Find out how to get the coverage you need, from getting health insurance when you're unemployed to preparing for the unknown with disability insurance. Plus, all you need to know about car insurance, life insurance, homeowners insurance, and even renters insurance.

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Carrier 1:

• Broker
• Phone
• Email
• Address
• Policy
• Policy number

Carrier 2:

• Broker
• Phone
• Email
• Address
• Policy
• Policy number

Home Inventory

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Home Inventory

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• Password_______________________________________________
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Home Inventory

ITEM 3 _______________________________________________________

• Description ______________________________________________
• Quantity _________________________________________________
• Value___________________________________________________
• Place purchased__________________________________________
• Date purchased___________________________________________
• Make/model______________________________________________
• Serial number____________________________________________
• Website_________________________________________________
• Username/email__________________________________________
• Password_______________________________________________
• Account number___________________________________________

Home Inventory

ITEM 4 _______________________________________________________

• Description ______________________________________________
• Quantity _________________________________________________
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• Place purchased__________________________________________
• Date purchased___________________________________________
• Make/model______________________________________________
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• Username/email__________________________________________
• Password_______________________________________________
• Account number___________________________________________

The only thing you feel like doing is drowning your angst in a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, but get off your butt and lock in health insurance pronto. Here’s how.

Step 1: Talk to your HR department
Find out from your HR department how long the coverage that you’ve already paid for will last. Often they carry you through the month of your termination. Pursue a new insurance plan immediately so you don’t have what’s called a “lapse in coverage.â€� Don’t wait until the day your old policy runs out to apply for a new one.

Step 2: Suss out your spouse’s policy
Hopping onto your spouse’s health insurance plan may make the most sense. Even though most companies have time-specific open enrollment periods, a job change or loss is considered a “qualifying event,â€� which means you may sign up for their plan at any time. Also note that depending on your spouse’s company, their premium could go up because you’re becoming a dependent on their plan (sorry, in this case, you’re considered more baggage). Your new insurer may also inquire about a preexisting medical condition, even if it’s just physical therapy for your knee injury (more baggage). They may exclude you from coverage on that medical issue for 12 months, so you’ll have to pay out of pocket until then.

Step 3: Consider Cobra
While you’re looking into your spouse’s plan, also consider Cobra. It lets you pay group health insurance rates even though you’re not part of the group (i.e., your company) anymore. Plus, it saves you dough under Obama’s new stimulus package. If you lost your job after last September 1 and your and your spouse’s combined income is less than $250,000 per year, you only pay 35 percent of the Cobra premium for the first nine months of your coverage. The rest is on the government’s tab! If your company has more than 20 employees and provides health care benefits, you’re likely eligible for Cobra coverage, so go to CobraInsurance.com for details.

Sure, you've had it since you were 16, but have you thought about how to maximize your policy and minimize payments?

Who Needs It Most

If you have a car, you need auto insurance. Most states have minimums, at least for liability, and insurers will generally suggest coverage ranges for other types of car insurance based on where you live, what you drive, and how you drive.

Average Cost

$1,879 annually. The good news is rates have come down over $100 on average in 2009 since their peak in 2008.

What to Ask Your Insurer

• Are you covered against uninsured drivers, or do you need a separate policy?

• Do you want or need roadside assistance with your policy? (If you belong to a roadside assistance club like AAA, you don't need double coverage.)

• Will your policy pay for a rental if your car is out of service?

How to Get Costs Down

• If you haven't consolidated policies with your spouse, make sure to do it. Statistics show that married couples are less of a claims risk, which means lower premiums. You also may be eligible for other discounts, so ask your insurer.

• Bundling multiple insurance policies can lower your bottom line, whether it's grouping your property, auto, and even life insurance policies.

• As cars age, the cost of repairing them rises -- so you may pay more for collision insurance on a clunker than on a new car. If it’s cheaper to replace your car than to repair it, reduce or eliminate your collision coverage.

• Consider raising your deductible (maybe you'd be responsible for the first $500 in damages rather than the first $250). The increase may be offset in the long run by lower monthly payments.

• Research the insurability of any new car you plan to buy. Vintage models or often-stolen cars (like Honda Civics, which are easy for thieves to strip for parts) may cost you more than a pricier but lower-maintenance vehicle.

Illustration by Joora Song

How should we choose our health plan?

When you’re weighing out health plan options, here are the key things to consider:

Cost
When you get your benefits package from your company, each plan will provide a prospectus listing the rate schedule for each option. Some companies pay 90 percent of the premium, some pay 50 percent, and others pay somewhere in between. You’ll be able to see what the copays are for office visits, prescriptions, and hospital visits, and whether you’ll need a referral to see a specialist.

Services
Look at the breakdown of services for each plan. This is when you’ll notice the real differences between Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs), Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs), and Point of Service Plans (POS). Each has a different way of approaching copays, referrals, and deductibles. HMOs typically require you to only see doctors within a network, while PPOs are more flexible about going outside of a network; POS plans are a kind of hybrid. All of the details will be spelled out on a list.

Physicians/Hospitals
You’ll then be able to go online or order a directory to check out which doctors and hospitals belong to the plans. If you have doctors you like, look them up and see if they participate. But beware: Not all the information is up-to-date. Call your doctor and make sure before you sign up for a new plan.

Ratings
To find out how your plans rate, there are consumer watchdog organizations out there to help you, like the National Committee for Quality Assurance.

“I honestly always just signed my name to the forms and never really understood the content. I've started making more of a conscious effort to understand what's being written and how it affects me.� -- PMeg819

“I didn't realize the big discount that married guys in their 20s get on car insurance! I didn't think to let the insurance company know right away and missed out on a big cut in my premiums for a couple of months.â€� -- Mike T.

“I used to be an insurance underwriter, and most of my job was talking to customers who hadn't read their policies and were upset by their coverage. Not knowing that floods weren't covered (until afterward) was a huge one. If you read your policy, you'll have very few surprises.â€� -- Cammiekins

“Act fast. I lost a diamond earring on a ski trip and waited three months to tell my insurance company about it. Unfortunately, that was too late...and they would have reimbursed me for the cost of a match if I had reported it within two weeks.� -- nycgirl31

“I had a new Jeep Wrangler that was stolen. I had a week’s worth of clothing, a briefcase, Palm Pilot, plus a bunch of shopping items worth about $5K. My car was covered by auto insurance, but everything was covered under my rental insurance. I highly recommend getting it.â€� -- misskelliecmu

“In some states if you have insurance on your car and you rent a car, your rental is also insured. So forego the expensive insurance that rental car companies push. I rented a car in Texas and it was hit by a rock and the windshield cracked, but my insurance company covered it 100-percent, and I didn't even have to pay a deductible.� -- QT3.14