Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Homeowners Insurance Exclusions - Workers Compensation
If you are putting an addition on to your home, making repairs, or having any type of work at all done on your home by outside, hired contractors, one thing that's missing from your standard homeowners policy is workers compensation. Most larger contractors carry workers compensation insurance for their employees but if you hire a smaller company or even individual handyman to do some work on your home and they do not carry it, you could be held liable if someone gets injured while working on your home.
There is a additional coverage you can purchase if the workers you hire are uninsured. It is called contingent workers compensation. If you carry this homeowners coverage option, you will not be held liable if some uninsured worker gets hurt while working on your property. Instead, the insurance company will cover the medical expenses and lost wages that the worker faces. If you don't have the coverage, you would be legally responsible to pay everything that a workers compensation insurance provider would cover.
So, who should buy this additional policy? Anyone who has a decent amount of money and/or value in the home, and is hiring uninsured workers to work on their property. If you are in a poor financial situation, this coverage may not be necessary because you can only be sued for what you are able to pay. This is, of course, open to all kinds of interpretation so if you are in doubt, purchase the coverage. It's not that expensive and it can save you tons if something were to happen.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Lynn_Hanson
Labels: exclusions workers, homeowners insurance, insurance exclusions, workers compensation
Friday, April 16, 2010
Where to Get Affordable Homeowner's Insurance Coverage
Are you paying too much for your homeowners' insurance coverage? Whether you're insuring a home or a condo, you may be paying too much if you aren't taking advantage of these money-saving tips...
Shop Around for the Best Rates
One of the most overlooked ways to save on your home insurance policy is to shop around for the best rate.
When was the last time you compared prices for homeowners coverage? Many homeowners don't know that insurance rates can vary by hundreds, even thousands of dollars from one company to another.
To easily compare quotes from different companies, go to an insurance comparison website. Here you'll fill out a simple online form, after which you'll receive rate quotes from multiple A-rated insurance companies.
You may find that you can save a lot of money simply by changing companies.
Get all the Discounts You Can
Most home companies offer discounts that directly lower the cost of your policy. For example, you can usually get a discount for having safety features in your home such as alarm systems, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and deadbolts.
Other common discounts include...
* A non-smokers discount if no one in your home smokes
* A senior citizens discount if you're a retired senior
* An multi-policy discount for placing your auto and home insurance with the same company
Many companies don't tell you about all the discounts they offer, so be sure to ask for all the discounts you're eligible for.
Set Your Deductible As High As You Can Afford
The deductible is the amount you pay toward any claim before your insurance company begins to pay. The higher you set your deductible, the lower your premium will be.
Why? Because the insurance company knows you'll be paying for small covered home repairs yourself instead of submitting a claim.
By raising your deductible from $500 to $1,000 you can save 15% to 25% on your premium. Raising it to $2,500 can save you up to 35%.
Improve Your Credit
A poor credit rating can be a real liability when it comes to insurance. The better your credit rating, the better the rates you'll qualify for.
If your credit rating is less than stellar, work on improving it. Once your credit rating improves, your premium should decrease.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Stevens
Labels: affordable homeowner's insurance, get affordable, homeowner's insurance, insurance coverage
Saturday, April 10, 2010
How To Find The Top Home Owner Insurance Company
When you make a purchase as important as home owner insurance, make sure you're getting your money's worth by purchasing from the top home owner insurance company.
There are many factors that go into determining the top home owner insurance company; in the end, it boils down to your personal preference. Yet, you need basic guidelines to follow.
Make sure the home owner insurance company is licensed to do business in your state. You may have purchased a home owner insurance policy with the top home owner insurance company in the nation; however, if the company isn't licensed to do business in your state you'll most likely face trouble down the road. If the home owner insurance company isn't licensed to do business in your state, your state's department of insurance will be able to do very little to help you should problems between you and the home owner insurance company arise.
Check the financial strength of the home owner insurance company. To help ensure you're choosing the top home owner insurance company, check the financial strength of the company. Independent research companies rate insurance companies based on financial strength, and you can get the unbiased information for free. Choosing a financially secure home owner insurance company is choosing a top home owner insurance company.
Research customer complaints. Find out what kinds of customer complaints are made against the home owner insurance company; look for patterns among those complaints. Also find out in what manner and how speedy the home owner insurance company resolved the complaints.
Talk with your neighbors. Word-of-mouth is often the sincerest form of advertisement, so talk with your neighbors about what home owner insurance companies they use. Since your home is near their homes, outside factors such as weather conditions and crime rates will be similar so you may be able to get an idea of the kind of home owner insurance policy rates to expect.
