About Insurance

We have tried to summarize briefly some important features of the coverage on an insurance policy. Click on the type of insurance information you are interested in learning more about. Of course, if you have questions, you can email us or call us at 1-800-699-8017 to speak to a licensed agent who can advise you on the coverages that will meet your needs.

About Auto Insurance
Liability Coverage - typically helps to provide you with peace of mind. It helps protect you from covered damage your car does to others-damage which you are legally liable for.

Who is covered?
You, your family members or relatives who live with you when driving or driving other cars with that vehicle owner's permission. Other people who drive your car with your permission.

What is covered under liability?
It pays for you (and those covered by the policy) for legal defense and emergency first aid to others.
It pays the people you've injured for property damage, loss of services, injury, sickness, medical services, and disease, loss of income and death.

Underinsured /Uninsured Motorist Coverage for Bodily Injury typically protect you, covered passengers and family members for bodily injury resulting from a covered accident caused by an uninsured motorist.

Comprehensive Coverage
Covers damage to your car not covered by collision. This usually covers things such as fire, theft, vandalism, and damage caused by falling objects or hitting an animal such as a deer.

Collision Coverage
Typically pays for damage to your car as a result of an accident with another car or a collision with almost anything else.

Personal Injury Protection (PIP or NO FAULT)
Provides coverage to you for certain necessary expenses such as medical, hospital, loss of income from bodily injury caused by an accident regardless of who was at fault.

Medical Payments
Helps protect you and your covered passengers and family members for payment for reasonable and necessary treatment for bodily injury caused by a covered accident including x-rays, surgery, ambulance, physicians, hospital and funeral expenses.

Towing
Typically reimburses you up to limit on necessary towing charges for disabled vehicle.

Rental Reimbursement
If your car is being repaired due to a covered loss, you may need to go out and rent another vehicle. This coverage will reimburse you for your cost of renting another car up to your limit.

Deductible
The amount of money you agree to pay out of your pocket before the insurance company will pay for a covered loss.
-The higher you set your deductible, the lower the rate will be but the more money you have to pay out of pocket.

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Airbag Discount
You could save if your car is equipped with factory installed airbags or automatic seatbelts.

Anti-lock brake Discount
Available if your car has factory installed antilock brakes (ABS)

Anti-Theft Device
Discounts are available for passive alarms, active alarms, VIN etching, and LO JACK.

55 and Retired
If you are 55 and retired and not employed full-time.

Defensive Driver
If you have taken a state approved Defensive Driver Class (6 hours) you are eligible for a 10% reduction on liability and collision for three years. Plus you can remove points from your license.

Premier/Premier Plus Discounts
Reward drivers who have not had any tickets for moving violations or accidents within a predetermined experience period.

Daytime Running Lights
If your car's lights automatically turn on each time the ignition is started, you are eligible for this discount.

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About Home Insurance
Dwelling Protection - covers your structure up to a specified amount against certain covered perils such as fire, windstorm, hail, theft, and vandalism. It is important to deal with a qualified insurance professional in determining if you are adequately insured.

Building Structure Extended Limits - will cover you up to 125% of your dwelling limit to repair, rebuild or replace your dwelling if damage or loss results from a covered peril

Personal Property Protection - covers the things you own in the home that are items of personal property such as clothing, furnishings, televisions, stereos, computers etc. Can be covered on a reimbursement cost basis (with no deduction for wear and tear or loss in value for use) or on an actual cash value basis (minus depreciation) up to your policy limits.

Additional Living Expenses - covers you for reasonable increase in living expenses if your home becomes uninhabitable from a covered loss. Sometimes referred to as loss of use.

Family Liability - covers you and members of your family for damages that you are legally obligated to pay. Lets say you are playing catch with your son and his friends and you wind up and let fly with a high hard one--- a little too high. It explodes through your neighbor Fred's living room window and knocks over his wife Ethel's china cabinet breaking her Waterford crystal and Lenox China. The damage you caused could be covered here.

Guest Medical Protection
"Goodwill coverage" this pays for medical expenses if visitors to your home are injured, regardless of who is at fault. Say Fred from next door comes over to help you move the fish tank and he accidentally trips over yours son's backpack and breaks his arm. You know he wasn't looking but as a good neighbor, you rush him to the hospital to get his arm set. The medical expenses resulting from this accident would be covered by your home policy's guest medical coverage. Paying these types of expenses fosters goodwill and helps to mitigate further damage.

Deductibles
Portion of the loss that you agree to pay out of your pocket. Deductibles serve to keep your rates reasonable. Raising the amount of your deductible will lower your insurance premium.

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Homeowner Discounts
New House Discount: if your home is five years or less you may qualify. In some states 9 years is the cutoff.

Protective Device Discount - available for having dead bolt locks on exterior doors, fire extinguishers, and smoke alarms. Additional discounts available for fire alarms reporting to central stations and burglar alarms, both those that are local only and those that report to the station.

55 years old and retired - discount is available if both requirements are met.

Multipolicy discount - by insuring your home and car with the same company, discounts are often available.

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About Co-op or Condo Insurance
Personal Property Protection
Provides coverage for you to repair or replace your personal possessions damaged by fire, smoke, lightning, falling objects, hail, windstorm, water damage form rupture of steam or water heating systems, freezing of pipes, and vandalism . Also covers you for theft.

Building Property Protection
Covers items of real property that are part of the apartment occupied exclusively by you or made at your expense:
Examples are built in bookshelves, kitchen cabinets, paneling and wall to wall carpeting.

Liability
Provides protection for your family against non-auto liability claims brought by others for accidental bodily injury or damage to their property. Also provides Guest Medical Protection whether or not an accident in your co-op was your fault.

