If you own a condominium, you may think you don’t need insurance.  Think again.  Although your condominium association offers a “master” insurance policy that covers the building and commonly owned property, this insurance probably does not protect your upgrades, furnishings, and other belongings.

A condominium policy insures against damage to the condo unit, including alterations, appliances, fixtures, and improvements in it and parts of the real property that the condominium agreement makes the responsibility of the unit owner.

That means if a burglar breaks into your condo, a fire causes smoke damage to interior walls of your unit, or a visitor falls and hurts himself inside your home, you will not be covered by your condominium’s general insurance policy.  This is exactly why you need your own condo owner’s policy.  This personal coverage could protect you in the event of theft, damage and personal liability situations.

Although folks that rent condos may not face the same level of risk as the unit owner, they still have to protect themselves in the event a disaster strikes.  Your landlord probably carries insurance, but this does not provide coverage for any of your belongings.  Renter’s insurance protects your personal property in case of fire, smoke damage, lightning, vandalism, theft, explosion, windstorm and water damage resulting from burst pipes, sprinkler systems, or malfunctioning heating/cooling systems.

Regardless of whether you own or rent the condo, an equally important reason to carry coverage is for liability coverage.  Unfortunately, we live in a lawsuit-happy society today.  So if a visitor falls down your stairs and breaks his leg or slips on some water in the kitchen and throws out her back, they may ask you to pay for medical expenses, lawsuit costs and other compensation awards.  These costs could be staggering and if you’re left to pay for them yourself, they could wipe you out financially.

Ryan Young is our newest associate and he can help you figure out exactly what kind of coverage you need.  You may want to ask yourself the following questions:

- What parts of the condo am I responsible for according to my condo association’s bylaws?

- How much would it cost to replace or repair my condo?

- How much are all of my personal items worth?

- Do I have especially valuable items in my condo such as jewelry, antiques, fine arts or collectibles?

- Do I run a business out of my home or often work from home?

Call Ryan Young at Independent Insurance Coastal 843-509-4318 today so that you can make sure that you have this valuable coverage!

Warm weather seems to encourage Mother Nature’s worst such as hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, mudslides, and wildfires.  Since you can’t avoid them, what can you do to minimize their effects on your property (and your life) and speed recovery if you happen to become a victim of one of these disasters?

Three steps you should take are plan, prevent, and insure.

Plan. You should always have escape routes planned out, whether you have to leave because of a fire, flood, hurricane, or other natural disaster.  In addition, every member of your household needs to know who/where to call for help and to let others know they are safe or in trouble.  At least twice a year the entire household needs to review escape routes and plans, and to make sure the emergency telephone numbers you plan to use still work.  Post the escape route and phone number information in a prominent place such as on the refrigerator.

During the highest risk seasons, you should consider putting irreplaceable (or hard to replace) items like passports, birth certificates,  military papers, marriage/divorce papers, and jewelry, along with a video or photos of your stuff (and a serial number list/receipts/appraisals) in a safety deposit box.  You should also have overnight bags packed for each person and your pets, and have identification and money/credit cards with you at all times.

Don’t forget to take your heirlooms if you have to flee!

Flood planning.  Some of you live in flood-prone areas, and not even know it.  If you’ve had a recent wildfire, you may now be susceptible to flash floods.  If you are downstream from a dam, you could have a problem.  If you are in a construction area (such as a highway widening project), new water flow patterns could put you at risk.  You need to assess your risk by calling your county (or similar) building authorities and conferring with your insurance agent – Jeremy.  You need escape plans and lists of what to take if a flood looms.  You also need a plan for moving your stuff to the ground or upper-levels of your house – stuff in the basement is generally not covered by flood insurance.

Hurricane planning.  You probably know if you live in a hurricane-prone area, but hurricanes (or their remnants) have been known to be unpredictable.  Your planning is similar to that for flood planning, but you also need to keep supplies such as plywood and nails on hand to secure your house before you evacuate.  And when you’re told to leave – go!

Wildfire planning.  We’ve had some pretty bad wildfire seasons across the county so far this century.  Make the same plans as for floods, except you don’t need to move stuff upstairs.  You might want to take large valuables (antiques, paintings, etc.) to a place away from fire damage.

