20 - North Shore News - Sunday, October 29, 2000 INSURANCE invariably ranks close to the bot- tom of the list when I ask people for topics they would like me to cover. . But considering the thousands — even tens and occasionally hundreds of thousands (see below) — of dollars most of us spend on the various types of insurance over the years, we ‘need to review this topic from time to time. - For example, M.R., a widow of 75, writes: “My son figures I have more than ecavough money to live on. ‘UBC Certificate n Peer Counselling Ae This 150 hour, | part- -time program is designed to | teach ‘effective counselling through self-development. : ‘Students leam the theory and practice of counselling “through lecture, group interaction and videotaped counselling practise. BUSINESS insurance ins and So he suggested I should spend $12,000 a year to buy $250,000 of fife insur- ance to pay the income tax that will be due on my RRSP and mutual funds ac death. “Apart from the emo- tional part of buying insurance that only pays my kids when I dic, F suppose it seems a reasonable investment. | expect to live until Lam 90!" If you do live another 15 years, you could probably invest that $12,000 a year to produce consider- ably more than $250,000. Or you could use more of your moncy to help others while you are alive. In other words, get cverall estate planning advice. If you do decide on insurance, shop around for the most com- petitive policy and make sure the premiums are guaranteed for life: Would your children (assuming they are your benefi- ciaries) pay the premiums? In general, every money matters : The program will interest those in human resources, - social services and health care, teachers, managers, : ‘those wishing to volunteer, or anyone wanting to time a policy comes up for renewal, see if the coverage matches your needs. Ask your agent if vour com- pany is the most competitive in both premiums and claim-settling service. Hf you carry term life insurance, you might be able ro re-qualify med- ically and reduce your premium. Always check any new policy careful- ly before cancelling, an existing poli- cy. The rule about insurance is to buy coverage only for loss situations you could not deal with financially yourself. For example, a young cou- ple with children and no family sup- port would probably need more life and disability insurance than a cou- ple whose relatives would wiilingly help out. Also look at increasing the deductible on a policy to reduce your costs. Beware “gimmick” insur- ance that pays out in only very restricted situations. Accident insurance rarely makes sense: If you need a certain dollar amount of coverage, don’t gamble you will die in an accident. Don’t duplicate. Extended insur- ance plans might already provide travel coverage. Mike Grenby is a columnist and independent personal financial advis- er; be’ll answer tumn as space allows but cannot reply personally — contact him at mike@grenby.com and. sce previous columns at . I con see it. eon October 17, we precentad the 13°. Boc Young Entrepreneur Awards honouring mestions in this col-- A North Vancouver business owner took home top honours at the fourth annual Visions of Excellence Entrepreneur awards held Oct. 24 in Coquit!am. Garry Steel of STEEL the scene... Training tied for first place in the Tri-City Business Centre Consulting Award cat- egory for his company, a Jead- ing developer of operations > manuals, training programs and recipe development for the food and beverage indus- try. His present clients include Serca Foods, Home Restaurants Inc. and UBC. Steel does a cooking seg- ment on VTV Breakfast and is also host of his own Internet cooking show. Steel shares the award with Vancouver’s Derek Smith, who owns consulting-engi- neering firm Rockingham Engineering Ltd. Both Steel and Smith are graduates — of — Douglas College's Self-Employment program. Qa0a0 North | Vancouver-based Impulse TV Ltd. continues to grow its network by announc- ing the signing of a two-year agreement with Canlan Ice Sports Corp. Starting in November, Canlan will broadcast cus- tomized video throughout their facilities. From NHL hockey and figure skating to active lifestyle features, Impulse TV will supply eve-" catching video ~~ content accompanied with select advertising and branding. Impulse TV delivers cus- tom video to an in-store base of over two million viewers monthly. g9093 North Vancouver's Pavlik Travel Agency has been sold to Internet company Information Highway.com of .. : Richmond. : Janet and John Pavlik will © ° continue to operate their wholesale company, the Pavlik - Travel Group, which handles - their specialized barge and — boating holidays on the canals’ and rivers of Europe. 7 New for 2001 are ‘self- skippered boating holidays in. Italy and Germany. All: the new programs f for 2001 are~ available now for bookings. : Early bird specials apply nor to Dec, 31. “ For more information, call ‘the Pavlik Travel Group at’ 1: - 800- 665-9501 c or r (604) 924- young entrepreneurs from each province _and tervitory who have proven their ability. to innovate and grow. During the coming ~ year, these winners will be paired with’a - respected business leader who will act as “their mentor. This Is our way of. recognizing ~ that the future is now and it belongs to. “young entrepreneurs. The Business Development Bank of canada and its partners wish to congratulate all "the winners of the Young Entrepreneur Awards 2000 and thank their mentors. ~ The Young Entrepreneurs : _} ©) Mentor Program is sponsored f.. “|: by Royal Bank. . GARY MEEHAN © President” OQepc rt are Onvacom Canada a Business Development Bank of Canada Banque de développement du Canada customer service. See for yourself. : -_ THE CANADIA oe onvinge| work, wisely - a ROYAL BANK. * thease 9} Regal tame Prencas Greg” NS: AND MATTRESS ing you. money since 1969" | 75 Roosevelt Crescent, North’ Vancouver. (2 blocks behind the former Avalon n Hotel)