insurance 101 Archives - Howard Webb Insurance and Real Estate, Inc.

Fireworks Safety and Insurance

July 3, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog/by admin

Happy Fourth of July! Sport your red, white, and blue! Grab a burger, splash in the pool, spend time with friends and family, celebrate our nation’s birthday, and twirl around those sparklers! Oh, and you’re probably going to see a fireworks show or even set a few off yourself too!

All that sounds like the summer American dream, huh? Well, as you know, we really love to talk about insurance over here at Howard Webb; so we have a few things we’d like to chat with you about before you go mixing beers and booms!

You gotta be thinking about safety when playing with fire, but you also need to think about what could happen if things do go awry. And no, we’re not just talking about having a first aid kit, or being close to medical professionals. We’re talking about all the insurance you’re going to be ever so thankful for in the event someone is injured or property is damaged!

Fireworks over Washington DC

Fireworks Liability Insurance

If you’re planning to set off your own fireworks instead of going to one of the professional shows, we heavily advise that you obtain liability insurance for the fireworks.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 10,000 people were injured and required medical attention due to fireworks in 2019.

The National Fire Protection Association stated, “Fireworks started an estimated 19,500 fires in 2018, including 1,900 structure fires, 500 vehicle fires, and 17,100 outside and other fires. These fires caused five deaths, 46 civilian injuries, and $105 million in direct property damage.” This is not something you want to mess around with, and you need to be covered.

Liability insurance will protect you if someone is injured from your fireworks display; such as burning their hand from something as simple as a sparkler, or even losing that hand from a firework going off too soon. Should that individual try to sue you, your insurance would be able to keep you and your assets safe. This would also keep you protected should someone die from a fireworks related incident.

Additionally, this policy would extend if property (homes, vehicles, ect.) catches fire and is damaged. Your homeowner’s policy may or may not already have this covered, but we suggest double checking before lighting the fuse!

Fireworks show over a lake

Fireworks Safety

So what can you do to avoid needing to even use this coverage? Well, you could just attend a fireworks event instead of lighting them off in your own backyard, but we understand the fun of pyrotechnics and won’t judge you for doing things yourself. You just need to take a few precautions!

Buy the right kind of fireworks – You’re only trying to entertain a few people, not a full stadium. Leave the professional fireworks (generally sold in a brown bag) to the big guys, and buy the variety pack meant for consumers.

No kids allowed! – Of course they should be able to watch the show, but let’s leave lighting the fuse to the adults, and if you can, create a barrier around the launching area. There’s no reason for the little ones to be playing with fire…yet!

Check the weather – If you’re in an extremely dry state, or having a dry spell in your city, you should avoid setting off your own show. Foliage will be much more susceptible to the sparks and could be up in flames before you know it! On the flip side, if the sky calls for rain or it’s a windy evening, it’s best to skip the fireworks and wait for another day.

Location, location – You’ll want to be in a wide open space where the sky is clear above. You should be sending a flame throwing a hundred feet up through a tree, duh. Additionally, your state may have specific regulations for where, and even if, you can set light up the sky.

Properly extinguish – Please don’t just kick a little dirt over the launch area when you’re done, make sure those firework packs are completely extinguished before moving on to the next activity of the evening.

Spectators viewing a fireworks show in New York

Good luck out there, make sure you’re insured, be safe, don’t post the video of the fireworks to socials (truly, no one gives a hoot, sorry!), and have loads of fun! As always, we’re here to keep you covered! Now, can we be invited to your party?

Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.

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You Could Save Thousands On Your Insurance If You Quit Smoking – Here’s How and Why!

June 19, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog/by admin

Are you a smoker? Did you know that if you have a “pack-a-day” habit you’re spending approximately $2,300 a year on cigarettes? Did you also know that if you’re a smoker your insurance rate is going to spike in price too?

Graphic of a cigarette burning with the ash being outlines of people via google images

We’re not here to judge by any means, but we are here to help you save quite a lot of money when you combine what you would save on not buying those cigarettes, and how quitting would positively affect your insurance rates. So let’s dive in!

Factors:

Health insurance premiums are going to be determined based on these five factors: age, location, plan category, number of dependents, and lastly, tobacco use. Yes, tobacco use has such a large impact that it has its own category on your insurance policy. This is a big deal and insurance companies base the term “tobacco use” on the type of tobacco (cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, and chewing tobacco), if you use it on an average of four times a week, and within the last six months. So your “once in a blue moon” smoking decision fueled by one too many beers on a Friday night with the crew, isn’t going to affect this.

