Personal Car for Business, Company Car for Personal Use?

Do you use your personal car for business? Do you have access to a company car? If the answer to either question is yes, you could have potential coverage gaps.

Example. Let’s say you use your personal car for business. It’s possible your employer is providing some coverage for you through your employer’s commercial auto policy. In most cases the coverage is for liability only, and often this commercial auto policy doesn’t even apply until the limits on your personal auto policy are exhausted. (This is what insurance people call “excess” coverage.)

You should talk to your employer about what, if any, coverage is available to you through the company’s Commercial Auto Insurance. That way, if you have an accident while on company business, you know who (or which insurance company) to call.

If you use your personal car for regular business purposes – trips, visiting clients, etc. – your personal auto policy probably provides enough coverage for these activities. (Assuming you have “enough” coverage to begin with.)

But what if your car is actually a source of revenue? You make deliveries, for example. In that case, you likely need a Commercial Auto Insurance policy as well.

If you have an accident while delivering a product or using your car as a taxi, your personal auto insurer may deny your claim. Talk to your agent to make sure you have coverage for all the business activities for which you use your car.

What about company cars? They can be an insurance problem, if you use the company car for business and pleasure, particularly if you don’t have a car of your own. If you don’t have a car, you probably don’t have a personal auto policy. If you don’t have a car (or personal auto coverage) and use a company vehicle for pleasure, you are inviting disaster if you have an accident during a pleasure trip.

If you are in this situation, you should have what is called a non-owned personal auto policy.

Such a policy can also come in handy if you don’t have a car and you rent a vehicle on a trip. Your non-owned auto policy will cover you and your rental car if you have an accident. Otherwise, you would probably need to buy coverage from the rental car company, coverage that is very, very expensive.

You can have coverage gaps even if you have a personal auto policy and use a company car for pleasure or if your spouse or children use the company car for pleasure. Find out from your employer the extent of coverage that is available for your corporate car. Once you know the extent, talk to your insurance agent about any additional coverage you might need.

For more information on Commercial Auto Insurance, please visit our website today!

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What type of Insurance would a farmer need?

Farmer’s insurance is the best way to manage different sources at right time and at proper place. This way can improve your operations and utilize them in the progress of your firm. All the insurance companies would follow the terms and conditions of Farmer Underwriter Association. Farmer’s insurance companies will not be the owners of reciprocal inter insurance exchange. As a farmer, if you have to face loss in your business then the insurance company would bear some ratio of your loss. If the farmer has insurance then there is no need for him to worry about the loss that occurs. There are different types of farmer insurance that are provided by insurance companies:

Auto insurance:- This would give guarantee of the damage that is caused to farmer’s machinery. By taking this farmer can avail assurance of their machinery to some extend.

Home Insurance:- This policy would give security for the damage that is caused to farmer’s property like their home or to your shops. In this insurance, the farmer will get money for the he had incurred due to any natural calamities like earthquakes, or flood. At the same time, loss due to theft is also covered in home insurance.

Financial Insurance:-This will give help during financial crisis. If the farmer has any financial problem then he/she can opt for this insurance policy.

Business Insurance:Farmers can use this insurance to pay their dues to their landlords and can take back their property from their landlords. They can use this policy to build their own shop or any other source to earn money. Or they can use this policy to recover the loss that they have incurred due to some calamity. This is the best way to face the situation as it can overcome the financial affect within short span of time.

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FOR RESIDENTIAL CONTRACTORS, UMBRELLA POLICIES ARE ESSENTIAL

The recent recession has been devastating to home builders and the subcontractors who work for them. The U.S. Census Bureau reported that the number of new homes built dropped by 59% between 2005 and 2009, a decrease of more than 1 million homes per year. This huge shortfall in work has left those residential contractors that are still in business looking to reduce expenses. Because insurance premiums can be a significant cost, many contractors have considered dropping coverages. Some coverages, such as Workers Compensation, are often required by law and cannot be cut. However, some Liability Business Insurance policies, including Umbrella policies, are not required, and some contractors might consider reducing their Umbrella coverage or dropping it altogether. However, doing so could have some serious consequences for the future of the business

Umbrella policies perform two important functions. First, they cover many types of losses that the insured business’s primary Commercial General Liability Business Insurance does not. For example, many insurance companies that provide CGL policies have added terms that eliminate coverage for claims arising out of the use of “Chinese drywall.” This material allegedly rots, causes health problems for a home’s occupants, and damages sensitive property such as electronics and high-value jewelry. Suppose that a contractor installed this drywall in 20 homes in a year and half of the homeowners made claims. The contractor would be facing 10 lawsuits, none of which the primary CGL policy would cover. However, the Umbrella policy could conceivably “drop down” and cover these claims.

More commonly, Umbrellas provide additional coverage when catastrophic claims exhaust the amounts of insurance available under the primary liability policies. Because catastrophic claims are relatively rare, insurance companies are willing to provide higher amounts of insurance for fractions of the cost of the primary coverage. However, when these claims happen, the amounts involved can be staggering. Suppose a contractor’s worker at the site of a new development of a dozen homes flicks what he thinks is an extinguished cigarette into a pile of trash. The trash ignites, spreads to the home on which he is working, and the wind carries the sparks to adjoining homes, damaging every one of the new units. The contractor might be legally liable for all of that damage, and the costs could quickly eat up the coverage available under the CGL policy. The Umbrella would pick up the balance, saving the contractor from financial ruin.

Injuries to other contractors’ employees on a job site can also be a source of large losses, particularly if an accident kills an employee. Unfortunately, job site deaths are common. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration reported the following incidents that occurred between May and July of 2010:

• A roofing worker in Georgia died after falling 13 feet off a roof.
• A roof collapse in Ohio killed one worker and sent two others to the hospital.
• An Ohio worker was crushed to death when a dumpster shifted forward off a forklift and fell on him.

A general contractor or a contractor responsible for safety precautions on the site will probably become the target of lawsuits stemming from incidents like these, and the ensuing settlements will probably overwhelm the primary Liability insurance coverage.

You’re never just a client number to us – and when you need your insurance coverage to respond, it’s like having family in the business.

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Are you covered?

A business that has to close down completely while the premises are being repaired may lose out to competitors. A quick resumption of business after a disaster is essential. Having the right Business Insurance is what you need to think about!

1. Business interruption insurance compensates you for lost income if your company has to vacate the premises due to disaster-related damage that is covered under your property insurance policy, such as a fire. Business interruption insurance covers the profits you would have earned, based on your financial records, had the disaster not occurred. The policy also covers operating expenses, like electricity, that continue even though business activities have come to a temporary halt.
2. Make sure the policy limits are sufficient to cover your company for more than a few days. After a major disaster, it can take more time than many people anticipate to get the business back on track. There is generally a 48-hour waiting period before business interruption coverage kicks in.
3. The price of the policy is related to the risk of a fire or other disaster damaging your premises. All other things being equal, the price would probably be higher for a restaurant than a real estate agency, for example, because of the greater risk of fire. Also, a real estate agency can more easily operate out of another location.

For more information on how to protect your Business with the right Business Insurance, visit our website today!

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