California Casualty Insurance Overview The company was founded in 1914 by Carl G. Brown, originally known as the California Casualty Indemnity Exchange and is operated by the four-generations running of the Brown family in California.  In its beginnings, the company provided worker’s compensation insurance to California businesses and has since expanded to offer many lines of coverage in all states with the exception of Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, New York, and Wisconsin....

If you used your credit cards to stay afloat, it’s almost impossible to get a handle on that debt without some help. Learn whether you can keep some credit cards if you declare bankruptcy. Can You Keep Any Credit Cards in a Bankruptcy? You typically can’t keep credit cards if you declare bankruptcy. Bankruptcy isn’t a pick and choose proposition, and all creditors are to be treated the same. It wouldn’t be fair for you to discharge that $5,000 balance you owe to First National Visa but keep the personal loan you borrow from the credit union at work....

The new card offers perks and features similar to those offered by other luxury travel cards: a $300 annual travel credit, unlimited access to Capital One’s planned airport lounges in Dallas, Denver, and Washington, D.C (plus access to 1,300 Priority Pass lounges), and automatic status in Hertz’s loyalty program. The Venture X card is the most expensive consumer rewards credit card in Capital One’s lineup, with an annual fee of $395....

Custody Laws Each state has different child custody laws. Some states presume that parents have joint custody, while others do not. Some states may also assume that in the case of unmarried parents, the mother automatically has custody, while others expect single mothers to file for custody, even if the father is not involved. Mouse over the map below, and you can see a list of factors that each state considers when determining child custody....

The debt snowball and debt avalanche methods are two popular debt payoff tactics, but they’re not the only ones. Here, we’ll review a few common strategies to help you explore which may be best for you. To find your best debt reduction strategy, consider your preference for saving money on interest, the amount you can pay each month, and your need for motivation. Debt Snowball With the snowball method, you pay your debts off from the smallest to the largest amount due, regardless of interest rate or other account factors....

Of course, credit cards aren’t necessarily free. Cardholders who carry balances month to month are charged interest for the privilege of borrowing money. And then there is a bevy of fees you may or may not be charged, depending on how you manage and use your card. Finance Charges Finance charges (also known as interest charges) aren’t tacked onto your account in a fixed amount like other fees. Instead, these charges vary based on your credit card’s annual percentage rate (APR)—and the amount of the balance you carry beyond your grace period....

Each of these components requires thought and care to implement, and there are countless ways to do it. A three-fund portfolio is a very simple way to execute many of the elements of an investment plan all in one strategy. What Is a 3-Fund Portfolio? A three-fund portfolio is a complete portfolio that consists of just three mutual funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs). By using just three funds, you can simplify not only the implementation but the ongoing management of your investments....

The types of incidents each one covers, though, are quite different. Collision is mostly limited to direct accidents, while comprehensive covers most everything else. Compare the two types of coverage to help determine what you need to protect your vehicle. The Difference Between Comprehensive and Collision Both comprehensive and collision coverage benefit you when damage to your car occurs. The difference, though, is that comprehensive insurance usually helps pay to repair or replace your vehicle if it’s damaged or stolen in an incident that is not a collision or somehow outside your control....

Consisting mostly of credit card debt, revolving credit balances climbed $17.8 billion to $992.2 billion, an annual rate of 22%. As the economic recovery picks up, consumers are keen to spend. Friday’s report mirrored a separate Fed analysis on Monday that showed demand for consumer loans has jumped as bank lending standards have eased. “Clearly this is a sign of confidence in the U.S. economy,” Bank of America said in a research report....

What Is Coordination of Benefits? When a person is covered by two health plans, coordination of benefits is the process the insurance companies use to decide which plan will pay first and what the second plan will pay after the first plan has paid. As an example, if your spouse or partner has a health care plan at work, and you have access to one through work as well, your children could have coverage through both plans....

Learn what it means to choose both debit and credit and the fees associated with each, along with the benefits and risks of each option. Paying Debit vs. Credit with a Debit Card When you pay with a debit card at an in-person retailer, you may be given the option to select either “debit” or “credit” to complete your purchase. There are several differences between the two types of transactions....

If you’ve decided to prioritize paying off your debt, simplifying your accounts can make your monthly payments more effective and help you pay down your balances sooner. Here, we’ll explore two options for consolidating your debts. How Credit Card Balance Transfers Work A balance transfer involves moving a balance from one credit card to another. Typically, the goal is to move the debt from a credit card with a higher interest rate to one with a lower interest rate, ideally taking advantage of a 0% APR balance-transfer promotion....

A foreign transaction fee is a fee that banks and other credit card issuers charge in conjunction with credit card networks like Visa on a transaction that occurs in a foreign currency or is processed by a foreign bank (even if a foreign currency wasn’t used). The fee can apply when you use your credit card outside of the U.S., or when you make a domestic purchase in a foreign currency or buy something in U....

Required Interest Rate Increase Notice There are a few situations where a credit card issuer is required to send advance notice of an interest rate increase. Banks must notify you of an interest rate increase at least 45 days before the new rate becomes effective. Fortunately, you don’t have to accept the higher interest rate. During this 45-day period, you’ll have the opportunity to opt-out of the interest rate increase if you would rather pay off your balance with the current interest rate....

Congress established mandatory programs under so-called authorization laws. These laws also mandated that Congress appropriate whatever funds are needed to keep the programs running. The mandatory portion of the U.S. budget estimates how much it will cost to fulfill these authorization laws. These estimates are made by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Congress can only reduce the funding for these programs by changing the authorization law itself. That requires a 60-vote majority in the Senate to pass....

While there are a handful of stablecoins jostling for traction, its proponents see Dai as the best poised to deliver a decentralized version capable of actually fulfilling Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto’s original aspiration for blockchain technology. Learn more about how Dai works and whether it’s worth your while to invest in it. What Is Dai? Dai is a cryptocurrency based on the Ethereum network. It is a stablecoin, which means that Dai is pegged to the U....

The country added 199,000 jobs in December—less than half of what economists expected—though the unemployment rate did dip to 3.9% from 4.2%, beating forecasts for 4.1% and closing in on the 3.5% we saw before the pandemic began, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its monthly jobs report Friday. While there were bright spots in the data, the smallest monthly gain in jobs since December 2020 is especially concerning given the numbers were collected mid-month, before the latest surge in COVID-19 cases from the omicron variant, some economists said....

Learn more about deductive reasoning and its value in the workplace. What Is Deductive Reasoning? Deductive reasoning is a form of logical thinking that’s widely applied in many different industries and valued by employers. It relies on a general statement or hypothesis—sometimes called a premise—believed to be true. The premise is used to reach a specific, logical conclusion. A common example is the if/then statement. If A = B and B = C, then deductive reasoning tells us that A = C....

In recent years, however, things have changed. It is now possible to purchase your home with no down payment at all. That may sound like good news, but there is reason to be cautious. Avoiding the Down Payment In 2021, some banks offered near 100% financing for a home, with a 3% down payment being a widely advertised mortgage option. Certain couples may also qualify for an FHA loan, which eliminates the need for a large down payment....

How to Determine Whether You Are Being Paid Enough It’s the type of question that can arise during times of high stress or overwork, upon hearing about another vacation a peer or colleague is taking, or during a rough bout getting the checkbook in balance. It may even pop into your head randomly during the workday, like something you have been meaning to check on if you could only find the time....