HOME & AUTO

Home insurance is necessary to protect not just your belongings, but also your physical home. While no amount of money can replace many important items in your home or the time and effort you took to make a house your home, insurance is there to at least make the start over process a little easier.

Basics of Home Insurance

Before you sign any policies, it’s important that you know the home insurance basics so that you make an informed decision with full context. Don’t be alarmed if you paid $150,000 for your home and it’s only insured for $100,000. Remember that your lot has value even without a house on it, and that property won’t burn down even if the house does. So the “dwelling” coverage could be less than what you paid for the house.

Home Insurance Dwelling

Property/Dwelling/Contents—There are three figures that will surround any policy: the cost of the property (what you paid for your home), the dwelling insurance rate (cost to replace your home in full), and your contents rate (cost to replace all of your possessions)

“Contents” is basically anything that would fall out of your home if you turned it upside down and shook it. If you own a lot of expensive things, it’s best to a) get higher contents insurance and b) video tape your belongings to prove to adjusters what you own in case you ever need a claim for your home insurance.

Is Home Insurance Required?

If you are buying a house, you will need to secure home insurance before you close. The bank will require this so that you protect their investment. If you own your house outright (i.e. there is no mortgage on it), you technically do not have to carry home insurance. It’s a great idea so that you don’t get left holding a big bill and nowhere to live should the worst occur, but technically, it is your property and if you don’t want to insure it, you don’t have to. The wise thing to do is to keep a home insurance policy even once the title is transferred upon payoff.

Save Money on Home Insurance

Remember there is no penalty to switch home insurance companies. Rates are always changing so it is only to your benefit to shop your home insurance rates and make sure you are getting the best coverage at the best rates.

Auto Insurance can cover you, your passengers and your vehicle for up to six different risks; Bodily injury liability, Medical, Property damage, Collision, Comprehensive and Uninsured motorists. Many insurance companies also give premium discounts to drivers who:

• Have a good driving record
• Have taken driver education courses
• Are between the ages of 50 and 74
• Car pool
• Insure several cars on one policy
• Buy homeowners or renters insurance from the same company
• Install anti-theft devices in their cars
• Drive cars with safety features like automatic seat belts and air bags

Auto Insurance Liability

Liability is one of the fundamental forms of coverage addressed in most automobile insurance policies. Understanding the purpose of liability insurance will help you decide how much coverage is needed to cover losses for which you are legally liable.

Legally Liable: Liability Insurance Coverage

Auto insurance can include liability insurance coverage for accidents involving bodily injury and/or property damage for which the policyholder is legally liable. In other words, liability protection is the coverage that pays for injuries and damage sustained by a third party and/or their property for which you are responsible.

Insurance that Covers Bodily Injury (BI)

If you cause an accident and someone is injured, your liability coverage as part of your automobile insurance will pay for their injuries. Minimum amounts of liability insurance are often required by state law, however higher limits are usually available. Policies with split limits (i.e. 25/50/10) of liability separate the amount of insurance coverage available for each injured person and the amount of coverage available for the accident. For example, an insurance policy with split limits of 25/50/10 means $25,000 is the maximum amount payable by the policy for the bodily injury per person; $50,000 is the maximum payable by the policy per accident; the third number deals with property damage, which is discussed below. Other insurance policies have a combined single limit (e.g. $100,000). Combined single-limit policies offer a single amount that is the maximum amount payable by the policy for bodily injury and property damage.

Insurance that Covers Property Damage (PD)

If you cause an accident and someone else’s property is damaged, your automobile insurance liability coverage will pay for the damage. In an accident, damaged property often includes the other driver’s vehicle. However, property damage insurance coverage will also pay for damage to other types of property, such as a sign or light pole.

In insurance policies with split limits (i.e. 25/50/10), the third number indicates the maximum amount payable by the policy for property damage per accident. Combined single-limit policies offer a single amount that is the maximum amount payable by the insurance policy for bodily injury and property damage.

Required Minimums for Liability Insurance Coverage

Some states require drivers to carry a minimum amount of liability insurance for property damage. Higher limits are usually available.

Is there any way to predict the severity of an accident or how many people may be involved before it happens? Because the answer to this question is “no,” higher limits of liability insurance coverage are always recommended.

Should You Save Money on Liability Insurance Coverage?

Liability limits are one way to save money on your insurance policy, but you always need to be very careful about how low you choose to go. First, you need to find out if your state has a required minimum for liability insurance coverage and what that minimum is. Then you need to decide if you want more liability insurance coverage than your state requires.

