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Month: February 2024

Top 10 Secrets Of Federal Government Employee Discounts

Although government jobs are some of the most stable careers in the economy, federal employees are still watching their bank accounts and trying to save money. The good news is that many companies offer public servants deals on vacations, clothes, phones, auto insurance and home improvement. We have researched and compiled a list of the Top 10 Secrets of Federal Government Employee Discounts.

1. Food

10 percent discounts are offered to military members dining at IHOP, Denny’s, T.G.I Friday’s, Long John Silver’s and the Hard Rock Cafe. Applebee’s also offers a 15 percent discount at selected locations.

2. Clothing

10 percent discounts are offered at Nautica and New York and Co. Fans of Old Navy know the company offers a discount on the first of every month. These discounts can also be used in conjunction with coupons and other methods of saving.

3. Auto Parts
5 to 10 percent is offered at Kragen Auto Parts. Advance Auto Parts offers active and retired military members 10 percent off. AutoZone offers military discounts as well.

4. Insurance

Depending on the state, Geico offers between 3 to 10 percent off automobile insurance. Liberty Mutual also offers car insurance discounts.

5. Home Improvement

Lowes and The Home Depot offer 10 percent discount at most locations. The government is also offering up to $1,500 in tax rebates for installing energy-efficient products. LongFenceandHome.com offers a discount to federal employees and military personnel on a wide variety of products and services.

6. Eyes

Group Health Eye Care offers a 20 percent discount on prescription eyeglasses or sunglasses. Additionally, there is a one-time offer of 20 percent on contact lenses.

7. Gyms

Washington Sports Club offers 33 percent discount on their monthly membership fee.

8. Travel

When planning a trip, Govarm.com is our recommended site for vacation and leisure services. However, some other respected government travel sites are: Club Quarters, Government Vacation Rewards, Holiday Inn Express, and La Quinta Inns and Suites.

9. Communication and Technology

Verizon offers a 20 percent discount on phones, calling plans and accessories. When looking for home computing software and hardware consult Dell. They offer at least 10 percent when purchasing their products. Do you prefer Macs? Apple has recently offered various discounts on iPods and computers.

10. Fedsave.com and RecGov.org

These are the top recommended sites for searching government discounts. Fedsave.com offers a subscription which includes a free monthly newsletter highlighting savings and special offers on everything discussed above.

Government discounts are abundant, but are often overlooked. With some quick research, you may find yourself saving a lot of money.

Exclusive Vs. Non-exclusive Insurance Agents

When you think of buying insurance, the first thing that comes to mind is a well known company, one that is widely advertised, playing a television commercial every five minutes. While widely known can be a good place to find insurance, sometimes they are the best place to go, but there are other options. There are two types of agents in the insurance business, independent and captive. Agents that are captive are those who work for the well known insurance company’s, and independent agents are those who have multiple companys they can sell for. either agent can provide you with insurance, but the independent agent often times has more options for and your situation.

Exclusive agents are basically what their name implies; they sell insurance for just one specific company. They can only sell what the company offers. For instance; you may be looking for car insurance but you have a ticket on your record. Your captive insurance agent has to give you a higher premium because that is what his company offers. He does not have the option to shop around for you, to get the best rate possible because be cause he is a captive agent for that company. Your options are to take what he is offering, or do alot of research yourself hoping you can find a cheaper premium, which will result in your changing companies and agents. This is a lot of work and headache for you, and there is no promise of a better result.

Independent agents take care of business a little differently than captive agents. Like a captive agent, they provide good insurance and coverage. Unlike a captive agent, however, they have many different companies to quote every situation. Often times this is a huge benefit to, the customer. In the same situation as above, You are in need of car insurance but you have a ticket on record. Instead of giving you the best quote available for a specific provider, an independent agent does the shopping around for you. They sell for and are familiar with multiple insurance companies and know which ones will have the lowest premiums for your imperfect record, or which ones will forgive the ticket altogether. His job is to find you the best rate he can while still giving you the best coverage available, and he will. This benefit is just part of his job, cost you nothing and you never have to switch agents again. He does the work, you reap the benefits.

For the most part you will get good insurance coverage, regardless of the type of agent you choose to work with . What you are looking for, though, is to lower your monthly premiums and increase your coverage. If you choose to completely forego working with an independent agent, you may end up paying more for insurance than you need to. You would be wise to shop both captive and independent agents, then choose the quote,coverage and customer service that will work for you.

Insurance Tips California Homeowners at risk because of Insurance Policy Misunderstandings

Imagine a worse case scenario situation where there’s a massive earthquake and your house crumbles, taking with it everything you have worked for and treasured. You call your insurance company so you can start to rebuild your life and instead of being guided through a claims process, you are instead informed that your California homeowners policy does not cover damage caused by earthquakes and you are left with nothing but a pile of rubble and an unpaid mortgage!

This is the situation millions of homeowners could find themselves in should the worst happen, simply because many of us don’t understand what our homeowners policy offer. Many California homeowners will presume, due to the high risk, that earthquake coverage is automatically provided, but in most cases this is sadly not the case.

Homeowners insurance can be confusing and complicated. Most people know they need it, but don’t know exactly what is and is not covered when they sign up. A recent poll suggests that four out of every ten people surveyed don’t know what their homeowners insurance policy covers. For example, more than 2 in 5 wrongly believe mold damage is covered by a standard homeowners policy. In other cases Homeowners policy holders underestimate their insurance, with 73% unaware that items stolen or damaged in a vehicle are covered. Perhaps to be taken more seriously by California homeowners, the study shows that 51% of respondents are unaware that Earthquake protection is not covered by standard California insurance policies. On the bright side, 90% of Californians do know that fire damage is covered by their homeowners policy, while 72% know lawsuits from injured visitors are also covered. However, to get the best from our policies, it is important that we understand what we are each entitled to.

There’s a lot of confusion, misunderstanding and misconceptions surrounding home insurance which could lead to serious and costly consequences. It is human nature to not want to think about the unthinkable happening, so most people buy insurance and don’t take the time to understand or update it. However, in the event of a disaster or emergency home owners may find that their insurance policies will not cover their costs and have to fork over their own money, which in turn could result in a debilitating financial situation. Even a simple case of Mold damage repair can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

While Californian homeowners must take some responsibility in knowing what is and isn’t covered by their insurance policy, insurance is not typically expressed in a way easily understood by the general population. It is in the homeowner’s best interest to protect themselves, their properties and possessions. Unfortunately the only way to effectively do this is to take the time to read and understand your insurance policy documents and if you have any questions or doubts to contact your insurance company and get a confirmation (preferably in writing) as to what is and is not covered. The better prepared you are, the less likely you’ll get any nasty surprises.

**Article is free to be reprinted as long as bio remains**

Sargeant Insurance is located in Los Angeles, CA. We specialize in personal and business lines insurance.Request a quote online by visiting our website at www.sargeantinsurance.com . Also, be sure to sign up for a monthly news, exclusive offers and tips at http://eepurl.com/tMPkL