Driving Safety

One in three children and young adults that are in auto accidents are seriously injured or killed every year in America. It doesn’t matter how good a driver you are, no one can predict an accident. If you have children, make sure that they are properly restrained.

For infants and children eight years old and younger or at least fifty-seven inches tall should be in a federally approved child safety seat. Anyone over eight years old and fifty-seven inches tall should be wearing a seat belt. In Massachusetts, the fine for not complying with the safety seat rule could be fined $25 and their insurance will increase but more importantly it could save a life.

-Check Your Car Seat. Did you know that 73 percent of car seats are not used or installed correctly? Before you hit the road, please take 15 minutes for an at-home car seat checkup using the Safe Kids downloadable checklist (http://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/car-seat-checklist.pdf). The checklist offers ways to make sure your car seat is right for your child and that the seat is installed properly. These tips are important because we know that when used correctly, child safety seats can reduce the risk of death by as much as 71 percent.

-Use Booster Seats. Safety in the car goes beyond your little ones. Kids who have outgrown a forward-facing harness seat are not ready for a seat belt or front seat yet. They are safest in a booster seat that enables the adult seat belt to fit properly. Even when children have outgrown booster seats, they are safest in the backseat until the age of 13.

- See more at: http://www.safekids.org/blog/what-parents-need-know-safe-summer-travel#sthash.bKsa52Nx.dpuf

Why Should I Get An Umbrella Policy If I Have The Homestead Act?

Many people ask why they should have a Personal Umbrella if they already have the Homestead Act on their home. Many people underestimate the “coverage” that the Homestead Act provides. As of March 16, 2011, the Homestead Act will provide “up to” $500,000 of the equity in their homes for a judgement that is made against the homeowner so that residence is not jeopardized by creditors. Homeowners that purchased their Homestead prior to March 16, 2011 have the limit at that time of purchase. This sounds great, right? Maybe not so good, here’s the “catch”. In order for the Homestead to pay out; there has to be an actual judgement made against the homeowner. This does not include legal fees, it’s just the judgement. If you cannot pay the legal fees in order to protect yourself, what good was that Homestead? What if you’re falsely accused and no judgement is made? The Homestead doesn’t provide coverage at all. The Personal Umbrella provides legal fees and the judgement (up to the policy limits and exclusions) whether you’re innocent or guilty.

Is There Coverage For My Company Car On My Personal Umbrella Policy?

Under the standard Personal Umbrella Policy there is not coverage afforded for the company car that you may be driving on a regular basis unless you are using that car for personal use AND you have “Use of Other Vehicles” endorsed to your Personal Auto Policy and also have that vehicle listed on your Umbrella at the time of a loss. The vehicle also cannot be “owned” by the named insured. Now if you happen to take the company car that is “not provided to you for your regular use” and happen to have a loss while you’re running “personal” errands, then the Umbrella Policy would afford coverage automatically. If that same scenario were to happen with the company car that was provided to you for regular use; you would need to have that vehicle endorsed to your Auto & Umbrella policies in order to have coverage. This is a tricky situation to say the least, so please contact our agency if you have any questions.

Replacement Cost vs. Market Value

    How many times have you looked at your Homeowner’s policy and thought that the coverage on your house was way too high? And that you could never sell your house for that amount.

     With the housing market being what it is, people think that the coverage on their homes should reflect the market value -- but you couldn’t be more wrong. The difference between market value and replacement cost is that market value reflects what a home can be sold for but replacement cost is what a home can be re-built for. Do you see the difference?

    With the cost of services and materials, you want to make sure that you have enough coverage to rebuild your home in case of a loss. Some may say that they would never rebuild their house the way it is now, but let’s consider the problems with that theory if you have a loss and the home is not completely destroyed. For example, say your home is insured for $160,000 but it should be insured for $200,000 and you have a kitchen fire that resulted in $50,000 worth of damage. The fact is, the insurance company will only pay you $40,000, less your deductible. That means that you’ll have to write a check for that remaining $10,000 in order to get your kitchen back in working order.   

    The reason behind this is in the numbers.  Because you have only insured your home for 80% of its value, you will only receive payment for 80% of the loss.  If you have questions about replacement cost, contact your insurance agent.