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After a massive set of snowstorms hit the East Coast in the month of February, many states, especially Maryland, saw a huge increase in the number of auto insurance claims it received. The record-breaking accumulation in the area resulted in what the state estimates to be nearly $1 billion in damages. As a result, auto insurance claims were catapulted through the roof.

Snow Storms Caused Massive Damage

The blizzards that blew through Maryland left several feet of snow behind for emergency crews and residents to push through. Unfortunately, in addition to the damage that the heavy snow caused to roofs, many cars accumulated damage as well due to dangerous conditions on the road and even snow plows hitting them as they cleaned the streets.

Because of these unforeseen incidents, auto insurers in the area estimated that the volume in auto insurance claims tripled in volume. Some have even noted that this storm may be one of the most destructive the area has seen.

Insurance Rates Could be Affected

As a result of the snownamis, the some insurance leaders think that auto insurance rates could be pushed a bit for the area in the long term. While the Insurance Information Institute (III) has yet to estimate how much damage was incurred and there has been no overall determination of how many claims were filed, it is very possible that the severe damage and high number of claims could affect auto insurance rates.

If youre feeling worried about what auto insurers might do, you may want to contact your insurance company to ask about how the claims might affect overall rates. However, be prepared to not receive a straight answer as it could take months to determine if the damage could have had wide-spread effects.

Photo by SpreePIX - Berlin

Oscar season is upon us, and once again its time for the Academy to recognize its best and brightest. While the night will be devoted to glamour, the actual making of a film is composed of many less exciting elements.

One of those is the high cost of insuring actors. Everyone has heard of the lengths celebrities will go to in order to insure their own personal assets, but movie-making insurance is much costlier and more complicated than that.

Why Insure an Actor?

The way it works is this: Any actor starring in a movie must, by law, be insured. Since movies have a set budget and a tight timeframe, if anything causes delays it will cost the production company.

On a big-budget film, that can get very expensive up to as much as $400,000 per day. So, if a star holds up production the dollar costs start to add up very fast, and the film's investors are not about to take any chances with losing their money.

This is where an actors personal problems come in to play. Sometimes its through no fault of their own, as in the case of Nicole Kidman and her bad knee. She had to pull out of several films, causing claims to be made against insurers.

That, in turn, made Kidman almost uninsurable and put her career in jeopardy.

Binges and Insurance

On the other hand, if a star is struggling with drug and alcohol abuse, their binges can lead to disrupted shooting schedules. So, as an actor develops a bad reputation, they become more expensive to insure. Some famous examples include Owen Wilson, whose substance-abuse issues contributed to the suicide attempt that derailed production on major films; Iron Man star Robert Downey, Jr; and troubled actress Lindsay Lohan.

Of course, the vast number of actors and actresses working today are not only injury-free, but responsible as well. Film insurance, like health insurance, auto insurance or any other kind of policy, is designed to prepare for risk.

Fortunately, in most cases things go off without a hitch -- which is one thing that movies and real life have in common.

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