Courtesy of iii.org

The holidays are a time of giving and receiving gifts, but would you be able to replace those gifts if they were destroyed in a fire or other disaster? A home inventory is the best way to protect your personal possessions, yet only 50 percent of homeowners said they had an inventory in a 2016 Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) survey. That’s where Know Your Stuff®, the free, award-winning home inventory app can help.

The I.I.I.’s Know Your Stuff® home inventory app allows you to enter information on mobile or desktop and syncs across all your devices so you can access it anywhere, at any time. It can help you:

• Purchase enough insurance to replace the items you own, if they are stolen or damaged.
• Get insurance claims settled faster.
• Substantiate losses or charitable donations for tax purposes.
• Keep track of items that require maintenance or repair.
• Declutter and organize your home.

“With the average property damage and liability claim costing more than $9,000 and about one in 15 insured homes having a claim each year, it’s important for homeowners to protect their assets,” said Loretta Worters, a vice president with the I.I.I. “Renters should also consider taking a home inventory.”

To simplify the task of creating an inventory, the Know Your Stuff® app allows you to take photographs of your possessions and organize them according to the room in which the items are located.

With the Know Your Stuff® Home Inventory app, you get:

• Secure free cloud storage of your inventory data. You can also store and manage all your insurance policy information, including contact information for your insurance professional and your policy numbers.
• Downloadable reports for easy recordkeeping and claims filing.
• A tool that is backed by the expertise of the I.I.I., a leading independent insurance research and communications organization.

Know Your Stuff® also allows you to keep track of multiple properties and insurance policies. An opt-in service provides integrated weather alerts for your area as well as updates and tips on how to prepare your home against severe weather.

Courtesy of iii.org

Do you or your business provide professional services or advice to other businesses or individuals? Could your counsel or service lead to losses by your client for which you could be held responsible? If so, you’ll likely want to purchase professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance (E&O).

Claims not covered by general liability insurance that are covered by professional liability insurance include negligence, misrepresentation, violation of good faith and fair dealing, and inaccurate advice.

What types of businesses need professional liability insurance?

In some states, professional liability insurance is required, especially for attorneys and doctors. Legal and medical malpractice insurance policies are special types of professional liability insurance. Other professionals that should consider professional liability insurance include:

• Accountants
• Architects
• Engineers
• Graphic designers
• Information technology (IT) consultants
• Insurance professionals
• Investment advisors
• Management consultants
• Real estate agents and brokers
• Software developers

This list is not exhaustive. Consult with your insurance professional or inquire with your profession’s trade association to determine if you might need professional liability coverage.

What’s covered… and what’s not

There are two types of professional liability polices: claims-made and occurrence. Most professional liability insurance policies are “claims-made,” meaning that the policy must be in effect both when the event took place and when a lawsuit is filed for a claim to be paid. If, however, you change careers or retire, you may want to purchase an “occurrence” policy that will cover any claim for an event that took place during the period of coverage—even if the suit is filed after the policy lapses.

Professional liability insurance will pay the cost of legal defense against claims and payment of judgments against you, up to the limit of the policy. In general, coverage does not extend to non-financial losses or losses caused by intentional or dishonest acts. Other fees, such as licensing board penalties, may also be included. Policies will generally have a deductible ranging from $1,000 to $25,000. The amount of professional liability insurance you will need and how much it will cost depends upon the size of your business and the level of risk it poses.

You may be able to include professional liability coverage in a Commercial Package Policy (CPP) as an endorsement. Note, however, the professional liability coverage is not included in an in-home business policy or Business Owners Policy (BOP).

Courtesy of iii.org

Hurricane season takes place June 1 – November 30 every year. Don’t wait until after you have a loss to check your insurance—review your homeowners or renters policies to make you have the right coverage in the event you’re hit with a destructive storm.

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Make sure your home’s structure has adequate coverage

Standard homeowners insurance covers the structure of your house for disasters such as hurricanes and windstorms, along with a host of other disasters. It’s important to understand the elements that might affect your insurance payout after a hurricane, and adjust your policies accordingly.

