A group, health insurance policy, refers to health insurance provided by an employer to its employees. Nowadays, almost all companies offer group health insurance. Two major reasons are behind it:

• Changing work environment, which is more demanding and often leads to health complications.
• Increasing healthcare costs. No employer would like their employee to go bankrupt trying to stay healthy.

Group health insurance is a key employee benefit that may provide health cover to the employee and his/her family members. Though companies are not mandated to provide corporate insurance, it is viewed as a necessary perk and adds to the prestige of the enterprise.

Though, pretty much necessary, and standard, group policies do offer certain unique benefits which can be useful for the employees.

Why Offer Group Health to Employees?

You may be wondering why companies take the trouble to provide group cover to their staff it is, after all, an expense to them. Well, there are many reasons:

• Firstly, employees’ wellbeing is the responsibility of the employer
• Secondly, it helps them to create a competitive value proposition for prospective employees
• It also enables them to retain talent, and boost the performance of employees
• Lastly, companies get tax breaks for offering health insurance policies

A good group health policy can go a long way in creating a loyal workforce. There are times when employees accept better health benefits instead of higher remuneration. Moreover, a group cover makes employees feel taken care of.

The Hidden Benefits of Group Health Policy

• Group Health Insurance Is Cheaper

A group health insurance plan is cheaper than individual health plans, usually by about 30 per cent. Premiums are lower about the sum assured, compared to individual health insurance policies. Therefore, even if you are sharing the premium with your employer, it’s still less than your individual health cover.

• Low Premiums Does Not Mean Fewer Benefits

Most group health plans offer cover for childbirth and maternity for the employees and spouses, a benefit not usually available with individual health insurance plans. More than that, treatments of certain critical illnesses (again not usually covered by individual health plans) is available under group health insurance.

• Group Health Covers Pre-Existing Conditions

A group health insurance policy is, by and large, easily available to the employees of a company. In most cases, employees need not go for medical check-ups, and the policy kicks in from the day you join the company. The best thing about group health cover is that it in many cases, it covers pre-existing medical conditions of the employees. In most cases, employees are not denied health coverage based on their age or past medical history.

• No Co-Pay

The best group health insurance policies do not apply co-payment clause. Meaning employees are eligible for free treatment up to the cover limit of the policy. However, this may increase the premium a little, but if you seek to offer the best to your workforce, this is not at all expensive.

• Convert Group Plan to Individual Plan

Some insurers offer the feature where, after leaving the company the employee can continue the plan as an individual cover by switching his/her health cover to individual policy. However, this may increase the premium cost, it is still better than going out in the rain without the medical insurance umbrella, especially if you have family members covered under the same policy.

There can be many other things you should know about the health policy you can offer to your employees. For instance, did you know that corporate cover is a master plan provided by companies and it includes all employees in the organization under the same umbrella? You can include dependent parents of the employees under the policy as well (if your workforce values this benefit).

In the end, corporate health insurance is an excellent provision to offer to your staff. However, you’ll need to balance between the benefits and premium payable to make it sustainable over a longer period.

How Can the Employer Select the Best for The Employees?

There are more than 20 insurance companies that specialize in providing corporate health policies. It may not always be possible for the organizations to compare and research about all of them and figure out the best. Online corporate insurance advisors such as SecureNow fill this gap very efficiently. They can help companies in analysing their needs, decide the right cover amount and manage the policies after buying.

If you are in need of money, you must understand where you can find it and the factors that lenders will look at when they make their decisions about whether to approve an application. You should avoid taking risks that might harm your future so look closely at the advisability of borrowing against real estate or from your 401 (k) which is your retirement fund to provide comfort in your later years.

Your credit score is central to being approved for a loan and you should certainly obtain the copy you are entitled to annually from the three bureaus; if there are any incorrect entries on any, report it and get corrections done as a priority. One of the factors in your credit score is your level of debt against your available credit. If for example you pay off a credit card balance with a personal loan, don’t close the card account because you will be reducing the credit you have access to even though best advice is not to build up a balance once again.

You should only borrow what you can afford to pay back to avoid getting into trouble even if a lender offers you more; that is temptation similar to the irresponsible use of a credit card.

Your Mortgage

Where you are looking for a mortgage, try to make a significant deposit; it will mean immediate equity in the property but often a better interest rate as well. Mortgages are long term, up to 30 years, and though future income is not guaranteed you can only make informed decisions when proceeding with a purchase. Down the line your real estate may well be able to provide security towards further borrowing.

Hopefully you manage your finances well in the future and if you have been saving in a 401(k) retirement plan for some years, compound interest will be your ally. Regular monthly saving grows far more quickly than you would expect while there are tax advantages in such an investment anyway. It is your money and you have access to it if you wish, though you are obliged to repay from your taxed income. The problem is that if you withdraw any money, you will lose the growth that the borrowings will have earned you until it is repaid. There are better ways to get cash than touching your 401(k) though some will require that you have a good credit score and you make a realistic application. This is where your real estate can come in.

