ACCOUNTING / BOOKKEEPING / CPAs |
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Accountancy (profession) or accounting (methodology) is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about information that helps managers and other decision makers make resource allocation decisions. Financial accounting is one branch of accounting and historically has involved processes by which financial information about a business is recorded, classified, summarized, interpreted, and communicated. Auditing, a related but separate discipline, is the process whereby an independent auditor examines an organizations financial statements in order to express an opinion -- that conveys reasonable but not absolute assurance -- as to the fairness and adherence to generally accepted accounting principles, in all material respects.
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APPRAISAL / VALUATION |
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The appraisal value is the value of a company based on a projection of future cashflows that its owners will receive from the company's assets as well as from its current and future operations.
The appraisal value is often used to measure the financial performance of insurance companies. It is also a useful tool in measuring the viability of new ventures.
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ARBITRATION / MEDIATION |
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Arbitration is a form of mediation or conciliation, where the mediating party is given power by the disputant parties to settle the dispute by making a finding. In practice arbitration is generally used as a substitute for judicial systems, particularly when the judicial processes are viewed as too slow, expensive or biased. Arbitration is also used by communities which lack formal law, as a substitute for formal law.
Mediation consists of a process of alternative dispute resolution in which a (generally) neutral third party, the mediator, using appropriate techniques, assists two or more parties to help them negotiate an agreement, with concrete effects, on a matter of common interest. More generally speaking, the term "mediation" covers any activity in which an impartial third party (often a professional) facilitates an agreement on any matter in the common interest of the parties involved.
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BANKRUPTCY |
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Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their creditors. A declared state of bankruptcy can be requested by creditors in an effort to recoup a portion of what they are owed; however, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the bankruptcy is initiated by the bankrupt individual or organization.
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CLAIMS |
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A claim is a legal action to obtain money, property or the enforcement of a right protected by law against another party.
Individuals and businesses purchase insurance policies to protect against monetary losses. In the event of a loss, policyholders submit claims, or requests for payment, seeking compensation for their loss. Adjusters, appraisers, examiners, and investigators work primarily for property and casualty insurance companies, for whom they handle a wide variety of claims alleging property damage, liability, or bodily injury. Their main role is to investigate the claims, negotiate settlements, and authorize payments to claimants, all the while mindful not to violate the claimants rights under Federal and State privacy laws. They must determine whether the customers insurance policy covers the loss and how much of the loss should be paid to the claimant. Although many adjusters, appraisers, examiners, and investigators have overlapping functions and may even perform the same job, the insurance industry generally assigns specific roles to each of these claims workers.
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ERRORS & OMISSIONS |
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In the litigious world we live in today, many business owners protect themselves with errors and omissions insurance (E&O). This type of insurance may be appropriate for anyone who gives advice, makes educated recommendations, designs solutions or represents the needs of others, such as teachers, consultants, software developers, ad copywriters, Web page designers, placement services, telecommunication carriers or inspectors.
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INSURANCE - GENERAL |
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General insurance policies, including automobile and homeowners policies, provide payments depending on the loss from a particular financial event. General insurance typically comprises any insurance that is not determined to be life insurance, and is called property and casualty insurance in the U.S..
In the UK, General insurance is broadly divided into three areas; personal lines, commercial lines and London market.
The London market insures with large commercial risks, for example insuring supermarkets, football players and other very specific risks.
Commercial lines products are usually designed for relatively small legal entities. These would include workers comp (employers liability), public liability, product liability, commercial fleet and other general insurance products sold in a relatively standard fashion to many organisations.
Personal lines products are designed to be sold in large quantities. This would include autos (private car), homeowners (household), pet insurance, creditor insurance and others.
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REINSURANCE |
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Reinsurance is a means by which an insurance company (called the reinsured, ceding company or cedant) shares the risk of loss with another insurance company (called the reinsurer).
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