Tornado planning. Everyone needs to know to pay attention to the warning sirens and where to go when they sound, in addition to having the previously mentioned emergency telephone list. Leaving as a tornado is approaching is rarely a good idea.

Earthquake planning. Earthquakes can catch you at any time and place, so in addition to the evacuation plans and phone lists, you might want to have emergency kits in your car and at the office.  Make sure the kids’ school is prepared too.

Prevention. There’s not much you can do to prevent earthquakes, hurricanes, or tornados, except live somewhere else.  However, wildfires and floods (or mudslides) are another story.  The American Red Cross and Federal Emergency Management Agency Web sites (www.redcross.org, www.fema.gov) are valuable information sources.

Wildfires. Being a careful user of open flames (cigarettes, camp fires, spark-generating equipment) goes a long way toward fire prevention, as does keeping your chimney flue clean and always using spark arrestors. However, wildfires can happen despite your best efforts.  What can you do to keep the flames from your house?  Create and maintain defensible space!!!  The book, Living With Wildfires – Prevention, Preparation, and Recovery is filled with information about defensible space.  In addition, your insurance agent (Jeremy) and state agricultural college can be great sources of information.  Many insurance companies are actually inspecting for defensible space before they’ll issue or renew a policy.

Floods and Mudslides. Don’t live in a known flood plain!  If your are at risk of floods, plan landscaping and water diversions to protect your property.  Grass can help anchor the soil after a fire, reducing erosion and flooding.

Insurance. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, things go wrong.  Having the right insurance is critical.  Your renter’s or homeowner’s policy covers many things, but still may be inadequate.  For example, if a valve bursts inside your home, your homeowner’s policy will probably cover the damages.  If the pipe from the sewer or water system breaks outside your home you may only be covered if you have flood insurance.

If a flash flood occurs, your homeowner’s insurance is probably not going to cover your losses – you need flood insurance.  Even if you have flood insurance, stuff in the basement is probably not covered – you need to move everything upstairs.  Don’t forget you have to have the flood insurance for 30 days before coverage is effective!

What about earthquake insurance?  If you live in an earthquake-prone area you know about this insurance.  But, if you don’t live in such an area and a boulder rolls down the hill into your house, you may find your homeowner’s doesn’t cover that – it’s considered earth movement!

Please contact us if you have any questions about anything contained in this blog or if there are topics you’d like to have covered!

Watch out.  Mold is lurking in your homes, in offices, in plants and factories.  Increasingly, it can be found in courtrooms too, as a wave of litigation spreads like wildfire across the country.

Mold comes in many forms, some harmless to humans and others harmful, though to what degree remains, in some cases, a source of controversy.  To many, it would seem as though mold was an invention of the 21st century.  Rather, it is the contagion of mold-related property and casualty claims and lawsuits that has spread across the U.S. much more rapidly than the mold itself, making for a costly epidemic for the insurance industry and for you.  For the uninitiated, here’s a mold primer…

Mold required three basic conditions to thrive – 1. Warmth (typically above 70 degrees fahrenheit), 2. A host environment (vinyl covered wallpaper, for example), and 3. moisture.  As might be expected, mold litigation similarly thrives in environments where higher temperatures are prevalent.  Texas has produced the largest single verdict to date ($32 million reduced to $4 million on appeal.), and more lawsuits than any other state.  Predictably, states like Florida, California, Hawaii, and Louisiana are not far behind.  However, warm climates are not the only culprits and even cold weather states are not immune to outbreaks.  Roy Harris, in a recent article in CFO magazine cites so-called “tight buildings”, in vogue since the energy crisis of the 1970’s as a source of the problem because their restricted air flow, while preventing mold intrusion from the outside, also prevents moisture release.

The spread of toxic mold lititgation, and the observations of the insurance industry pundits hailing mold as “the next asbestos” have inspired insurers to try to get a handle on the toxic mold issue.  Unfortunately, for clients seeking coverage for mold-related claims right now, the news is not good.  Insurers have filed exclusions for many homeowners’ and commercial policies to eliminate or drastically reduce the amount of coverage available for the exposure.  On the more promising side, insurers are slowly coming to grips with the coverage and if history is any indication, once there is a belief that the exposures can be adequately quantified, assessed and contained, coverage should broaden and prices will rise or sink to appropriate levels.  Naturally, the situation will vary from state to state and the coverage line, but if you are looking for coverage for mold right now, be prepared for expensive, but limited coverage.

