insurance moneyas long as its in an investment that you can liquidate in a hurryand let the money grow for you. Self-insurance can be a risky strategy for any kind of serious financial loss, such as liability, flooding, or healthcare. But depending on your financial situation and assets, you may choose to self-insure for things like long-term care or full-coverage auto insurance. Know your insurance needs Recognizing how your coverage needs change can help you get the insurance you need while saving money. For auto insurance, remember that your coverage level will probably look like a bell curve, with younger and senior drivers purchasing lower levels of coverage while middle-age drivers go for more comprehensive coverage. For all of your insurance policies, remember that your ability to afford a higher deductible as you gain more financial stability means you can reduce your premium. And a higher level of wealth can open up the possibility of self-insurance for some types of hazards.
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Police in Munich are investigating a mystery: More than 1,000 stickers were put on gravestones and wooden crosses at three cemeteries in the German city, without any indication of where they came from or why. The 5×3.5-centimeter (1.95×1.2-inch) stickers are printed with a QR code, that, when scanned, shows the name of the person buried in the grave and its location in the cemetery but nothing else. We haven’t found any pattern behind this yet. The stickers were put both on decades-old gravestones and very new graves that so far only have a wooden cross, police spokesperson Christian Drexler told The Associated Press on Wednesday. People who have witnessed anybody putting the stickers on the graves are asked to reach out to the respective cemetery’s administration,” Drexler said. The stickers surfaced in recent days at the Waldfriedhof, Sendlinger Friedhof and Friedhof Solln cemeteries. Police are not only trying to find out who is behind the stickers, but are also investigating property damage, because the gravestones were partially damaged and discolored when the stickers were removed.
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National Leadership Day, which takes place every Feb. 20, offers a chance to reflect on what truly defines leadership not just strategy or decision-making, but the ability to build trust. In an era of rapid change, when teams look to leaders for stability and direction, trust is the invisible currency that fuels organizational success. As an economist, I know theres a lot of research proving this point. Ive conducted some myself, including work on how trust is essential for leaders in cross-cultural business environments. In an expansive study of Chinas fast-paced restaurant industry, my colleagues and I found that leaders who cultivate trust can significantly reduce employee churn and improve organizational performance. While my study focuses on one sector, its lessons extend far beyond that. It offers insights for leaders in any field, from corporate executives to community organizers. Understanding the impact In China, as in the U.S., the restaurant industry is known for high turnover rates and cutthroat competition. But our study found that managers who demonstrate trustworthiness can keep employees from fleeing to rivals, creating a more stable and committed workforce. First, we conducted a field experiment in which we asked managers at around 115 restaurants how much money they were willing to send to employees in an investment game an indicator of trust. We then found that for every 10% increase in managers trust-driven actions, employee turnover fell by 3.7 percentage points. Thats a testament to the power of trust in the workplace. When managers are trustworthy, workers tend to be more loyal, engaged in their job and productive. Employees who perceive their managers as trustworthy report higher job satisfaction and are more willing to exert extra effort, which directly benefits the organization. We also found that when employees trust one another, managers get better performance evaluations. That makes sense, since trust fosters improved cooperation and innovation across the board. Practical steps to foster trust Fortunately for managers and workers theres a lot of research into how to be a more trustworthy leader. Here are a few insights: Empower your team. Let employees take ownership of their responsibilities and make decisions within their roles. This not only boosts their engagement but also aligns their objectives with the broader goals of the organization. Empowerment is a key strategy in building trust. Be fair and transparent. Managers should strive to be consistent in their actions, address concerns promptly and distribute rewards equitably. Those practices can create a psychologically safe and supportive work environment. Promote collaboration. Encourage an atmosphere in which employees can openly share ideas and support one another. Activities that promote team cohesion and open communication can significantly enhance trust within the team. Measure and manage trust. Implementing regular surveys or feedback sessions can help assess and manage trust levels within an organization. Consider integrating trust metrics into performance evaluations to emphasize their importance. Some takeaways for National Leadership Day Whether helming a business, a nonprofit or a local community initiative, leaders should recognize that being trustworthy isnt just a soft skill. Its a measurable force that drives success. By making trust-building a deliberate goal, leaders can create stronger, more resilient teams. So this National Leadership Day is a good time to reflect: How do you build trust in your leadership? And how can you foster a culture of trustworthiness? Managers should commit to leading with trust, acting with integrity and fostering workplaces where people feel valued and empowered. The impact will speak for itself. Yufei Ren is an associate professor of economics at the Labovitz School of Business and Economics at the University of Minnesota Duluth. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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