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State Farm and Allstate Home Insurance Stoppages: What California Homeowners Need to Know
State Farm and Allstate, two of the nation’s largest insurers, are no longer accepting new home insurance applications in California. Learn why this happened and what practical steps you can take to make sure your home is covered in this challenging insurance market.
Auto Liability Insurance: What Is It and How Much Do I Need?
In this article, we’ll discuss two major parts of your auto liability insurance: bodily injury liability and property damage liability. You’ll learn what these coverages are, how they work, and how to make sure you have enough coverage to protect you from financial loss.
Homeowner Insurance in Brush Areas Frequently Asked Questions
Insurance companies focus on the cost to rebuild your home with similar materials, size, and features on your current lot. To do this, the insurance company collects the features of your home and uses a third-party calculator to estimate the cost to rebuild a similar home.
Homeowner Insurance – California Fair Plan
In plain English, it is an association of the California insurers established by State statute in 1968. CFP issues policies on behalf of the association with the stated purpose to provide basic fire insurance coverage for higher risk properties when traditional insurance companies will not. It operates as the “carrier of last result” when no other coverage options are available.
Homeowner Insurance Rates Increases – What Now?
As part of our series on homeowner insurance, last week we discussed the reasons for the rate increases and recent difficulties in the home insurance market. Click here for a review of that article. This week, we address the steps you can take to ensure you are...
Homeowner Insurance- What’s up…Besides Your Rates?
The homeowner insurance market in California is very challenging. Rates are increasing, policies are being canceled, insurance companies are declining to write new policies in several areas, and things seem to be getting worse. Why is this happening? There are...
Funny Things that People Say After an Auto Accident
Over the years, as people have accidents or get pulled over for tickets, they say some very funny things. There are several places online where these statements are posted and I took a few that I thought were the most entertaining. Take a few minutes, have a good laugh, and hope you never say anything similar.
Questions you Asked (Or Were Thinking to Ask) about Your Auto Insurance
To wrap up our “Assessing your Own Auto Insurance” series, we are asking all your answered questions. Our hope is that you now feel confident in understanding your auto policy!
Assessing Your Own Auto Insurance in 4 Easy Steps – Part 4 -Protecting Your Vehicle Against the Unexpected
The first coverage is Collision. This coverage pays for the damage to your vehicle if it was damaged when colliding with another vehicle or object. Damages to your vehicle could result from colliding with another vehicle, with a fence or post, or hitting an object on the freeway. Collison also pays if your car is parked and hit by someone else. Collison will pay the cost to repair the vehicle back to its pre-loss condition. If your vehicle has too much damage, it may be “totaled”, meaning the insurance company will pay you the value of the vehicle in its pre-loss condition. Whether your vehicle is repaired or totaled, the insurance company will pay the amount minus the deductible you have selected.
Assessing Your Own Auto Insurance in 4 Easy Steps – Part 3 – Protecting Yourself Against Drivers Without Insurance
In Parts One and Two of this series, we focused on liability coverages which cover you if you cause injuries to others or damage to their property. Part One highlighted Bodily Injury liability and Part Two explained Property Damage liability. This week we are going...
Assessing Your Own Auto Insurance in 4 Easy Steps – Part 2 Property Damage Liability
this week we will discuss Property Damage coverage. This is also a “Liability” coverage, and it will pay for damage you cause to the property of someone else. For example, if you cause an accident and you damage someone else’s vehicle, this coverage pays for their repairs. Similarly, if you cause a “chain reaction” accident, this is the coverage that will pay for the repairs to all the other vehicles.
Assessing Your Own Auto Insurance in 4 Easy Steps – Part 1
In this article, we will discuss Bodily Injury liability coverage. This is the coverage you have if you cause an accident and are responsible to pay for another person’s injuries. If you injure someone in an accident, you are responsible to pay for the injured person’s medical costs, lost wages, any resulting disability, and pain and suffering.
My Homeowner Insurance Covers my Home-based Business….Right?
With the recent events, many people have chosen to leave their corporate jobs, stop their long commutes, and start their own home-based business. According to the Small Business Administration, there are 30.2 million small businesses and about half of them are home-based. The question is whether your homeowner insurance provides the coverage you need to be properly protected. The short answer is No.
How Do You Know if You Need a Personal Umbrella?
An umbrella is a valuable tool and an inexpensive way to protect your assets and future income. To determine if an umbrella would be valuable for you, Try our free liability calculator to estimate your potential financial exposure to a large liability loss.
Why Condo Unit Owners Need Earthquake Insurance (Even if the HOA has Coverage)
ou own a condo either as your primary residence or as an investment property. You checked and found the HOA carries earthquake, so you feel protected. However, does that give you the protection you really need?
Is Earthquake insurance worth the cost?
In California, earthquakes are a reality. However, recent estimates by the California Earthquake Authority show that only 10% of California households carry this coverage. Earthquake coverage is not part of a standard homeowner, condo, or renter policy and needs to be purchased separately.
Doubling Your Auto Coverage Without Doubling Your Premium
Saying people don’t like paying for Auto insurance is an understatement. However, with a little knowledge you can help ensure that your premiums will provide you with the best coverage. Major areas of your Auto policy include: Liability, Uninsured Motorist, Comprehensive and Collision. The focus of this article is Liability coverage.
Insurance Changes Now that Your Child is at College (Part 2)
By now, your child has called to tell you they just made a new best friend or joined a campus club. Additionally, you have called your Agent and updated your Auto policy to reflect that your child is away at college. Today, our focus will be the best way...
Insurance Changes Now that Your Child is at College (Part 1)
You just returned from dropping off your child at college. The house is much quieter, you wonder if they are making friends, and hope they will call you with an update. Beyond these initial thoughts, there are also some insurance matters to consider. Today, the...
What a Business Policy Covers…and Doesn’t Cover
A Business Owners Policy (BOP) contains many, but not all coverages a business needs. The basic BOP provides coverage in three primary areas: Business Liability- covers you if a person is injured on your premises (e.g. a slip and fall), or your product or service...
Is Your Home Underinsured?
Given the California fires over the last few years, one of the largest challenges was whether the homes were adequately insured. Recent surveys of fire victims in California showed that almost 50% of homes were underinsured, meaning they could not be rebuilt for the...