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Monthly Archives

November 2012

DON’T LET FINANCIAL PLANNING MISTAKES DAMAGE YOUR RETIREMENT

By Personal Perspective

Although many people think that the real danger to their retirement comes from not having enough money or Social Security when the time comes, financial planners say that a far greater risk is making mistakes that squander the resources you have when you leave the workplace. Terence L. Reed, CFP, author of The 8 Biggest Mistakes People Make with Their Finances Before and After Retirement, offers this advice on avoiding four of the most common mistakes:

  1. Put your plans in writing. If you’re married or with a partner, be sure that they contribute equally. Retirement isn’t a do-it-yourself project. Written plans are less likely to overlook key elements. Be certain to address every aspect of retirement, such as spending, allocation of expected retirement benefits from pensions or Social Security, provision of insurance, and plans to live or travel.
  2. Be realistic about your willingness to take risk. Sure, the stock market has been crazy. But does that mean that it’s time to put everything into CDs or that jar buried in the backyard? Be realistic about what returns you need, and the type you can expect. Highly aggressive investors aren’t likely to turn into lovers of bonds — however, highly conservative investors can’t assume that they’ll win the lottery. Keep your needs and investments in balance with your other sources of income.
  3. Don’t close the door on Long Term Care insurance. If you stay healthy, you can buy coverage even into your 80s; however, it’s more affordable to lock in the premiums as early as possible. According to health experts, people 65 and older have a 40% chance of spending an extended time in a nursing home. Now is a good time to consider how you can best afford that potential cost.
  4. Don’t assume that you’re too old for (or no longer need) Life insurance. Life coverage is not just for growing families. For example, you can use a Life policy effectively — even at the higher rates common to older age groups — for charitable bequests. If you’re healthy, the premium will almost always be less than the death benefit, thus increasing the amount you can leave at your death beyond what you could leave in your will, providing funds to care for a special needs child or grandchild, or freeing your surviving spouse from huge medical bills or housing costs.

Our insurance professionals would be happy to help with your retirement planning risk needs. Give us a call today so you can relax tomorrow.

LOSS-PROOF YOUR HOUSE

By Personal Perspective

A great way of avoiding those pesky little Homeowners claims is to loss-proof your house. Here are a few helpful tips from a recent insurance trade report:

  • Fix minor roof leaks quickly and keep rain gutters clean.
  • Trim dead branches. Also, remove dying trees from your property before they fall and cause unsightly, expensive damage.
  • If you’re in a high-wind area, install windstorm shutters.
  • Improve overall drainage around the house. If your basement tends to flood, install an automatic sump pump with a battery backup, in case of a power outage during a major storm.
  • Check your roof and heating, electrical, and plumbing systems every few years. It’s best to let a professional do this.
  • If you have a fireplace, keep your chimney clean and unobstructed!

For the best Homeowners policy to meet your needs, contact us.

ADVERTISING THE SAFE WAY

By Business Protection Bulletin

That new signage outside your office is the talk of the town. Congratulations! It’s no wonder that advertising forms a critical element in the success of some companies. For most businesses, however, it’s an incidental activity that’s not part of the firm’s primary business.

All advertising involves a risk exposure. In many cases, your Commercial General Liability policy will include Advertisers Liability protection. However, be aware that this coverage is limited.

For coverage to apply, a third party must have suffered a business injury as a result of certain specific actions that occurred during the course of your company’s advertising activities. Among the most common activities are:

  • Oral or written publication of material that slanders or libels another
  • Oral or written publication that violates a person’s right of privacy
  • Misappropriation of advertising ideas or style of doing business
  • Infringement of copyright, title, or slogan

If your company has a potential advertising liability exposure that might fall outside these areas, the chances are that you need specific coverage. In any case, it’s always a good idea to review coverages so that you’re aware of the risks that you might face — whether you decide to insure them or not.

For a review of your business coverages, please feel free to get in touch with us today.