Refinancing

Current mortgage rates are low and refinancing is certainly something to consider. You need to look at all the elements of refinancing, including all fees for settling an existing loan (with nation21cashloans.com) and setting up a new one. If you have significant equity then you can take some cash out when you do the refinancing.

This is something that is certainly worthwhile if the sums add up. If you can get a fixed rate you will know exactly what your future commitments are while there are tax benefits as an additional advantage. As long as you accept the consequences of not making your payments on time and you can accept the term involved, there is little against refinancing if all the detail is included.

Home Equity Loan

You will be borrowing additional money without it affecting your initial mortgage that continues to run. Such a loan is for a fixed term at a fixed interest rate that will certainly be higher than you are paying on your mortgage.

Such a loan is fairly simple and can bring tax advantages yet you will need to have a good credit score and you should understand how much you will be paying back in total.

Home Equity Line of Credit

This is a facility that also offers your real estate as security. It is flexible and you can take money as you need it and again there are tax benefits but the interest rate charged is variable. Be certain that you understand everything because sometimes you will be offered an interest only start with your monthly repayments rising after a certain period. Just as with credit cards, there is temptation to spend when you have a credit facility like this. Think about the number of people who have succumbed to temptation and now have expensive debt on their credit cards.

Life can throw you a curve ball at any moment and you won’t know what hit you. This unpredicted curve ball can come financially as well when you need lots of money very urgently. Setting aside money every month can contribute to making an emergency savings fund and makes it easy to have cash during the times of need.

Meaning of emergency fund

When you have a financial shortfall and have a fund to lean back on which can support your life even further for more time and in the case of emergencies is an emergency fund. Having a savings account is thus important when you fall short of cash or in the case of unforeseen incidents.

When you start saving and not use it for a long time it makes up for a long-term savings fund as you would have accumulated lots as you wouldn’t have needed it in the past. So the idea is to have two funds which you can use depending on the type of crisis.

Double planning

Money matters are always stressful and you must have a plan to fall back on if something goes wrong. Therefore you can use plan A and plan B in terms of emergency funds with the following emergency fund tips.

Divide your funds into two which will make up for your plan A and B. Having two emergency funds does the trick to lessen your burden and they are given below.
Short term emergency fund – Use this short-term emergency fund when you have an immediate requirement of cash and when you have none of it. When there are immediate emergencies like a car accident or breakdown or making an emergency payment use this short-term fund to keep you going and not falling behind on anything.

Long term emergency fund – In the long run somewhere down the line you will need a huge sum of money for meeting up with unforeseen expenses like when there is a natural disaster and damages your home or a family member falls ill and needs an immediate operation. With this case, you must remember to have sufficient emergency fund allocation in your account.

These two steps become a stepping stone to save for any unexpected situations.

How to save?

In this growing world, everyone has various needs and wants and satisfying them can take a whole lot of money so the question one often asks is how to save. If one wants to create an emergency fund consider to cut down your expenses and wastage of money. Saving little every month makes a big difference if it is too much then consider putting money aside every three months or six months. You can also consider emergency fund investment option where you invest in a fixed deposit. With these measures, one is sure to build their savings and use when required.

How should the fund be?

Your fund must have certain qualities that will make it easy to use and you must not have any trouble in getting the cash and hence your fund should have the necessary qualities.

Low risk – When you are making long term savings by investing in bonds or shares you need low risks as you cannot afford to have a loss when you are trying to save money.
Liquid cash – Your savings must be in liquid cash if not all some of them as emergencies can crop up anytime. Assets like bonds and shares must be able to convert into cash easily.

Accessibility – One must be able to access cash in a short notice for which short-term funds need to be created and the long-term funds can be accessed when you have a bigger emergency.

Steps to start saving for the unexpected
Getting started is the most challenging part in saving for the unexpected but with the breakdown of the steps one can easily get started and gain momentum. Here’s how you can build your fund.

Crack it to the basic step – Select what type of fund you want long or short term after this see how much you can contribute towards your fund every month and how you can achieve the target.

Cut down on the unnecessary – If one can cut down on unnecessary expenses like buying things you already have and eating out this can lead to more contribution towards your fund.

Automatic transfer – If you find it troublesome to manually make your emergency fund create a separate account and make an automatic transfer to that account.

Transfer investments – when you invest in shares and get the returns directly make it transferable to your emergency funds.

Reward yourself – When you achieve the given target of your savings reward yourself by doing something other than the usual for yourself. This will encourage you more and bring in confidence.

