If you occasionally rent cars for pleasure use, or even to use while your primary car is being repaired, then you have probably wondered about how your auto insurance policy will work with the rental car. At Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, we get questions about rental car coverage all the time. But almost no one asks about loss of use coverage. And this can be a big, uncovered loss for you if you don’t take the right steps to protect yourself.
I will save the discussion of how your NC auto insurance policy responds to protecting you from losses in a rental car for another blog. In this discussion I want to tell you about a rental car coverage that is almost always overlooked but that has the potential to take a big bite out of your wallet. This is called loss of use coverage.
Loss of use addresses the issue that arises when you cause damage to a rental car that you are driving. As soon as that car is damaged and has to be put into the shop for repairs, the rental car company begins losing money on that car. If they cannot rent it each day, then they have losses associated with that loss of use of their car. If you’ve ever rented a car you know how expensive it can be on a daily basis. Now imagine that it takes the car rental company 3 – 4 weeks to put that car back in service after you have damaged it. They have to go through the claims process with their insurance company, track you down for a statement, appraise the damages and then get it in the shop. The shop has to order parts, wait on parts, and then repair the vehicle. All of this takes time. And while that clock is ticking, you will be on the hook for the lost rents on that car. It can easily run into the thousands of dollars.
Now I know that for some people a several thousand dollar claim may not seem to be a high enough exposure to warrant purchasing insurance. But in this case, the insurance coverage is so cheap that you would be crazy not to buy it. In North Carolina you can add rental car loss of use coverage to your auto policy for $4 per year. If you ever rent cars, this is a coverage you should not do without.
So, take a moment and call your insurance agent today and add this coverage. It could save you a huge bite in your wallet. If you want to know more about this or other protections that are available to car rental customers like you, then please feel free to call our office, toll free at 877-687-7557 or visit us online at www.ClinardInsurance.com. We will be glad to help you with all of your car rental questions.
This article was sourced from information which can be found at www.InsuranceAnswerGuy.com
Friday, August 28, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
North Carolina Contractors – Don’t Forget Tool Coverage And Lock Your Truck
North Carolina building contractors have many insurance needs, from general liability insurance to workers compensation insurance as well as insurance for their vehicles. One area that is often overlooked is equipment insurance. This breaks down into coverage for heavy equipment and coverage for tools. If you buy tool coverage in North Carolina, there is one catch you’d better know about.
I want to start with a quick look at the types of equipment coverage for contactors in NC. This protection is referred to as inland marine coverage in insurance parlance but since that term makes no sense to the average consumer, I won’t use it in this discussion. Usually the process of insuring your tools and equipment breaks down into two sections. The most common coverage is the equipment coverage. This protection is for your larger types of equipment from cranes all the way down to the lowly bobcat. When you purchase this type of policy you will list each piece of equipment with a limit of coverage for each item. The rates for this protection are lower than that for hand tools.
Tool coverage is the other option when you purchase your inland marine policy. This is protection for loss to hand tools that you use in your business. This type of coverage is normally set up with a total limit for all of your tools rather than an item by item listing. The rates for tool coverage are much higher as you can imagine since the risk of theft loss is much greater for hand tools.
If you insure your hand tools, be sure to be aware of the theft loss exclusion. This exclusion says that if your tools are stolen from a vehicle, then the vehicle must have been locked and there must be some evidence of forcible entry into the vehicle. I once had a contractor client of mine take his work van to a movie theater and forgot to lock the van. When he came out of the movie, many of his hand tools were gone. He was unable to collect for this loss on from his insurance company because there was no evidence of forced entry to his vehicle.
Insurance policies are full of twist and turns that can get the novice in trouble. That’s why it is so important for you to always purchase insurance for your construction operations from an agent who specializes in contractors. At Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, we specialize in helping contractors all over North Carolina with their insurance needs. If we can help you in any way with your construction insurance policies, please call us, toll free at 877-687-7557 or visit us on the web at www.ClinardInsurance.com.