Additional Living Expenses
If you were forced to move out of your co-op while necessary repairs were made to it due to a covered loss, this policy would pay for any reasonable increases in living expenses necessary for maintaining your normal standard of living such as a place to live, food and transportation.

Optional coverage available
Loss assessments - covers you for your share of assessments when your co-op or condo association assesses you for damage to co-op or condo property from a covered loss or liability damages

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About Co-op and Condo Discounts
Multi-line Discount - maybe available if you insure both your auto and co-op with the same company.

55 and Retired Discount

Protective Device Discount
Dead bolt locks, Fire Extinguisher and Smoke Alarm
Alarm- Central station or local
24 hour security service

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About Apartment Insurance
When you add up your personal possessions, they are worth thousands of dollars. Consider your furniture, appliances, T.V., stereo equipment, tapes, clothing, linens, and other important valuables; could you afford to repair or replace them?

Coverage - provides protection for your personal belongings if they are stolen or destroyed by a fire or other covered cause of loss.

Personal Property Reimbursement Feature - an opton which allows you to settle covered losses for personal property without any deduction for depreciation( wear and tear) Perils covered include fire, lightning, falling objects, smoke, explosion, wind and hail, water damage form plumbing, steam or water heating, vandalism And theft on your premises.

Liability Protection - Protects you against certain liability claims brought by others for bodily injury or damage to their property due to a covered accident.

Guest Medical - Provides payments for reasonable medical expenses of your guests who are accidentally injured on your property as a result of a covered loss.

Additional Living Expenses - If a tragedy forced you to move out of your apartment while repairs were made, this coverage pays for your living expenses which maintain your standard of living.

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Apartment Discounts
Protective Device Discount-available for having dead bolt locks on exterior door, fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, a burglar alarm, sprinklers, or 24 hour security on premises.

55 and retired discount.

Multi-line Discount-sometimes available if you insure both your auto and apartment with same company

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About Life Insurance
How much life insurance do I need?
One rule of thumb is to buy life insurance equal to five to seven times your annual gross income. A more precise approach is to gather all your personal financial information and estimate your needs for ongoing and immediate expenses.

What about life insurance on spouse and children?
Generally, such purchases should not be made in lieu of purchasing appropriate amounts of life insurance on the family breadwinner(s). It is of UTMOST importance that the income earning capacity of the primary breadwinner be fully protected. In a dual-earning household, it is important to protect the income earning capacity of both spouses. Life insurance on a non-wage earning spouse is recommended for the purpose of paying for childcare at this individual's death.

Should I purchase term or cash value life insurance?
This should be determined based on your answer to how much life insurance you need. The amount you need may be so large that the only way in which this needed amount can be afforded is through the purchase of term insurance with its lower premium.

What about mortgage protection life insurance?
The face amount of a mortgage protection policy will decrease with the face amount of the mortgage loan over time. The premium will remain level. Bank provided mortgage policies generally would require that the bank be named as beneficiary. Our mortgage policy enables you to name anyone as beneficiary.

My car dealer recommended credit life insurance when I financed my car. Should I have taken it?
Credit life insurance is generally more expensive than traditional term life insurance, and like bank sold mortgage policies, provides proceeds to be paid to the financial institution extending the loan.

What is the tax treatment of life insurance death benefits?
Typically, life insurance proceeds are not subject to income taxes. However, they may be subject to federal estate taxation. If the insured has any elements of ownership in the policy at the time of death, the proceeds become part of the estate. There are several ways around this that can be worked out with your tax advisor.

What is universal life insurance?
This is a cash value life product. This policy can be adjusted according to changing circumstances. The purchaser can set the premium and death benefit. This flexibility makes it an attractive policy. You can change the amount throughout most of your life as your needs change. Plus, any cash you pay into the policy above the amount paid for the insurance benefit accumulates cash value that you can use for education, retirement or an emergency. As long as your account value is sufficient to keep the policy in force, you can skip or make partial payments. The current interest rate can go up or down with the market. Currently paying 5.5%, we guarantee that our rate will never go below 4.5%.

Is term insurance worth buying?
Yes, depending on your needs. Probably no death benefit has ever been paid where the beneficiary was concerned about the type of policy it was. The bottom line is that a term policy will pay the full amount in the event of your death. Our term policy is convertible to a permanent policy. The best feature about term insurance is its affordability. If you take a minute to look at the enclosed flyer, you will see the rates for your age and sex. Term insurance will give you complete coverage for a price you can afford.

Do I need to get blood taken for a life policy?
Generally not. Most cases can be done with the use of an innovative saliva test that takes about three minutes.

I'm covered at work. Why would I need any other policies?
Very simply, most work policies cover only 1 to 2 times your annual salary. Before the new year arrives, make it your business to contact your human resources office to find out the exact amount of coverage you have. You may be surprised. Furthermore, if you leave that job, the coverage ends. Companies relocate, restructure, downsize. There are no guarantees that you'll have that policy when you need it. Since life insurance is less expensive to purchase when you are younger, it is better to have a personal policy in force sooner rather than later.

You took the right step in insuring your auto or home. You made sure your deductibles were not too high. You made sure your liability coverage protected you against lawsuits. You made sure the house was covered at the right amount for fire damage. Yet the chances of your car being stolen, or of your house burning down are statistically low. Have you self-insured yourself against your greatest potential loss? It is inevitable that of all the losses insurance companies pay out on, a death benefit payment is the only guaranteed loss.

Please take a minute to review these questions. If you would like a copy of our needs analysis, click here to contact us or call our office at 1-800-699-8017 and we will get it out in the mail to you.

If you would like to sit down and have a professional life insurance consultation, please email us. We'll contact you and discuss your options, all at no obligation to you. Be ready for the millennium; get your life insurance Y2K ready.