Summing it up

Savings are a blessing in disguise in case of emergencies, be it big or small. It is important to have money set aside for any type of unforeseeable situations. Start saving now and not worry later is the biggest point of having an emergency saving fund.

Peter Christopher is the finance blogger at Finance Care Guide and a guest columnist for many blogs that deals with personal financial management. He has devoted himself to full time speaking, writing and consulting on personal finance management. Visit him on Google Plus and Twitter.

For businesses in the UK, a future may look uncertain in the post-Brexit landscape. Last year, Britain’s decision sent shockwaves through the business landscape, with many SME owners in particular unsure if their business could survive such a change in circumstances. Shortly after the vote, business confidence fell to a 5 year low. Now, nearly 12 months on, the picture is far less gloomy for SME owners, but several threats remain.

So, with this considered, how should SME owners look to safeguard their money in case there’s a rainy day on the horizon? In this post, we take a look.

#1 Tightening the Purse Strings

Research conducted by Moody’s post-Brexit showed that UK businesses were spending less on hiring new employees. This is perhaps unsurprising. A weakening in investment comes as many businesses look to tighten their purse strings in case of stormy weather.

It may be wise to follow this approach. Until Theresa May begins the process of leaving the EU formally by triggering Article 50, we’re unsure what Brexit will look like, and how it will affect business rates. For now, it’s best to hedge your bets and keep purse strings tight.

#2 Make Data Your Friend

To keep control of these purse strings, you’ll need to make data your friend. Spreadsheets may seem a little ‘old hat’, but they can still be a vital tool for business budgeting. So make a controlled lists of your incomings and outgoings to consolidate your grip on your finances. By making a definitive list of what you’re paying for, you may find areas that you can cut, too.

#3 Outsource to Grow

Having said that, your business shouldn’t pass up opportunities to grow. However, when you’re managing your money carefully, you must be aware of the financial implications. As a result, it may be wise to outsource your growth. Rather than taking on a full time recruit who will be expensive in terms of salary and HR, consider if you can take on a freelancer at a fraction of the cost. This is particularly good in the field of IT where you receive the knowledge without the large salary impact on your business’s finances.

#4 Consider Professional Help

Finally, if you’re unsure of the best way to manage your finances in a post-Brexit landscape or cannot dedicate the time to it, then consider employing an expert in financial services and wealth management such as WHIreland , who can do this on your behalf. This is a good option if you’re not au fait with politics, economics or money management, and will give you the time to simply focus on what you do best: running your business.

Prior to the Bank of England’s recent monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting, there were two schools of thought on what might happen to the base rate of interest. Some argued that rising inflation would force the BoE to act and increase the base rate, in order to negate the spiralling cost of living in the UK. Others suggested that such a move would be impossible, however, as the looming spectre of Brexit continued to underpin an uncertain and decidedly volatile economic climate.

A Look at the BoE’s Decision and the State of the Economy

Ultimately, the BoE decided to hold the base interest rate at a record low of 0.25%, amid a reported split between the individual members of the MPC. This internal divide was indicative of the prevailing climate, as while some members voted to raise borrowing costs immediately as a way of negating disproportionate inflation growth, others felt that the current base rate and an accompanying money-printing program was enough to support the pre-Brexit economy.

This is even accounting for sluggish real wage growth, which along with inflation hikes (and particularly the rising cost of food) is placing a significant squeeze on households and preventing them from saving their hard-earned money. The plight of the economy was drawn into sharper focus after the Federal Reserve (the central bank in the U.S.) decided to hike their own base interest rate to 1.0%, with further increases proposed for next year.

What This Means for Businesses in the UK

We may well see the BoE increase the base rate in the UK later in the year, of course, but for now it is important that business owners recognise the current climate and adapt accordingly. Now may well be the ideal time to borrow money and raise funds, for example, as the cost of borrowing remains restricted by the base rate. It is also important that businesses reconsider their pricing strategies, however, as dwindling disposable income levels, soaring inflation and the inability of households to save is sure to impact on consumer spending in the months ahead (particularly in relation to big ticket purchases such as cars, holidays and real estate).

With a keen focus on pricing and re-investment, businesses can create a flexible business model that is capable of consolidating in the pre-Brexit climate. This is also a strategy that can pay dividends once the UK has left the EU, as businesses will undoubtedly be forced to alleviate the financial pressure created by higher trade tariffs and reduced turnover. One way in which this can be achieved is through cash flow finance measures such as invoice factoring, which enables payments to be advanced from your sales ledger.

Business insurance is­ a must for every typ­e of business. When y­ou are looking for pe­rfect business insura­nce, you need to cons­ider few important fa­ctors and reviewing y­our current insurance­ coverage. Business ­insurance will vary f­rom one business to a­nother. For example, ­a company that produc­es physical goods wil­l need a different ty­pe of insurance than ­a company that offers­ services. In either ­case, it is recommend­ed to consider the fo­llowing types of insu­rances.

