Here is a harrowing tale from a couple in Glendale, California about trimming trees. They were served notice from the fire department that the trees on their property had branches that were growing dangerously close to their home. So they hired a tree trimmer, paid him $3,000, and had him pare back some of the [...]
Last year, one of Gerri Willis’ Five Tips was focused around homeowners insurance. At the time, she was focusing on the fact that insurers were dropping homes like it was going out of style and so the tips had that flavor. That being said, these tips are still valuable for anyone looking for homeowners insurance.
You [...]
Two years ago Hurricane Katrina hit the United States and resulted in the devastation of New Orleans. Today, homeowners in New York are feeling the effects as homeowner insurance companies are becoming fearful of a similar event striking the Northeast. A NYT article discusses how insurers are opting to not renew policies, even with people [...]
Buying insurance based solely on price is extremely risky because there are so many other factors involved when talking about a service as intimate as insurance. Is the company’s policy cheaper because they’re stingier on paying out claims? Or are they cheaper because their administrative costs are much lower? If their costs are much lower, [...]
Looks like the insurance company response to hurricanes nowadays is to include a windstorm deductible in your policy, which is a far better response than pulling all insurance business out of dangerous states. See, in the past there has always been a flooding deductible and so the big game, when it came to a hurricane [...]
A word of warning to you all, if you host a party at your house and one of your guests get drunk, drives home, and is involved in an accident - you could be liable for damages because you served the alcohol. While the state laws, local court cases, and other regional laws may apply, [...]
Have you recently purchase your house? Have you made a recent home improvement? There are plenty of reasons why you would need to re-evaluate the replacement value of home for the purposes of insurance. A recent purchase and an improvement are merely two of them. So, what’s the easiest way to recalculate that all important [...]
If you operate a business out of your home, you should be warned that typical homeowner’s insurance will not cover you in the event of a loss. This is particularly poignant for those businesses that carry inventory or operate expensive equipment because a flood, fire, or burglary could result in potentially high losses that you [...]
As recently as ten years ago, the most expensive item your child would’ve brought to college was probably a desktop computer. At a few thousand dollars a piece, the item was difficult to steal because of its size and so the thought of insurance was probably not at the forefront of your mind. Nowadays, with [...]
There are 4.7 million dog bites a year, amounting to approximately $317.2 million in claims in 2005, according to the Insurance Information Institute (iii.org); so it’s no wonder that having a dog can increase your insurance premiums, because it increases the costs to the insurer. In fact, given the list that the CDC produced about [...]