The source information for this article was pulled from articles found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
I want to start with a quick look at the types of equipment coverage for contactors in NC. This protection is referred to as inland marine coverage in insurance parlance but since that term makes no sense to the average consumer, I won’t use it in this discussion. Usually the process of insuring your tools and equipment breaks down into two sections. The most common coverage is the equipment coverage. This protection is for your larger types of equipment from cranes all the way down to the lowly bobcat. When you purchase this type of policy you will list each piece of equipment with a limit of coverage for each item. The rates for this protection are lower than that for hand tools.
Tool coverage is the other option when you purchase your inland marine policy. This is protection for loss to hand tools that you use in your business. This type of coverage is normally set up with a total limit for all of your tools rather than an item by item listing. The rates for tool coverage are much higher as you can imagine since the risk of theft loss is much greater for hand tools.
If you insure your hand tools, be sure to be aware of the theft loss exclusion. This exclusion says that if your tools are stolen from a vehicle, then the vehicle must have been locked and there must be some evidence of forcible entry into the vehicle. I once had a contractor client of mine take his work van to a movie theater and forgot to lock the van. When he came out of the movie, many of his hand tools were gone. He was unable to collect for this loss on from his insurance company because there was no evidence of forced entry to his vehicle.
Insurance policies are full of twist and turns that can get the novice in trouble. That’s why it is so important for you to always purchase insurance for your construction operations from an agent who specializes in contractors. At Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, we specialize in helping contractors all over North Carolina with their insurance needs. If we can help you in any way with your construction insurance policies, please call us, toll free at 877-687-7557 or visit us on the web at www.ClinardInsurance.com.
The source information for this article was pulled from articles found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Dealers Insurance Policies – Two Easy Steps To Keeping Your Rates Low
Used car dealers understand that their garage policy is one of their big expenses in their annual budget. But few dealers understand how simple it can be to control the costs of auto dealers insurance. Here are two quick and easy steps you can take that will significantly reduce your garage insurance policy rates over time.
To start at the beginning, the rate that each dealer pays for garage insurance is in large part a direct result of that dealer’s insurance loss history. Our garage policies have available good experience credits of up to 40% of the policy premium. That means a dealer with excellent loss experience can pay as much as 40% less for the same coverage than a dealer with a loss or two in their garage insurance loss history. So, if you can find a way to reduce the number and severity of losses against your policy, you not only will have an easier time maintaining insurance coverage, you will be able to access the best rates out there.
One of the biggest contributors to loss history for a dealer is the accidents that happen while a prospect is test driving one of their cars. First of all, the car is unfamiliar to them, secondly they want to test out all the features so they are fiddling with the stereo, the navigation system and other features and this increases the likelihood of an accident. So how can you reduce these types of claims against your dealers insurance policy?
The first step each dealer should take is to make sure that their garage policy form is one that forces the test driver’s personal auto insurance policy to step in and pay the claims caused by the test driver of their vehicle. Not every garage insurance policy is created the same, but there are policies out there that state that as far as protection for your customer are concerned, your policy only pays if your customer doesn’t have a policy. There are two big advantages for you as a dealer to make sure that you have this type of policy. First of all, if the test driver can’t file claims on your policy, your claims will go down and you will have a better loss history and access to the best rates out there. Secondly, if your policy does not have to build in enough money to pay for test driver losses, you will find that your rates will be lower in the first place. To learn more about these types of policies, read my blog here.
Once you have the right kind of garage insurance in place, you need to make sure that all of your test drivers have their own auto insurance policy in force. It will be impossible to do this with 100% certainty but at the very least you should ask them if they have auto insurance in force now. Then ask them the name of the insurance company that they use just to sort of check on their honesty. If you want to go a step further, you can ask to see a copy of their insurance id card in their glove box. One more important question you should ask them is if they have collision coverage on their current policy. If not, then you will probably have to file a claim against your dealers physical damage coverage on your own policy if they wreck your car. This will be the only way to collect for the damages to your vehicle.