The Risk Involved with Saving on Insurance Liability Limits

Paying less on your liability limits works like this: the lower your limits, the lower your insurance premium will be. Your first instinct, then, is to make those insurance liability limits as low as possible. But you need to remember that means you will be covered by your insurance for less money in case an accident does happen. So you need to figure out, realistically, how much you can cover out of your own pocket. Paying more on your insurance premium now may feel unnecessary, but paying thousands if an accident does happen will feel much worse.

Remember that auto insurance is more than just a great rate. It is protection for you and your family. Our agents will offer a consultation to make sure you have the proper coverage so that you are not susceptible to a lawsuit.

Renters insurance typically covers you and your personal property when you’re renting a house or an apartment. A policy can cover your clothes, sports equipment, laptop, TV, and more whether or not they’re inside the home. Specifically, your renters policy can also include:

• Loss-of-use coverage, which helps pay additional living expenses if you need to live somewhere else due to a covered incident
• Personal liability coverage (in case a guest is injured in your rental)
• Coverage for certain accident-related medical expenses
• Replacement cost coverage (for your personal things)
• Off-premises coverage for your property

Landlords insurance is an insurance policy that covers a property owner from financial losses connected with rental properties.[1] The policy covers the building, with the option of insuring any contents that belong to the landlord that are inside. While each policy covers different things, most will normally cover standard perils such as:

• Fire
• Lightning
• Explosion
• Storm
• Escape of Water/Oil
• Subsidence
• Theft
• Malicious Damage

Optional coverages typically include:

• Flood
• Earthquake
• Accidental Damage
• Malicious Damage by Tenant
• Terrorism
• Legal Protection
• Alternative Accommodation Costs
• Contents Insurance
• Rent Guarantee Insurance
• Liability Insurance

Landlord insurance policies typically do not cover any personal property belonging to tenants, or otherwise protect the interest of tenants; although a liability policy protecting a landlord or property manager will be of benefit to tenants should they incur a loss for which the landlord is responsible.

Umbrella insurance refers to a liability insurance policy that protects the assets and future income of the name insured in addition to his or her primary policies. It is distinguished from excess insurance in that excess coverage goes into effect only when all underlying policies are totally exhausted, while umbrella is able to “drop down” to fill coverage gaps in underlying policies.[1] Therefore, an umbrella policy can become the primary policy “on the risk” in certain situations. The term “umbrella” refers to how the policy shields the insured’s assets more broadly than primary coverage.

Typically, an umbrella policy is pure liability coverage over and above the coverage afforded by the regular policy, and is sold in increments of one million dollars. The term “umbrella” is used because it covers liability claims from all policies underneath it, such as auto insurance and homeowners insurance policies.

Umbrella insurance provides broad insurance beyond traditional home and auto. It provides additional liability coverage above the limits of homeowner’s, auto, and boat insurance policies. It can also provide coverage for claims that may be excluded by the primary policies. These may include, but are not limited to:

• False Arrest
• Libel
• Slander
• Invasion of Privacy

We’d like to believe that disasters caused by floods or earthquakes are rare. But as we have seen with the recent natural disasters in the United States and abroad, the impact can be financially devastating. If you were to fall victim to a natural disaster, could you pay for the damages out-of-pocket? Will your homeowners insurance provide adequate coverage? Could any of us depend on the government for assistance?

Standard homeowners insurance generally does not cover damage directly caused by either floods or earthquakes. Federal disaster assistance is usually in the form of loans or grants and is only available if the damage is widespread and very serious, and the affected area is declared a disaster area by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

If you’re deciding whether to buy flood or earthquake insurance (or both), consider the following questions:

• Do you live in a high-risk area?
• Have you assessed the potential cost of repairs?
• Do you have sufficient resources to repair, replace, or rebuild?
• Can you minimize potential losses by fortifying your property and securing your personal belongings?

Having fun is what life is all about. We insure all kinds of recreational vehicle (RV), motorcycle and watercraft. Large or small, fast or slow we have the expertise. However, these toys can cause an exposure for you and your family. Let Inside insurance help cover your exposure while you are out having fun.

Standard homeowners insurance generally does not cover damage directly caused by either floods or earthquakes. Federal disaster assistance is usually in the form of loans or grants and is only available if the damage is widespread and very serious, and the affected area is declared a disaster area by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

• RV
• Motorcycle (Dirt or Street bikes)
• Four wheelers
• Sailboats
• Ocean Liners (yachts)
• Sand Rails
• Ski or Fishing boats
• Camper trailers
• Horse trailers
• Aircraft

Call today to see how cheap it can be to cover your toys.