Everybody hates car salesman. They talk too fast, use too many clichés, and are generally exasperating. There’s nothing worse than being verbally romanced only to find out you were ripped-off—or is there?

How about getting ripped-off repeatedly? How about getting ripped-off repeatedly for years? How about never even knowing you were ripped-off, repeatedly, and for years?

Welcome to service! When it comes to swindling, automotive service representatives are the real experts. They have more experience, and way more opportunity to rip you off.

A car salesman has only a few chances to rip you off provided you even engage in negotiations. There’s the price of the car, financing, leasing, accessories/options, extended warranties, your trade-in, and the general bull that wafts from the salesmen’s mouth.

You should also watch out for the finance manager. Today’s finance folks aren’t just number crunchers, they’re salesmen in disguise. This is where you’ll be encouraged to buy the extended warranty and a host of other accessories that can all be packaged up nicely into your financing.

Car sales rip-off attempts are easily thwarted. Number one, you can just walk away! Also, there are numerous resources on how to buy a car without losing your shirt. If you’re interested, visit the RepairTrust resource link @ www.repairtrust.com and you’ll find several sites that will tell you everything you want to know about buying, trading, leasing, financing, new, used…etc.

It’s quite different in the world of car repair. Your car needs service. You HAVE to deal with a service representative, like it or not.

The folks in the dim underworld of automotive service are well-trained in the art of ripping people off. They’re not the feeding-frenzied, thrashing sharks of sales that are easy to spot.

No, service representatives are the Great Whites. They primarily hunt alone, hiding in the murky waters of service, striking without warning.

What’s really scary is that the service industry is infested with Great Whites. Traditional tips and suggestions to avoid their attacks don’t work. This is evidenced by the fact that service customers are scammed “tens of billions of dollars every year.”

Information is the key to STOP a Great White. If one knows who, what, when, where, why, and how it hunts, one can take control.

Importantly, “Sharks are not mindless eating machines.” The Great Whites of the service industry are experienced and smart. There are so many attacks from so many different directions, and new technologies provide fresh chum daily.

With auto repair, technology creates confusion. Technology creates ripples and waves, making it difficult to see below the surface of even simple auto repairs.

The Great White can sense the anxiety of a service customer, like it can a struggling swimmer. In the midst of this confusion, the waters of service get even murkier, and SPLASH—it’s cost you an arm and a leg.

In today’s service environment, the service customer needs protection, and needs to be empowered with accurate information and powerful tools before even entering the waters. There’s no need to lose any limbs, ever!

Due to the fact that market interest rates have been declining over a period of about five years now, the maximum valuation interest rate that can be used to calculate statutory reserves for policies of life insurance is probably going to decrease from the current rate of 4.5 percent for a long term life insurance contract to about 4 percent.

When this change finally does occur, carriers are going to have to use a 4 percent or lower rate of interest when calculating the statutory reserves for long-guaranteed duration life insurance policies, including both whole life insurance policies and universal life insurance policies. The maximum statutory valuation rate of interest is defined as a means of representing a conservative net rate for interest earnings for policies liabilities backed by assets.

Although the market’s interest rates have been increasing recently, it is impotent to remember something specific: The maximum valuation amount of the interest rate will be based on a calculation that specifically reflects a history of lag within the market’s interest rates. This calculation includes past averages from one and three years ago, using interest rates from Moody’s Corporate Bond Index.

What does it mean for carriers and for life insurance purchasers when the maximum statutory valuation interest rates see a decrease? Should these people care, and why?, asks Rene Lacape, talk radio show host for, Radio Nueva, a California radio station who hosts a show covering life insurance and financial issues.” A decrease in the maximum valuation interest rate could make insurance products a lot more expensive both for consumers and for carriers as well.”

If everything else is equal, then lowering this interest rate will more than likely increase the level of statutory reserves for new life insurance product sales, decreasing profits. Carriers need to look at the products that are currently issued, assessing the impact that such a lowered interest rate may have on the profitability of these products.

Some companies have already begun to assess the impact on profit that the Commissioners Standard Ordinary mortality table of 1980 has had in comparison to the 2001 CSO mortality table regarding cash values and reserves.

The decrease in the maximum interest rate for statutory value may be able to offset a decrease in the statutory reserves, and may even be able to require an increase in premiums based on key segments of new life insurance sales. These increased amounts of premiums could actually make it much more trying for insurance agents to place their business.

“If the statutory reserves are increased, then capital levels based on risk will more than likely also increase,” says Rene Lacape.

There still is one potential area of relief that will be provided to insurers when the maximum statutory valuation rate is changed. This is that reserve interest rates that are used when calculated reserves for federal income tax deductibles would also decline in the same calendar year, providing greater room for the tax reserve to increase. This can create a significantly larger tax deduction, lowering taxes all around.

So what are some of the possible impacts on products that will occur as a result of the valuation interest rate decrease? There are a number of different impacts that are possible –

- Carriers may have to move more quickly than before to the 2001 CSO mortality table as a way to receive relief.

- Premiums may see an increase, especially for nonsmokers and younger ages.

- Reserve approaches based on principal may receive a larger amount of attention.

- Where mortality used to have a smaller influence, there may be a greater impact for certain segments if the statutory valuation interest rate should decline.

In this article we may once again look at whole life insurance vs term life insurance. We may try to gain some clarity concerning this subject.

Let us first try to define whole and term life insurance.

Whole life insurance may also be called permanent life assurance. It is an insurance that endows the insured person with death protection for her whole lifetime. An insurance payout is rewarded to the beneficiaries stated in the contract when the insured person dies. Whole life policies usually include an investment section that builds up a cash value.

Term life cover has a time limit on the period of coverage. The time limit may be extended by renewing the term policy once it expires. The insured person’s beneficiaries will receive no insurance payout if the policy expires before the insured person’s death.

Now we may discuss the 2 key types of whole life insurance to be had.

Participating

A participating whole life policy disburses dividends. The dividends normally result from surplus investment earnings and expenditure savings. Dividends may be rewarded in cash, although it is not always guaranteed to be paid out to you.

Non-Participating

A non-participating whole life policy does not pay you any dividends. The premiums remain level during your entire lifetime. The policy’s face value is fixed.

There are also 2 key types of term life insurance. Let us quickly examine them.

Increasing term

An increasing term policy’s face value increases over the duration of the policy. The premiums remain fixed.

Decreasing term

A decreasing term policy’s face value decreases throughout the existence of the policy until it reaches nothing at the policy’s conclusion date. The premiums remain unchanged. A decreasing term plan is frequently utilized to cover an expense such as a home mortgage.

Let us now consider the advantages of whole life assurance.

* The life coverage lasts for your whole lifetime.
* The annual premiums are fixed.
* A part of the premiums are invested.

Here are some advantages of term life assurance.

* Term cover may be easier to comprehend.
* Term cover is reasonably priced.
* Term insurance can be used to provide cover for temporary needs.

Next, we should review the disadvantages of whole life assurance.

* Fixed premiums are much more expensive than term premiums.
* There are better investment options available than the investment options offered by whole life policies. You can most likely do better by investing and saving on your own.

Then we may look at some disadvantages of term life assurance.

* Term cover offers only death protection.
* Term insurance can provide cover for temporary needs but is less suitable for long term needs.

Finally, let us conclude this chat about whole life insurance vs term life insurance.

Whole life cover may be less costly in the long run than term life cover in spite of the more expensive initial insurance premiums. Whole life policies may also build up a cash value or earn non-guaranteed dividends. In the end, the long term costs of whole life policy may be less than the overall cost of a term life policy.

Term assurance presents temporary protection with a low initial cost.