DEALING WITH ETHICAL DILEMMAS: A 12-STEP APPROACH

By Business Protection Bulletin

Do you handle ethical dilemmas within your business directly, or do you have a program for nipping such problems in the bud? Regardless of your approach, the National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research recommends asking these 12 questions when you face an ethical dilemma:

  • Have you defined the problem accurately?
  • How would you define the problem if you stood on the other side of the fence?
  • How did this situation occur in the first place?
  • To whom and to what should you give your loyalty as a person and as a member of the company?
  • What’s your intention in making this decision?
  • How does this intention compare with the probable results?
  • Whom might your decision or action injure?
  • Can you discuss the problem with the affected parties before you make your decision?
  • Are you confident that your position will be as valid over a long period as it seems now?
  • Could you disclose without qualm your decision or action to your boss, CEO, board of directors, your family, or society as a whole?
  • What’s the symbolic potential of your action if it’s understood, or misunderstood?
  • Under what conditions would you allow exceptions to your stand?

Ethics are critical to the integrity of any business. They also provide a valuable supplement to your insurance program by reducing your exposure to potential litigation.

‘AGGREGATE’ COVERAGE MEANS ‘ALL OF IT’

By Business Protection Bulletin

A key question in buying an insurance policy is “How much will it pay when I need it?” For most coverages, such as Property, the answer is fairly clear — the amount listed on the front page of the policy (known as the “declarations page”) for the specified property is the most you can collect for a loss to it. For damage to an auto, the policy usually sets a maximum payment equal to the current “book” value of a similar vehicle in similar condition.

Some policies have another limit — called an “aggregate” — on coverages. For example, your Liability insurance will set an aggregate limit: Basically the maximum amount the policy will pay in a given year for all damages under the policy, no matter the size or number of the claims. Depending on the nature of your business, the amount you’ll consider adequate for your aggregate can differ greatly from what’s enough to cover any single claim. Many policies automatically provide an aggregate equal to double your amount per claim (or “per occurrence”). Is this enough to meet your needs?

Let’s sit down and discuss the aggregate limits under your current policies. If they’re satisfactory, great! For those that don’t meet your needs, due to changes in valuations or business procedures, we’ll work with you to make the needed updates now, before you find yourself falling short tomorrow. Give us a call at your convenience.

ROAD TEST EMPLOYEES, AS WELL AS VEHICLES

By Construction Insurance Bulletin

Chances are that you’d never buy a new truck or front-end loader without trying it out to make sure it could do the job. Do you do the same for those who will be operating the equipment?

Safety experts recommend that any employee who will be driving a truck should receive a road test of their driving skills before being hired. The examiner should be fully qualified to operate the vehicle, and be familiar with the prospective operator’s past experience. The test should include these skills:

  • Use of all controls and traffic operations (including backing, parking, slowing, stopping, passing, and turning).
  • Such general driving habits as alertness, stamina, and patience.
  • Driving rules and regulations pertaining to the vehicle.
  • Handling the necessary actions and equipment for loading and unloading the vehicle.

For each skill or knowledge area tested, the applicant should receive a pass/fail grade. Each area of weakness should lead to further training or to a corresponding limitation in the scope of the applicant’s approved activities. Keep records and scores of these tests as documentation in the event of an accident or claim resulting from the applicant’s actions.

For more detailed suggestions on the format or content of driver exams, contact your trade association, state department of motor vehicles, or one of our risk professionals. Don’t forget the benefits of a solid driver training/testing program on your Commercial Auto insurance rates.

Your drivers are taking your vehicles and your insurance coverage on the road every time they drive. Wouldn’t it be a good idea to make sure they’re capable of protecting both?

CONCRETE: KEEP ON PUMPING

By Construction Insurance Bulletin

One of the most cost-effective advances in the construction industry has been the use of concrete pumps. Older style bucket operations took significantly longer and frequently affected the quality of the job. Modern concrete pumps allow crews to move massive amounts of concrete while maintaining the quality of the product. The bottom line: Concrete pumps move concrete quickly and efficiently in a wide variety of applications.