At Clinard Insurance Group in Winston Salem, NC, we write insurance for hundreds of used car dealers all across NC, SC, GA, VA, and TN. If you would like for us to help you with your garage insurance, please call us at 877-687-7557 or visit us on the web at www.TheAutoDealersHelper.com.
The source information for this article was drawn from articles found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
To start at the beginning, the rate that each dealer pays for garage insurance is in large part a direct result of that dealer’s insurance loss history. Our garage policies have available good experience credits of up to 40% of the policy premium. That means a dealer with excellent loss experience can pay as much as 40% less for the same coverage than a dealer with a loss or two in their garage insurance loss history. So, if you can find a way to reduce the number and severity of losses against your policy, you not only will have an easier time maintaining insurance coverage, you will be able to access the best rates out there.
One of the biggest contributors to loss history for a dealer is the accidents that happen while a prospect is test driving one of their cars. First of all, the car is unfamiliar to them, secondly they want to test out all the features so they are fiddling with the stereo, the navigation system and other features and this increases the likelihood of an accident. So how can you reduce these types of claims against your dealers insurance policy?
The first step each dealer should take is to make sure that their garage policy form is one that forces the test driver’s personal auto insurance policy to step in and pay the claims caused by the test driver of their vehicle. Not every garage insurance policy is created the same, but there are policies out there that state that as far as protection for your customer are concerned, your policy only pays if your customer doesn’t have a policy. There are two big advantages for you as a dealer to make sure that you have this type of policy. First of all, if the test driver can’t file claims on your policy, your claims will go down and you will have a better loss history and access to the best rates out there. Secondly, if your policy does not have to build in enough money to pay for test driver losses, you will find that your rates will be lower in the first place. To learn more about these types of policies, read my blog here.
Once you have the right kind of garage insurance in place, you need to make sure that all of your test drivers have their own auto insurance policy in force. It will be impossible to do this with 100% certainty but at the very least you should ask them if they have auto insurance in force now. Then ask them the name of the insurance company that they use just to sort of check on their honesty. If you want to go a step further, you can ask to see a copy of their insurance id card in their glove box. One more important question you should ask them is if they have collision coverage on their current policy. If not, then you will probably have to file a claim against your dealers physical damage coverage on your own policy if they wreck your car. This will be the only way to collect for the damages to your vehicle.
At Clinard Insurance Group in Winston Salem, NC, we write insurance for hundreds of used car dealers all across NC, SC, GA, VA, and TN. If you would like for us to help you with your garage insurance, please call us at 877-687-7557 or visit us on the web at www.TheAutoDealersHelper.com.
The source information for this article was drawn from articles found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
5 Ways To Cut Your Auto Insurance Costs Without Sacrificing Protection
These days most of us are looking for ways to stretch our household expense dollars. One big drain on these funds is auto insurance. Her are some quick and easy tips you can use to help you find some savings in your auto insurance budget without putting your assets at risk.
How Far Do You Drive To Work? In the North Carolina Auto Insurance policy there are several different classifications for your driving habits. One focuses on the number of miles you drive to work each day. Of course if you don’t drive to work and your policy is classified that way you can get a reduction by changing the classification to pleasure use. Within the drive to work categories, there are two. One is for those who drive less than 10 miles one way to work and the other is for those who drive more than 10 miles one way to work. If you drive 10 or less miles one way to work, check with you agent to be sure that your policy reflects this classification. Likewise, if you have changed jobs or if your work location has changed recently, make sure you correct your policy.
Watch Those Deductibles. If you have comprehensive and collision insurance coverage on your auto policy, be sure to check them as well. Generally, you want your deductibles to be as high as you could handle in the event of a loss. There are some exceptions to this, for instance once you get to very high deductibles, the savings may no longer be worth it. Also, if you have a very old car and the collision and comprehensive costs are already very low then a high deductible just might not get you enough savings to be worth it. Still, many people have deductibles that are very low and can realize substantial savings by increasing them.