What may delay the industry from fully assessing the exposure is the lack of cohesive data around mold as a source of claims activity.  Mold cuts across so many different insurance product lines, from workers’ compensation to professional liability, and insurer data doesn’t track the cause of claims across all these product lines.  The result is a bit of a black hole for underwriters and actuaries.

While claims against homeowners’ policies and commercial packages have been at the forefront, the issue affects realtors, property inspectors, appraisers, product manufacturers, architects and engineers, contractors, landlords, and a myriad of other types of businesses drawn in to the flood of litgation by plaintiffs.

It may take years to track the claims data in a meaningful fashion, and by then, the next “flavor of the month” in litigation may hit, and toxic mold fears may gradually or abruptly fade away.  In the mean time, risk management is the key, particularly in environments where mold flourishes.  Whether you are a homeowner, business owner, or both, it makes sense to moniter HVAC systems, including home air conditioning units for sources of moisture, invest in a dehumidifier if conditions warrant it, and take care to investigate and remediate any water damage quickly and thoroughly.  If it means ripping up carpets or replacing old, rusty pipes – do it.  It will be well worth the investment.  And last but not least, check with us to see what insurance options there are for your home and business.

A typical concern of people who buy homeowner’s insurance is protecting themselves from financial loss should the house burn down.  A much more common cause of damage to homes, though, is water.  Leaky roofs, broken pipes, and blocked drains canproduce a mess that is expensive and difficult to clean up and repair.  However, insurance coverage for these losses is not always certain.

The standard homeowner’s policy may cover rain damage, depending on how rain enters the home.  If a storm dmages the roof or a window and allows rain to enter, the policy should cover the cost of repairing the damage.  However, if the roof has no apparent damage but instead has suffered normal wear and tear, the policy will not cover the loss.

The policy will normally cover damage caused by water leaking from pipes, with some restrictions.  If a pipe breaks and floods a few rooms, the policy will cover the cost of repairs to the rooms but not the cost of replacing the pipe.  However, the policy will not cover the damage caused by a burst frozen pipe unless the homeowner has used reasonable care to either maintain the heat in the building or shut off the water supply and drain the pipes and appliances of water.  People who leave for warmer climates during the winter must make sure these steps are taken.

One lesson that many people learn the hard way is that homeowner’s policies do not cover damages casued by flooding.  The standard policy does not pay for damage caused by floods; water on the surface of the ground; waves; tides; overflows of bodies of water; or water spray whether the wind drives it or not.  It also will not pay for damage caused by water or floating debris that backs up into the home through sewers or drains or which overflows or discharges from a sump or sump pump.  Finally, it will not cover damage to structures such as driveways, sidewalks or foundations from water pressure under the ground.  A flood insurance policy from the National Flood Insurance Program may cover some of these types of losses.  Also, many insurance companies may offer a small amount of coverage for damage resulting from sewer, drain or sump backup for an additional premium.

When a water loss occurs, it is very important to stop the water flow and begin the drying process as soon as possible.  Broken windows and holes in roofs should be boarded up and water shut off to broken pipes.  If the water is allowed to acumulate, mold and mildew may grow in the area.  (Especially in the heat of the Summer!)  The longer the affected area remains wet, the longer and more expensive the repairs will be.

A good restoration contractor can help contain the damage and speed up the repairs.  He can perform emergency work, such as removing carpets, installing fans and dehumidifiers, and vacuuming up the water.  He will also protect furniture by setting it on blocks so that the legs are above the water.  Because the wet carpet pad may produce a foul odor, the contractor will remove and dispose of it and replace it with a new one.  This may save the carpet, thus holding down the total repair cost.

If you suffer a water-related loss, you should act quickly to limit the damage and protect undamaged property.  You should also notify us as soon as possible so that we can begin the claims process and get you in touch with a restoration company to begin the repair process.  After all it’s one thing to wash the kitchen floor with a bucket of water, but it’s a whole other show when a broken pipe coats it with 300 gallons of water!