Rating:

A health insurer cannot simply deny coverage to a smoker, but they can charge a pretty penny (a higher premium) in comparison to the non-smoker. The Affordable Care Act has allowed for insurers to charge smokers up to 50% more; with the explanation for this simply being that smokers are inevitably more likely to develop health issues, and are a greater risk for insurance companies to cover.

Fraud:

If you think that you could “hide” the fact that you are a smoker in order to avoid a higher premium, you may need to be reminded that this would be a form of insurance fraud. Which can be punishable by a class A misdemeanor, up to one year in prison, and up to $5,000 in fines. Something to also be noted, is that if it is found to be a first-time conviction of insurance fraud – you’re looking at six months to two and half years in prison and fines up to $10,000. So, we heavily advise you to go by the honor system, instead of “working” the system.

Colorful image of a man smoking a cigarette with his face covered by the smoke

Going Uninsured:

This is not a good option for you to take in an effort to avoid the higher premium if you are a smoker, because then you’re looking at far greater costs to aid you if health issues do arise and you’re then stuck with the full bill!

Image of a woman smoking a cigarette in the city

So please consider quitting now, to lower your rates in the future! You’ll not only save thousands every year on cigarette costs, but you’ll come out on top with your insurance rates, and ultimately be around to spend quality time with your loved ones. Give us a call or email today to talk about your rates, and how we can help you, help yourself!

Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.

Image of Candace Cox

Imagine This: Business is Burning

June 4, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog/by admin

It’s the middle of the night and you’re woken by a call. The voice on the other line in calm and collected, but tells you something that gives you nothing but a pit in your stomach and covers you in waves of anxiety and stress.

“Hello, we’re sorry to report that your building located on the corner of Bad Luck Street and Oh No Avenue has caught fire.”

You hang up the phone and get yourself pulled together to rush down to your small business, or what’s left of it, and find that the voice on the other line was not pulling some awful school kid prank on you.

Image of building on fire being put out by firefighters

What now?

Well, aside from waiting for firefighters to put out the flames, you’ll need to get things going on the insurance end, in order to keep your head above water…or should we say, flames? Sorry, too soon!

Business strip on fire

Most likely you’ll want to maintain your employees and even keep paying them. You were proactive and covered yourself with what is known as business income coverage. The intention of this coverage is to replace your lost income from the damage your property experienced. This part of your policy only applies to the loss of income from the damages, not from something like a worldwide pandemic.

Late night image of a laundromat on fire

How are you going to prove the loss of this income though? Here’s the trick, you have to provide accounting records for the past twelve months to show the revenue and cost to your insurance company. From there, they will hire an investigative accountant and that individual will come up with an average amount of monthly income lost. This is the number that the insurance company will pay you.

News screengrab of a medical office on fire

There is, however, a limit to the coverage that you selected and your loss must be proved for it to be paid out. An actual loss sustained is one type of payment, or you could select a lower limit to float you. We recommend that most customers select ALS – this has a twelve month limit and a thirty day waiting period in most cases though. So don’t expect a payout the following day. This is one of the most important coverages in all of business insurance policies, and unfortunately seems to be the most overlooked.

Image of a building on fire in the distance with three bystanders in awe

At the end of the day, before you get this call, you have to ask yourself, “If I have no more income today, how long can I survive?”

Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.

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A Tree Fell On My Neighbor’s Property! Now What?

May 15, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog/by admin

If a tree in your yard falls into your neighbors yard, and no one is around to hear it – do you have to pay for any damage it causes?

Sorry for the riddle, but I think you get the point I’m getting at here. The point being, do you, or does your insurance, have to pay for any damages your tree causes to your neighbor’s property and/or the removal of the tree?

Image of a tree fallen on a car in front of forest home

In short, and surprisingly, no. Let’s say a storm rolls through, it knocks your lovely magnolia down and it crashes onto your neighbor’s property, damaging their roof and even crushing their car. Your neighbor’s insurance will kick in to cover the damages that were caused, but you may have some beef with the family next door after this. Sorry about that.

Image of a fallen cactus on a desert home

Now, here’s where things get juicy and passive aggressive! Don’t we love that?!

If your neighbor had expressed written concern about the tree causing damage to their property, or eventually needing to be removed if it were to fall into their yard, then you are liable for paying for those damages/removal.