Despite the benefits, you’ll need to make sure that pump crews take special precautions to make the placement of concrete as safe as possible:

  • Wear proper personal protective gear, including hardhats, safety glasses, rubber boots, and water-resistant gloves.
  • Check that safety pins installed between the discharge hose and the boom are positioned properly.
  • Make certain that no one’s working directly under the boom.
  • Maintain at least a 20-foot clearance between the boom and power lines.
  • Use a signal person if the pump operator can’t see where the concrete is being poured.

Although the pump operator plays an important role in the safety of the operation, job safety is the responsibility of the entire crew. Following basic safety suggestions can make concrete pumps safe to use, as well as cost efficient.

BE CAREFUL — THAT CONTRACT MIGHT NOT BE COVERED!

By Construction Insurance Bulletin

The latest of dozens or even hundreds of construction contracts is lying on your desk. They all contain any number of project requirements that you hope your insurance covers. But does it?

Contracts are usually drawn up by legal experts who focus on what their client wants from the agreement, especially in the areas of performance and cost. These contracts frequently require services and products that are outside the scope of a contractor’s insurance coverage. This can create problems, because a missed deadline, a cost overrun, or a faulty installation could easily lead to a claim against the contractor.

The best way to review an insurance issue is with our team of professionals. We’re not attorneys, but we’ll be happy to work with you and your legal counsel to review the provisions of your construction contracts and their insurance implications. Once we understand the comprehensive insurance requirements, we can tell you which of those requirements your current program already meets, which you can meet by changing your program (and at what cost), and which — if any — available insurance policies can’t meet. At this point, you’ll be in a better position to bid and sign.

DRIVE HOME THESE DEFENSIVE DRIVING TIPS

By Workplace Safety

When you think of safety hazards and employee injuries, you probably focus on what goes on inside the workplace. However, one of the greatest threats to worker safety is in your parking lot. Motor vehicle accidents are the most common cause of workplace deaths, representing about one in four fatal work injuries.

Whether they drive on the job or commute by car, everyone in your company should take a comprehensive defensive driving course. Here are some basic rules for employees to follow:

  • Buckle up for safety.
  • Follow traffic rules, signs, and signals.
  • Don’t speed and keep at least two to four seconds behind the vehicle in front.
  • Keep your eyes on the road, your hands on the wheel, and your attention on traffic.
  • Check your rearview and side mirrors frequently.
  • Adjust your speed and driving to changing weather and traffic conditions.
  • Expect the unexpected, and stay especially alert in heavy traffic for sudden stops, work zones, road debris, and vehicles passing or changing lanes.
  • Keep cool, yield the right of way, and avoid disputes with other drivers.
  • Pull over to make or receive phone calls.
  • Keep your vehicle maintained properly and follow the manufacturers’ recommendations for oil changes, tune-ups, and so on.
  • Don’t drink or take drugs and drive.

An ounce of prevention …

PAINTING A DETAILED PICTURE OF COMP FRAUD

By Workplace Safety

What constitutes Workers Compensation fraud? The Florida Bureau of Workers Compensation regularly encounters four types of these scams: Premium fraud, working without Workers Compensation coverage, fraudulent certification, and claimant fraud.

Why do employers commit Workers Comp fraud? Easy: To save money by beating the system. What’s more, there’s always the possibility that regulators will fail to sniff out the scheme and the employer will get away with it. That is, of course, if no one ever gets hurt — an expectation that’s completely unrealistic.

If the system catches a fraudulent employer and they’re convicted, they’ll pay restitution to the state and the insurance company. At a minimum, they’ll have to pick up the costs of the investigation. Of course, there’s always the potential for jail time. All in all, not exactly a walk in the park.

People tempted to commit Comp fraud don’t understand that the purpose of Workers Compensation is to save them money. Imagine the expenses incurred if an uncovered employee suffered a serious injury on the job. The bottom line: No policy means zero protection for anyone involved.

We can help you design and maintain a Workers Comp program that will offer you and your employees the protection and savings you deserve. For more information, or a review of your current coverage, contact us today.