We will get calls from client’s throughout the year, that call to tell us their basement is flooded, or their bathroom is flooded.  Does that mean that they will not have coverage because the insurance company considers that a flood?

A homeowner’s insurance policy has a flood exclusion.  This flood exclusion means that there is no coverage if rising water comes into the home and causes damage.  This rising water could come from a body of water such as a stream or a lake or ocean or it could be sudden rain runoff that the storm drains could not handle and caused it to damage your home.  According to FEMA, the definition of a flood “it is a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of 2 or more acres of normally dry land or of 2 or more properties from the overflow of inland or tidal waters, or unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source, or mud flow.” In these cases you would need to have a flood insurance policy not a homeowner’s insurance policy to provide coverage.

So, the first question we ask when someone calls and tells us that there is house is flooded, is how did the water get there?  How the water got there makes all the difference in the world to determine if there will be coverage or not. 

So you have a home, titled in your name, and you let a family member live in the home, while you reside somewhere else.    Should you have a homeowners insurance policy on this location?   The answer is no.

A homeowner’s insurance policy is written on a property where the titled owner of the property also resides in the property.   If you as the owner do not reside there, then it should not be written on a homeowner’s policy. 

What if, I come and visit with the grand kids there, or I reside there when I am in town a few weeks a year?  Does that count?   No it does not count as the premises that you reside, so again it should not be written as a homeowner’s policy.

How should it be insured?  It should be written as a dwelling fire insurance policy in the name of the titled owner, to insure the dwelling, out buildings, any contents that belong to the owner of the property and to provide liability insurance coverage. 

If you live in a rental home or apartment, chances are you don’t have the proper insurance. Despite the fact that rented homes are more likely to be burglarized than owner-occupied properties, nearly 60 percent of renters don’t have a renters insurance policy.

Why does it matter?

“If you rent a house or apartment and think that your landlord is financially responsible when there is a fire, theft or other catastrophe—think again,” warns the Insurance Information Institute*. “Your landlord may have insurance to protect the building you are living in. But your landlord’s insurance policy won’t replace your personal possessions or pay for your living expenses while the building is being repaired. The only way to protect yourself financially against disasters is to buy a renters insurance policy.”

 

You want to buy a new car on a nice Saturday morning.  So you head off to the local dealership.  You find the perfect car, agree to a great price and then sit down to get through the paperwork.  And the time comes where the dealer ask you if you have auto insurance.  Your answer is yes. 

                So the next question is: Does you auto insurance cover a newly purchased vehicle?  And the answer is …. Maybe.

                So why is it a maybe?  The standard ISO (Insurance Service Office) auto insurance policy will provide insurance coverage for newly acquired cars, IF all of your owned vehicles are on that auto insurance policy. 

                What does that mean?  If you have a one car insured with Company A and one insured with Company B, you will NOT have automatic coverage on your newly acquired automobile.  This is a major problem with not insuring all of your vehicles with the same auto insurance company.  So if you buy a car and provide you insurance information from Company A to the dealership and drive off of the lot, you DO NOT have insurance on that car until you notify Company A that you have bought the vehicle.  So, if you pull out of the lot and get into an accident before you make the call, then Company A does not have to pay that claim.

                Now let’s assume that you do have all of your cars insured with an auto insurance company; that company uses the ISO insurance policy language and you buy a car on a Saturday.  What coverage will you have for that new car?

I was traveling through the Miami airport on the way to a family vacation recently.  Airports are a known hub for hacking, because almost everyone connects to the free Wi-Fi and then does their confidential business transactions on their laptops, phone or tablet.

My husband and I were sitting at the counter at the airport restaurant, and there is a gentleman sitting two chairs down from us who is on the phone and the computer, clearly he is engaged in his work.  As soon as he hung up his phone, he was approached by a very charismatic individual in his late 20’s.  The guy had one of those personalities you are comfortable with and you feel like he could be a friend.  He tells the business guy, that he left his phone is LaGuardia airport, and he bought himself and new iPhone, but it froze and according to Apple he must plug it into a computer and log into his iTunes account.  Immediately, my reaction was don’t do it, don’t do it.  The charismatic young gentleman, asked to plug his phone into the businessman’s computer and in return he would buy him a drink.    The business person closed out of his work item and then let the young guy proceed.   Unfortunately, the businessman does not have iTunes on his Dell computer, so they sat there chit chatting while he downloaded iTunes. 

Car Seat Safety

The Right Car Seat for Your Child

Nothing in this world will be more important to you than the safety of your child.  Protecting your child while on the road is a top priority. 

You are going to have a new baby and it is time to shop for the perfect car seat, so you walk into the local store to pick one up.  Shouldn’t be that difficult right? 

Well, you round the corner of the car seat isle and come to a screeching halt as you quickly see that there are dozens of different brands and styles to choose from.  So you take some time to look over all of the different options, take some notes, and head home to do some research online to see which one is best for you and your child

I was speaking with a flooring company about their upcoming renewal, in conversation I reminded them that there is an Unmanned Aircraft exclusion on their policy.   I explained that this means that there is no liability or property coverage by a drone.   The client says “Really?” and gave me a smirk.  Oh, NO! I thought, he used a drone.   The client proceeds to tell me that they were thinking of renting a drone because they had installed tile in a school and put the school’s logo on the floor.  They had taken pictures, but they were not showing the full scope of the project.  So, they were going to rent a drone for the day to take pictures from above.  The client asked, what would happen if we hit someone with the drone in the hallway or if they had broke the drone they rented.  

For many of our neighbors in Pasadena, MD, Summer means more than sunshine and vacations. It also means working in the yard - often with tools that can be dangerous if not used properly.  So please take the time to learn the proper handling and operation of any tool that you will be using

Each year about 400,000 people are treated for injuries from lawn and garden tools, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). It only takes a second for a devastating accident to happen, so don't let your landscaping efforts land you in the hospital, or worse!

Is your workplace prepared in the event of a fire?

What would you say is the biggest cause of workplace fires? It's not equipment failure. It's not electrical faults. It's not storms or natural disasters. It's people and carelessness.

Every year, in more than 70,000 workplace fires across North America, an average 200 people die, thousands are injured and many firms are either put out of business or severely disrupted.

Why is general liability insurance not enough for sports organizations?

In order for most youth sports organizations to play on county or state owned fields they have to provide the municipality proof of general liability insurance coverage.  If that is all that t they need to use the field, why are some agents or insurance companies requiring them to also carry an accident insurance policy?  Generally, the general liability coverage is going to exclude coverage to the players themselves.  So for example, a fly ball hits a mom sitting in the stands at a baseball game, this would be covered, but the player gets hit by a pitch, this would not be covered.   The accident insurance policy fills in this gap and covers the player, if they are hurt while participating.