The Labrador Retriever is the most popular purebred dog in the US but if you are at all familiar with them, you know they can get up to a lot of trouble and have all sorts of health issues as well.

Danno, a 2 year old Labrador living in Menlo Park, CA is a prime example. He has allergies, elbow dysplasia, and tends to eat what he should not, totaling $16,000 of claims in his young life – wow!

We cover a lot of Labradors with allergies. For Danno,just the allergy costs alone total more than $5,800.

Dannos EmbracePet Insurancepolicy has a $200 annual deductible, $10,000 annual maximum, 80% reimbursement and prescription drug coverage, all for just under $51 a month.

Many Americans face financial hardships, so not paying your auto insurance or home insurance premium might seem like a temporary or permanent fix. But should this ever be considered when you’re in a cash crunch?

No way, experts say. Why? First of all, youre left unprotected in case something bad happens, such as a wreck or a fire. Furthermore, doing so could result in insurance rate increases, denial of coverage or even loss of your drivers license.

Simply put: If you dont pay your premium when its due, your auto or home insurance policy usually is canceled within 30 days, says John Koch, owner of Koch Financial Group in New Jersey. P

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President Obama promised that the brunt of any financial reckoning will fall mostly only on those making more than $250,000 annually. Under his healthcare plan, the economic agony starts at income levels that fall much lower than that.

Middle class families take note. A family of four with an aggregate income of more than $88,000 annually or an individual earning around $44,000 could find themselves badly strained by healthcare costs under the Obama plan.

Many of these folks currently get their health coverage from work. They benefit from an implicit subsidy built into that workplace coverage that lets them spend pre-tax dollars through their employer to purchase health insurance.

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2011 was the year of big storms, and many people made a homeowners insurance claim as a result. We should have known it was going to be a crazy year for weather when a powerful storm hit one third of the nation between January 31,

2011 was the year of big storms, and many people made a homeowners insurance claim as a result. We should have known it was going to be a crazy year for weather when a powerful storm hit one third of the nation between January 31, 2011, and February 2, 2011. Then, one of the worst storm outbreaks in the United States occurred in April 2011 with a series of tornados.

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CIE and policing cause figure to halve

New figures from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) show that the number of 17-20 year olds estimated to be driving without insurance has decreased by half over the last three years.

The MIB estimates that there are now around 125,000 uninsured drivers in the 17-20 year old age bracket, compared to around 250,000 in 2008.

The MIB used claims data to work out the figures, and there are still around 1.2 million uninsured drivers in the UK.

The fall in young uninsured drivers is due to better road policing and the introduction of the Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) law last year.

The CIE scheme cross-checks the DVLA database with the Motor Insurance Database. An

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As health insurance costs continue to increase for employer coverage, many businesses are considering a new type of health benefit: Defined Contribution.

Defined contribution plans allow employers to provide only a set amount towards health insurance premiums. Then, employees have the option to pick a plan based on that contribution amount.

But what are the pros and cons of this type of benefit?

Pros of defined contribution plans:

• Businesses can save money and plan for the future with set health insurance costs.
• Employees can shop around and pick from more than a couple different plans.
• Employees will need to have a better understanding of their health plan and how to utilize that plan.

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If youve ever discovered your car and a telephone pole wrapped together in cellophane on April 1, youve felt the wrath of an April Fools prankster.

Cars wrapped in cellophane, balloons stuck behind tires or vegetable oil on the muffler may be in good fun, but can you file an auto insurance claim if something goes wrong — or is the joke on you?

Only pranks that actually result in damage to your automobile would be eligible for consideration for a claim, says Kevin Lynch, assistant professor of insurance at The American College in Pennsylvania.

So while the popping noise may scare you, it wont be grounds to file a claim if neither you nor your car was harmed as a result of the prank.

On the other hand, if the prank damages a person or property, the prankster is responsible, says Randy Reep, a defense attorney in Florida. I

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