Pay In Full Discount. Some companies are now offering savings of up to 10% if you pay your auto insurance renewals in full. They have found that people who pay in full have less losses and thus should be entitled to a lower rate. If you can afford to do this, you should certainly take advantage of the offer. Some companies are offering as much as a 10% discount when you pay in full. Since there are not many places right now where you can earn a 10% return on your money, this deal is just too good to pass up if you have the money in the bank to do it.
Bundle Your Policies. Almost every insurance company will now offer you a substantial rate reduction if you buy both your homeowners insurance policy and your auto insurance policy from them. You should always take a look at this option since it is rare that you will find these two policies to be cheaper when purchased separately.
Safety Equipment Discounts. Check with your agent to make sure that you are receiving all available discounts for the safety equipment in your car from anti-lock brakes to airbags and automatic seat belts. Most companies apply these discounts by using the vehicle identification number on your car to discover exactly which safety features your car has. So it is somewhat rare for them to miss on these discounts. Still, you should check in with your agent just to be sure that you are getting all the safety discounts you deserve.
At Clinard Insurance Group in Winston Salem, NC, we work hard to make sure that all of our clients are informed consumers who are purchasing the best possible protection at the lowest possible cost. If you need help with either your home insurance policy or your auto insurance policy, please visit us on line at www.ClinardInsuranceGroup.com or call us toll free at 1-877-677-7557.
The source information for this article can be found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com
How Far Do You Drive To Work? In the North Carolina Auto Insurance policy there are several different classifications for your driving habits. One focuses on the number of miles you drive to work each day. Of course if you don’t drive to work and your policy is classified that way you can get a reduction by changing the classification to pleasure use. Within the drive to work categories, there are two. One is for those who drive less than 10 miles one way to work and the other is for those who drive more than 10 miles one way to work. If you drive 10 or less miles one way to work, check with you agent to be sure that your policy reflects this classification. Likewise, if you have changed jobs or if your work location has changed recently, make sure you correct your policy.
Watch Those Deductibles. If you have comprehensive and collision insurance coverage on your auto policy, be sure to check them as well. Generally, you want your deductibles to be as high as you could handle in the event of a loss. There are some exceptions to this, for instance once you get to very high deductibles, the savings may no longer be worth it. Also, if you have a very old car and the collision and comprehensive costs are already very low then a high deductible just might not get you enough savings to be worth it. Still, many people have deductibles that are very low and can realize substantial savings by increasing them.
Pay In Full Discount. Some companies are now offering savings of up to 10% if you pay your auto insurance renewals in full. They have found that people who pay in full have less losses and thus should be entitled to a lower rate. If you can afford to do this, you should certainly take advantage of the offer. Some companies are offering as much as a 10% discount when you pay in full. Since there are not many places right now where you can earn a 10% return on your money, this deal is just too good to pass up if you have the money in the bank to do it.
Bundle Your Policies. Almost every insurance company will now offer you a substantial rate reduction if you buy both your homeowners insurance policy and your auto insurance policy from them. You should always take a look at this option since it is rare that you will find these two policies to be cheaper when purchased separately.
Safety Equipment Discounts. Check with your agent to make sure that you are receiving all available discounts for the safety equipment in your car from anti-lock brakes to airbags and automatic seat belts. Most companies apply these discounts by using the vehicle identification number on your car to discover exactly which safety features your car has. So it is somewhat rare for them to miss on these discounts. Still, you should check in with your agent just to be sure that you are getting all the safety discounts you deserve.
At Clinard Insurance Group in Winston Salem, NC, we work hard to make sure that all of our clients are informed consumers who are purchasing the best possible protection at the lowest possible cost. If you need help with either your home insurance policy or your auto insurance policy, please visit us on line at www.ClinardInsuranceGroup.com or call us toll free at 1-877-677-7557.
The source information for this article can be found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Used Car Dealers – Who You Buy Your Garage Liability Insurance From Could Matter A Great Deal
Used car dealers in North Carolina certainly have many options regarding which insurance company they choose for their garage liability insurance. But very few of these dealers, no matter how insurance savvy, understand the impact of using a company with their own special garage form. This form can save the dealer thousands of dollars in premiums and claim costs as well as dozens of hours in the claims process. But you have to have the right form to benefit.