Jeremy asked me this question the other day and with confidence I replied, “Yes, I would be.”  This led us to  discussion and research on this very topic so that we could correctly answer this question for our clients.  No one was more surprised than I when we discovered that this may not be the case.

Your neighbor would have to submit a claim under their homeowner’s policy to pay for any necessary repairs.  Wind and lightning are typically covered under Standard policies and included coverages under all-risk policies.  There is a chance that your neighbor could sue you to cover their deductible.

This doesn’t mean that you’re completely off the hook.  If the damage resulted from your negligence, you could be required to pay for the damage.  For example, if your tree was dying or already dead before it fell and you did nothing about it, you could be held liable.  In addition, if your neighbor files a lawsuit alleging negligence, your insurance carrier would be required to defend you and investigate the claim.

The best way to avoid this is to prevent it from happening.  If a tree looks unhealthy or dead, contact an arborist to check it and remove any dead spots or even remove the entire tree.  It used to be said that good fences make good neighbors, but now we can say that good, healthy trees can make happy neighbors.

For many generations, parents cringed at the thought of adding teenage drivers to their auto policies because of the cost associated with youthful drivers.  In the age of electronics, we can now add the use of computors to the list of parenting woes.  Parents not only need to be vigilant about who their children are talking to, but also what they are saying.  Facebook, Twitter, etc. are common modes of communication and unflattering posts about someone can not only generate electronic chatter among the readers, but they can also result in significant financial loss to your household.

It was recently reported in the news that a teenager from Oceanside, New York sued Facebook, four of her classmates, and their parents for $3 million.  The suit accused the four classmates of bullying and humiliating her in a forum on Facebook.  They allegedly posted derogatoryand false statements about her that were intended to hold her up to “public hatred, ridicule, and disgrace.”  Even if these allegations are false, the parents will require legal defense and resources to pay any judgement that may be awarded.  This leads to the question of whether or not their homeowner’s policy will respond.

A standard policy will only pay for damages that the policyholder (insured) is legally liable for , plus the cost of  legal defense, for bodily injury or property damage done to someone else and probably will not provide coverage for this.  The policy defines bodily injury as meaning bodily harm, sickness, or disease; property damage is defined as injury to, destructionof, or loss of use to physical property.  Libel and slander are not covered under this definition.  The girl from Oceanside accused her classmates of making her life miserable not that they physically injured her or made her sick. There is a high probablity that there is no coverage for this which exposes the personal assets of the family in the event that the court rules in favor of the plaintiff and awards damages.

The good news is that many of the carriers that we represent offer special personal injury coverage on your homeowner’s policy.  This  should cover you for liability resulting from oral or written publication of material that violates someone’s privacy.  As insurance agents we always try to make sure our clients have the appropriate coverages, but there is no way to predict how a court will interpret policy language or assign legal responsibility.  For the sake of the parents of the Oceanside classmates, we hope that they had a policy with the proper endorsements.

In our opinion, the best line of defense for our clients is the personal umbrella policy.  The umbrella policy provides an additional layer of coverage over your home and auto policies in the event that a claim exhausts policy limits and it covers a broader spectrum of liability exposures such as the Facebook example being referenced.  There are usually deductibles of $500 or $1,000 and the average cost of this coverage ranges from $125 to $200.  I don’t know about you, but that fits into my budget a lot better than the thousands of dollars in defense costs and judgements that could be awarded for an auto accident, unfavorable Facebook posting, or even a party gone awry!

We know that it is impossible to watch your kids every minute, but allow us to give you some peace of mind that when kids are kids you have the best protection in place to secure the assets that you have worked so hard for.  Call us, email us, or stop by for a quick quote on this vital line of coverage for your family.  We look forward to hearing from you soon!

If you think it really doesn’t matter where you buy your insurance you may be losing more than you think.
You could be losing money, service and protection. Buying insurance isn’t like buying bread or milk. Insurance is an important safety net for your family, your home, your car or your business.

At Independent Insurance Associates, we are driven to provide our customers with the guidance, expertise, and caring to navigate the world of insurance. Our wide array of insurance products enables us to provide our customers with more options when selecting a strategy specific to each client.