Image of a tree fallen on a midwest home

However, they can’t just leave a sticky note on your door like your college roommate who was absolutely done with you leaving dishes in the sink. They also can’t just send an email, text, DM, or anything else that doesn’t have explicit proof of you having received the note (save for read receipts of course). The proper course of action would be to send a letter in the mail you have to sign for. This provides a time and date stamp that can be used in an insurance claim to prove that you, in fact, knew of their qualms with your tree and were negligent in doing anything to avoid this possibility.

Image of first responders at a home crushed by a fallen tree

So if a tree falls in your neighbor’s yard and no one in around to hear it fall, you may still be financially liable to cover the cost of any damages or removal – but even if they didn’t send you a letter, you should probably bake them some cookies, apologize, and come up with a fair plan for the two of you to handle the situation. That’s just going to keep peace in the neighborhood, we don’t want a Desperate Housewives style fight to go down at the next block party…or do we?

Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.

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What you Need to Know About Equine Insurance

May 8, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog/by admin

We recently had the joy of a bright and sunny Kentucky Derby, the first one in eight years in fact! The mint juleps were tasty, the hats were large and in charge, and the horses really came through on the track.

It got us thinking about what equine, or horse, insurance would look like – especially considering these animals are capable of so much and bring in an exceptional amount of money and entertainment to society as well.

So, what does it look like to insure a horse, and is it really necessary? Short answer, it’s similar to insuring any other valuable in your life, and ABSOLUTELY.

Three horses via Pixabay user WolfBlur

Why to Insure Your Horse

Just like you would insure your car if it was stolen or damaged in an accident, you would do the same for your noble steed.

Imagine you have a small ranch with a few horses that you keep around purley for your own enjoyment. If one of those horses was attacked by a wild animal or kicked by one of their friends, and as a result they were injured, you’d have a veterinarian come visit them to bring them back to tip top health. Well, those vet bills can really add up, especially for an animal like a horse, so you’d definitely appreciate the help from an insurance policy.

Now, imagine for a moment your horse was stolen from your property, or the animal attack left your horse in pieces. Insurance would be there to compensate you for your loss so you could either replace the one lost, or use those funds to help create a more secure property to protect the ones you still have.

Other reasons you would want to insure your horse(s) is:

Covering damage a horse may cause to other persons or to property.
Your horse is of great value (i.e. a race or show horse)
You board someone elses horse
Ect.

Image of man standing on two horses with three running in front of him on reigns via Pixabay user Bergadder

How Much Does It Cost?

This number is going to vary due to a number of factors, but we’re happy to give you a general idea!

What kind of refund are you looking for? If you want insurance to cover most, or every bit, of a vet bill, personal claim for injured person, and so on, you’ll be looking at a high monthly premium.
How old is your horse? Think about life insurance in this instance. It’s going to cost more to insure an older person (or horse), because their, pardon our frank wording, end is soon an inevitable.
Is the horse of high value? If you have a horse that is racing in the Kentucky Derby, it’s obvious to say that they’re quite the horse! So you’re going to want to make sure that horse is well covered and protected in case anything were to happen to them. It’s sort of how celebrities, like Hillary Duff, insure their smiles, or athletes insure themselves.

Monthly costs could range anywhere from $35 – $60 for a farm horse, to somewhere around $350 for a race/show horse.

Multiple white horses running through water via Pixaabay user XtianDuGard

Policy Types

There are three different types of policies: mortality, veterinary fees, and civil liability.

Mortality refunds the horse’s value if they die of illness or an accident, but it won’t cover a natural death. An expert, or chevalier, will appreciate the horse for it’s value, you’ll be given this exact amount when the horse dies without any depreciation or decrease due to age or performance at the time of death.

Veterinary fees refunds all or parts of the vet costs caused by a claim. So, this won’t be covering for general health check ups, vaccinations, or deworming; just like insurers don’t cover oil changes or fill our tanks with gas. It will cover when a horse has been injured in an accident, has an illness, or needs surgery.

Civil liability is highly recommended, as you never know what could happen if your horse is spooked by a person; for instance, a child pulls on its tail, the horse bucks an uneasy rider off, and so on.

Image of horse looking head on at the camera in Iceland countryside via Pixabay user 12019

So giddy on up cowpoke! It’s time to find yourself a sweet horse to bring into your family, or even to start your own riding business!

Major thank you to EquiSense for their detailed explanations of equine insurance.

Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.