Workers’ Compensation­ Insurance – For empl­oyees

As per the state laws­, it is a must for ev­ery business. It will­ provide coverage for­ medical costs and a ­portion of lost wages­ for an employee beca­use of certain injury­ or illness at work. ­This insurance will c­over only injuries or­ illness that occurs ­on the job site. The ­laws for every state are different, so you­ must work with an in­surance professional ­to make sure that you­ are getting the righ­t coverage and accord­ing to the requiremen­ts of your business.

General liability ins­urance

This insurance is des­igned to protect your­ business from a vari­ety of claims includi­ng accidents, injurie­s or claims of neglig­ence. It will pay for­ property damage, med­ical expenses, libel,­ slander, legal costs­, and faulty products­. No one wants to get­ sued, but it’s still­ a possibility. Your ­business should not b­e open to such situat­ions so it’s better t­o have a broader prot­ection.

Professional liabilit­y insurance – ‘Errors­ and omissions’ cover­age.

Professional liabilit­y insurance is also t­ermed as ‘Errors and ­omissions’ insurance,­ or ‘Malpractice insu­rance’. This will pro­tect you from lawsuit­s that allege neglige­nce in providing prof­essional services, pr­oviding shoddy work, ­or making mistakes or­ omissions. If you h­ave a service based b­usiness, then this is­ the right insurance.­

Property Insurance ­

It is important to ca­rry adequate commerci­al property insurance­. Small businesses wi­ll find it very diffi­cult to replace their­ equipment if there i­s any kind of unfores­een damage or destruc­tion. Under this type­ of insurance, buildi­ngs, computers, inven­tory, supplies and eq­uipments will get cov­ered. This insurance ­is of two types. ‘All­-risk’ policies will ­cover just almost eve­rything. This will av­oid duplication or ov­erlap of coverage, as­ well as gaps in tryi­ng to cover your liab­ilities. “Peril-spec­ific” policies will a­pply to specific peri­ls named in the polic­y. They are usually n­eeded when there is a­ high risk in a parti­cular area.

Life insurance – prot­ection and benefit.

When you are looking ­for high quality empl­oyees, life insurance­ is a must. These emp­loyees will be benefi­cial to the running a­nd success of the bus­iness. A business can­ also offer special ‘­Key Person’ policies ­for employees without­ whom the business co­uld not function. The­ business pays the pr­emium, and the insura­nce is considered a b­usiness asset.

All these basic cover­ages can be combined ­as a package policy, ­often referred to as ­a Business Owner’s po­licy. This will save ­your business lots of­ money, as long as yo­u make sure you get t­he proper type of cov­erage.

It is advisable to re­view all your coverag­e on an annual basis ­to make sure that it ­is providing everythi­ng to your business t­hat it needs. Additio­nally be sure to work­ with a reputable, li­censed insurance comp­any like Radius Insurance who has knowledge re­garding business like­ yours.

At some point, many if not most businesses will experience a period of stagnation. When this happens for you, it’s important to know what steps you’re going to take to keep your organization moving forward. Below you’ll find three simple strategies that can keep your company going and growing:

1. Hire A Consulting Firm.

Hiring a consulting firm is a wonderful way to keep your company going and growing. This technique works because it ensures that a team of trained professionals are always designing and implementing customized strategies to help your organization optimize daily operations, improve retention rates, etc. Companies such as KEYGroup Consulting are pleased to offer clients multiple resources to keep their organizations growing, one of which is executive coaching assessment tools.

2. Implement Social Media Marketing Strategies.

In addition to hiring a consulting firm, consider the value of implementing social media marketing strategies. This technique can help facilitate business growth by ensuring that you can regularly interface with members of your target audience on key social channels like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and Instagram. When you start searching for the ideal social media marketing firm, try to locate a team of professionals who can offer several other digital advertising services. Some of them might include content marketing, search engine optimization, and web design and development. By gaining access to all of these digital services in tandem, you can really optimize your online presence and thereby enhance your company’s sphere of industry influence.

3. Optimize Your Company Meetings.

One final strategy you can use to keep your company going and growing is optimizing your company meetings. This approach will empower you to optimize communication with your staff members so everyone is on the same page about what the company goals are and how they are going to be realized. There are many ways that you can optimize your company meetings. One of them is by having a team of professionals prepare your Powerpoint slides. This can help make your presentations more interactive, engaging, and/or aesthetically appealing.

Start Using These Simple Strategies Now!

If you’re ready to optimize growth in 2017, now is the time to start the expansion process. Three simple strategies that can help you do so include hiring a consulting firm, implementing social media marketing services, and optimizing your company meetings. Start using these services now to see substantive results!