Labels: home owner insurance company, homeowners insurance, top home owner insurance
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Protecting your asset with the cheapest homeowners insurance
While the media and Press are always advertising for affordable and cheapest homeowners insurance, it is a difficult task in reality to get one if you don’t have the elementary knowledge of homeowners insurance. The most important issue is to know from where to start. Here are some guidelines to look for the cheapest homeowners insurance.
How to shop around for cheap home owners insurance? Your search for a cheap home owner insurance does not need a lot of time or numerous phone calls- you can just do it with the help of your PC.
While using internet, search for homeowners insurance quote because it is free and at the same time speedy and you don’t need to talk to anyone, hence it is time saving. You can use Internet 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. With online homeowners insurance quote you can get discount from your insurer because there is less administration to do for the insurer. So you can get a discount of 10%- 15%.
You should collect at least three home insurance quotes to ensure that you find the right policy at the best price.
You can get some discount without help of any insurance agent as some home insurance companies provide discount on the basis of your home security system. So by installing home security equipment( from the insurance company’s associates) like home video camera, fire alert, burglar alarm, carbon monoxide detector and smoke detector you can get discount up to 10%.
Many insurance companies offer you discount if every member of your family is non-smoker because main cause behind home fire is smoking.
Age group also plays a role in getting discount. If you belong to “62 or 62+” age group then you can apply for a discount of 10%-12%, as some companies provide discount for senior citizens.
While comparing the quotes always keep an eye on coverage offered by the policies and then make the investment .
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
We have made the most comprehensive research on homeowners insurance . Find the results on the online homeowners insurance quote guide . All about home insurance on http://www.house-insurance-guide.net
Labels: cheapest asset insurance, homeowners insurance, protecting your insurance
Monday, March 15, 2010
Tips on how to select your Insurance provider
There are several policy types here in Texas, the most common being the HO-A (named peril) and HO-3 (all risk) policy forms. Most insurance companies have their own names for them, however; homeowners insurance policies most often fall into either a "named peril" or "broad/all risk" type category.
Common coverage items include common losses such as fire, theft, hail or wind/hail damage. Naturally, an "all risk" type policy is more advantageous, however not all companies offer them. When reviewing your coverage, ask your agent if your current policy is an "all risk" or "named peril" policy. You may be surprised to find out the coverage limitations that exist in your present plan.
Whether it is an HO-A, HO-B, HO-3, or HO-5 policy, not all homeowners insurance is the same. Read your policy carefully to determine what specific exclusions exist. If considering a new carrier, ask for a copy of the policy to compare to your current provider.
All companies cover the basics: Hail/Wind; Fire; Theft; Vandalism; Smoke Damage; etc; but, what items are sometimes excluded? What coverage items should you specifically look for?
Here are a few:
- Water Damage-Does the company cover sudden and accidental water damage? If so, are there limitations?
- Water/Sewer Backup-does the company cover back up through a sewer line?
- Slow Water Leak-if I notice a leak in my home that may have been going on for a while, is this covered?
- Foundation-what happens if I have a problem with a water leak under my foundation?
- Mold- Does my current carrier provide coverage for mold remediation, or damage resulting from mold?
- Replacement Cost for Contents - Will my belongings be replaced with like/similar kind and quality, or will the claim be depreciated out based on length of ownership?
You also need to specifically ask about coverage for items like firearms, that may or may not be covered in a policy.
In Texas, many of us have extensive collections of firearms. Often, we see firearms that have been passed down through generations. These guns are expensive to buy and replace!
My uncle is one such person who has many inherited firearms. His collection is valued at $11,000. I asked him how he chose to insure his gun collection and he told me his insurance company had it covered under the personal property section of his policy.
What he didn't know was the personal property coverage is subject to the homes deductible, which is $3,800 in his case. If he experienced a total loss to his firearm collection, the insurance company would only be responsible for $7,200.
Some insurance companies have optional endorsements you can add to the policy for firearm insurance. For the most part, these endorsements will lower the deductible, but they will only cover the gun collection up to a certain point.
In my Uncles case, if he had added the gun endorsement, it would have only covered the collection up to $6,000. In the event of a total loss, he would have been out $5,000.
There are some insurance carriers that allow you to schedule firearms. This means that you can cover the guns for the needed amount at no deductible. If my uncle were able to schedule his collection, it would have been covered for the full $11,000. In the event of a loss, he would have had no deductible.
Labels: insurance provider, select your insurance provider, tips
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Hello world
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