Insurance

Inside the Minds: The Insurance Business--Industry Leaders on Managing Risks, Ensuring Investments, and Protecting Assets
$27.95
I used the book as a primer to the industry - a precursor to inheriting the insurance vertical as part of my sales territory. Would recommend this to anyone looking for a high level introduction and understanding.

Principles of Risk Management and Insurance (10th Edition)
$194.00
This book along with the book exams were difficult to understand. The author is very misleading. The exams are tricky even though the book spells things right out like in the exam question.

Fundamentals of Risk and Insurance
$35.89
My insurance class was unanimous in their disappointment with this textbook. Why?

1) VERBOSE - Takes twice as long to explain a concept as the concise authors in the Kaplan or Bisys book series. Also recommended is Principles of Risk Mgt. and Insurance by George Rejda (http://www.aw-bc.com/rejda/). I found out about these alternates mid-semester after it was too late to switch - don't get stuck like I did.
2) NO ONLINE QUIZZES OR POWERPOINT SUMMARY SLIDES - Kaplan, Bisys and George Rejda offer these helpful study aids.
3) POOR FORMATTING - definitions are not bolded, italicized or presented as bullet points; sample problems are incorporated within long paragraphs, rather than separated out; margins are razor thin on the top and sides, allowing no room for notes.
4) BIASED - The authors generously sprinkle the text with their obvious bias favoring the insurance industry, especially regarding health care coverage. New approaches to health care and access are characterized as "attacks" (p.369 & 382) and "crusades" (p.382); "Patients rarely object to more testing because it might do them some good, even if it is not cost effective for society as a whole." (p.367); and "the debate over availability and affordability is a thinly veiled demand for cross-subsidies in the insurance market." (p.114). That's just the tip of the iceberg.

If it was possible to give this book zero stars, I would. Whatever you do, don't buy the book new - it's so poorly written that my entire class is offloading theirs at the end of the fall 2007 semester, so it will be on Amazon soon.

Questions and Answers on Life Insurance: The Life Insurance Toolbook
$24.95
this book answers any questions you have about cash value, term or variable life insurances.