| For
property and liability insurance, a cancellation notice usually must be
sent to the policyholder several days prior to the effective date of cancellation.
The notice period will be stated in the policy, and for personal auto,
homeowners and sometimes other types of insurance, state law usually requires
at least 10 days advance written notice. If you make your payment before the cancellation
date, you will be able to retain your coverage. For life, health and other disability
insurance, state law often requires insurers to allow a "grace
period" of as much as 30 days after a premium payment is due before
coverage can be terminated. If payment is not made within the grace period,
however, these types of coverage usually will terminate retroactively to the date
the premium payment was due without any further cancellation notice from the company.
If your coverage
terminates or is canceled because you missed a premium payment, some insurance
companies may agree to "reinstate" your coverage if you make
all past due payments and you certify that you are not aware of any losses
that have occurred since the cancellation date. Reinstatement is discretionary
by the insurance company. The law usually does not require that policies
be reinstated once they have been legally canceled. |