• Check your homeowners policy limit and make sure the amount is enough to rebuild your home – The cost of rebuilding or extensively repairing a home is dependent on a number of factors—and, remember that the real estate value of a house is notthe same as the cost to rebuild. Therefore, it pays to understand in detail what it will cost to rebuild in the event your house is severely damaged or destroyed and make sure your insurance will cover that amount.

• Understand your hurricane/windstorm deductible – Insurers in every coastal state from Maine to Texas include separate deductibles for hurricanes and/or windstorms in their homeowners policies, stated on the Declarations (front) page of your homeowners policy.

A hurricane deductible is applied only to hurricanes, whereas a windstorm deductible applies to any type of wind. If your policy has a hurricane deductible, it will clearly state the specific “trigger” that would cause the deductible to go into effect.

Unlike the standard “dollar deductible” on a homeowners policy, a hurricane or windstorm deductible is usually expressed as a percentage, generally from 1 to 5 percent of the insured value of the structure of your home.

If you live in an area at high risk for hurricanes, your hurricane deductible may be a higher percentage. Depending on your insurer and the state where you live, you may have the option of paying more money in premiums in exchange for a lower deductible.

Like any deductible, a hurricane or windstorm deductible will affect the bottom line of your insurance payout. If you have a high hurricane or windstorm deductible consider putting aside the additional money you may need to rebuild your home.

• Understand what disasters your insurance policy covers—and those it doesn’t – Standard homeowners insurance policies provide coverage for hurricanes, wind, theft, fire, explosion, lightning strikes and many other disasters. However, all policies also list exclusions, which are events NOT covered by the policy.

One common exclusion is flooding. People tend to underestimate this risk, but 90 percent of all natural disasters—especially hurricanes—include some form of flooding. If you live in a flood zone or a hurricane-prone area, a separate flood insurance policy is a must.

Another common exclusion is sewer backups (which is also not covered by flood insurance) Sewer backup insurance is also good to have in hurricane-prone areas.

Get to know all of the exclusions in your policy and either talk to your insurance professional about purchasing separate coverage, or be prepared to pay out of pocket for the damages that are excluded in your policy.

• If you own a co-op apartment or condo – check with your management company and the bylaws to understand what is covered under the building’s master insurance policy versus what damages you need to cover in your own co-op or condo owners insurance policy.

Make sure your possessions are adequately insured

Imagine the cost of repurchasing all of your furniture, clothing and other personal possessions. Whether you have homeowners insurance or renters insurance, your policy provides protection against loss or damage due to a hurricane.

• Determine the value of your possessions with a home inventory – Creating a full inventory of your belongings and their value will make it easy to see if you are sufficiently insured for either replacement cost or cash value of the items. It will also help speed the insurance claims process and help provide proof of losses for tax or disaster aid purposes.

• Review your policy to ensure you’re adequately covered – Homeowners policies provide approximately 50 to 70 percent of the amount of insurance you have on the structure of your home. If you rent, know that your landlord’s insurance will only cover the structure of your home—you need a renters policy to protect your possessions against loss or damage.

Make sure your policy provides enough coverage for additional living expenses

Additional living expenses (ALE) covers the extra costs incurred if you need to live elsewhere because your home is rendered uninhabitable as the result of a hurricane (or any other insured disaster). While your home or apartment is being repaired or rebuilt, ALE covers hotel bills, restaurant meals, etc.—expenses over and above what your customary living expenses would be at home. Generally, the ALE policy limit is 20 percent of the amount of insurance coverage on the structure of your home. Standard renters policies also provide for ALE.

• Most insurers offer the option of higher coverage limits – Depending on where you live (which may dictate your expenses), you may want to consider a higher ALE.

• ALE reimbursements may be limited to a specified amount of time – Make sure you’re comfortable with the time limits in your policy.

• If you rent out part of your home, ALE coverage also reimburses you for lost rental income. Make sure your policy reflects the current amount of your rental income.