Storage (follow-up thought)

Most homeowner's insurance policies do not cover (or cover adequately) your stuff while it's in storage... there are policies that do cover it quite well - and they're not cost-prohibitive.

~ Jon

Merriam Insurance Agency

Storage!

More and more Americans are storing their excess personal property in self storage rental units. In fact, the Self Storage Association indicates that approximately 11 million households in the United States rent some type of storage unit.

The first consideration, after deciding to rent a storage unit, is which self storage facility to select. The following are some tips for selecting the appropriate storage facility.

• Select a rental company that has adequate security, such as proper lighting, formidable fencing, coded security pads, and 24-hour video surveillance cameras.
• Look for a unit that you can access any time of the day.
• Consider your need for a climate-controlled environment—particularly important if you are storing items that could be damaged by damp, cold, or hot weather such as upholstered furniture and archived items.
• Choose a unit that is well-maintained, clean, and pest-free.
• Ascertain the reputation and history of the rental company through referrals and the Better Business Bureau.
• Select a rental company that offers competitive rates for insurance for your property in order to give you more options; the rental company should also have its own commercial general liability insurance if someone gets hurt on its premises.
  ~ Jon
  Merriam Insurance Agency
  
  
  Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
  International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

Protect! (Historic Homes) p3

If you are planning any type of restoration to your home, make sure you hire contractors and architects that specialize or have experience in restoring historic homes. Note that the local historical commission typically has to approve any renovation plans.

~ Jon

Merriam Insurance Agency

Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

Protect! (Historic Homes) p2

If you want to replicate custom or historical features of your historic home, such as stained-glass windows, antique wood floors, ceiling moldings, or hand-carved banisters, ask us about a restoration cost homeowners policy or about adding an endorsement onto your policy providing this coverage.

~ Jon

Merriam Insurance Agency

Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

Protect! (Historic Homes) p1

Historic homes pose more challenges for home owners as they are typically subject to historical renovation regulations. Here are some recommendations worthy of consideration for your historic home.

You should avoid any type of functional replacement cost endorsement because this allows less costly construction materials and methods to be used to repair your home. These materials and methods may reduce the value of your home.

~ Jon

Merriam Insurance Agency

Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

Ouch!

A friend, whose daughter is away at college, recently loaned her car to a friend. Unfortunately, the friend had no insurance, but was at fault in an accident. So, the burden of responsibility fell to my friend's insurance policy.

Personal Risk Management Tip...

Unless you intend to insure your kid's friends and their choices, it's probably worth discussing the ground rules with your kids if they're going to stay on your insurance policy.

Such risk may not be covered under a personal auto policy because the roommate's car is "available for regular use." If prohibition is not the risk management method of choice, adding the extended nonowned endorsement to the personal auto policy would also solve the problem.

~ Jon

Protect! (Older Homes) p2

Difficulty in estimating replacement cost

Older homes are often constructed with materials and using techniques that are either no longer available or extremely expensive to duplicate, making it quite difficult to accurately forecast what the cost would be to rebuild following a loss. As a result, there is a risk that the value for which your home is insured is too low. 


Sometimes a guaranteed replacement cost endorsement is available to protect against this contingency. With it, the insurer will pay the actual replacement cost to entirely rebuild your home after a total loss, even if it is much higher than your dwelling limit. If guaranteed replacement cost coverage is unavailable, consider extended replacement cost coverage, which might allow an additional 20 percent or 30 percent of the dwelling limit in the event of a total loss to your home.


~ Jon
Merriam Insurance Agency


Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

6 inches from the hospital

Lydia (my wife) and I were out for a walk in the neighborhood last week when we noticed a small white car slowing down behind us. When I turned around to look, the driver turned the car to avoid my wife (by about 6 inches) and drove on down the road. Strange! But we didn't think much more about it.

About 5 minutes later, we rounded the corner and saw the same white car parked in the field straight across from the end of the street. Turns out, the driver was diabetic and having serious troubles. It looked like he was having a seizure and had blacked out. I checked his pulse as he consistently flinched... it was around 160 beats per minute. While we waited for 911 to arrive, the driver came to, said he had to go and drove off.

I realized quickly how easily that could have been me. Would I stay put and wait for 911 - or drive home to take care of myself?

So, what does this have to do with insurance? It could have had everything to do with insurance if one of us had been hit by his car. The line between "almost" and "did" was just 6 inches thick.

~ Jon

Protect! (Older Homes) p1

Older homes (i.e., greater than 40 years old) present extra risks for home owners; thus, special insurance needs may arise. The following are some factors and tips for you to consider when purchasing insurance for your older home.


Increased construction costs. In some cases, building ordinances can increase rebuilding costs by 30 percent or more. Thus, an ordinance or law increased limit (HO 04 77) or similar endorsement is worthy of consideration. This endorsement provides higher limits for rebuilding an older home when an ordinance will increase the cost.

~ Jon

Merriam Insurance Agency

Used with Permission, Copyright 2012
International Risk Management Institute, Inc.

Savings!

Risk Management really works! 


I recently visited a Rescue Mission who has been focusing on improving their risk management practices. They implemented a safety team five years ago - and today, their Workers' Compensation bill is down by 25%, and they're on track to reduce it by another 20% over the next 5 years. I'm still smiling – that puts more money to the people who need it most.

Slackers! (Info for Employers & HR folks)

Few brokers have informed their clients of the upcoming changes to the workers compensation formula – with a split point of $10,000 - and how it can impact your budget next year. 


We've been talking with our clients about the changes and how to prepare. We continue to teach our clients how to better control their workers compensation costs.


Employers, here's a quick summary...
If your Experience Modification Rate is over 1.0, plan for higher rates... if lower than 1.0, plan for lower rates. Current cap is $5,000. New [split-point] Cap will be $10,000.

I do hope you already know about this – and that you're not dealing with a slacker.

~ Jon

jon@merriaminsurance.com

Ouch!

Statistically, half of all households and businesses are underinsured by as much as 50%. Just this summer, I have come across:

•  2 homeowners who were insured at 60% of replacement cost – and it didn't cost 'em another penny to insure at 100% with me!
• 3 organizations who were severely (13 to 22 cents-on-the-dollar) underinsured... and one organization didn't know it until they had a fire last year. Their $70,000 fire damage cost them $47,000 out-of-pocket because they didn't have enough insurance. They were only expecting to pay their $1,000 deductible. They had to fight hard to get any payment. This was such a rudimentary blunder, it should have been avoided... or at least anticipated.

I am seeing these situations all too often. And I am concerned. I'm also honored to say that 2 of those 3 organizations are now sufficiently insured. We'll have the third taken care of shortly.

Your broker/agent should be reviewing your coverages with you at least once every 3 years... Don't you pay for someone to watch your back? Your church, your business, life - health - accident - boat - motorcycle - your house or new invention... unfortunately, most of us buy insurance, hoping that we'll never need to use it... and so we fight for the lowest price (often unaware of what we give up) – and then forget about it except when we write the check or make a claim.

We're licensed in 49 of 50 states (I'm just looking for a good reason to go to Hawaii)... and we represent hundreds of insurers. Is it time for you to discover the value of an independent broker?

Thank-you for reading...

~ Jon
jon@merriaminsurance.com