Let’s start with a scenario that is all too familiar for used car dealers in North Carolina. In order to sell the car you need to let your customer test drive it. Now we all know that dealers are busy and often the customer goes out alone in the car. The customer starts messing with the stereo and other unfamiliar items on the dashboard and suddenly they have hit another car. Now your product is damaged and there is damage to a third party and their car. When you file this claim with your garage liability insurance company you will be entangled in hours of claims processing from statements to phone calls and on and on. In addition, you will now have a claim against your record which might result in higher rates with your insurance company and higher rates from other insurance companies when you decide to shop around. Or worse yet, you may be cancelled by your insurance company for this large claim and you will find it hard to replace this coverage. Without garage liability insurance, you are out of business.
There is a way to avoid all this heartache, simply by choosing the right garage liability insurance company. There are insurance companies out there who write North Carolina Garage Liability Insurance for Used Car Dealers on their own policy form. And this form excludes protection for your customer driving your car unless your driver has no personal auto insurance, or your customer’s auto insurance limits are below the state mandated minimums. So now, in the above accident scenario, if your client has his or her own personal auto insurance policy, then that policy will have to pay this claim. This protects your policy from claims, keeps your claims record clean, and keeps you out of the awful time sucking claims process.
There are three caveats to this trick. First of all, if your garage policy limits protection for your clients you still need to do two things to make it work. First of all, verify that they have an auto insurance policy with liability insurance equal to or exceeding the minimum liability limits required by law in your state and secondly, make sure that they have collision coverage on their policy on at least one of their cars. The collision coverage will be necessary for you to be paid for the damages to your vehicle that they are test driving. The third is that you will need to have an agent who specializes in used car dealers who will understand this policy form and who can help you intervene in the claims process and get the necessary information to the customer’s insurance company so that the claim never gets filed against your garage policy.
So what must you do? Call your agent and ask them if your garage policy will pay on behalf of a customer test driving your vehicle. If they answer yes, then you may need to find another agent, one who specializes in used car dealers. If you need help with this process, please fell free to call Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, toll free at 1-877-687-7557 or visit us online at www.TheAutoDealersHelper.com. We can help you find a company using their own garage liability form that can give you these advantages.
The source material for this article came from an article at www.InsuranceAnswerGuy.com.
Let’s start with a scenario that is all too familiar for used car dealers in North Carolina. In order to sell the car you need to let your customer test drive it. Now we all know that dealers are busy and often the customer goes out alone in the car. The customer starts messing with the stereo and other unfamiliar items on the dashboard and suddenly they have hit another car. Now your product is damaged and there is damage to a third party and their car. When you file this claim with your garage liability insurance company you will be entangled in hours of claims processing from statements to phone calls and on and on. In addition, you will now have a claim against your record which might result in higher rates with your insurance company and higher rates from other insurance companies when you decide to shop around. Or worse yet, you may be cancelled by your insurance company for this large claim and you will find it hard to replace this coverage. Without garage liability insurance, you are out of business.
There is a way to avoid all this heartache, simply by choosing the right garage liability insurance company. There are insurance companies out there who write North Carolina Garage Liability Insurance for Used Car Dealers on their own policy form. And this form excludes protection for your customer driving your car unless your driver has no personal auto insurance, or your customer’s auto insurance limits are below the state mandated minimums. So now, in the above accident scenario, if your client has his or her own personal auto insurance policy, then that policy will have to pay this claim. This protects your policy from claims, keeps your claims record clean, and keeps you out of the awful time sucking claims process.
There are three caveats to this trick. First of all, if your garage policy limits protection for your clients you still need to do two things to make it work. First of all, verify that they have an auto insurance policy with liability insurance equal to or exceeding the minimum liability limits required by law in your state and secondly, make sure that they have collision coverage on their policy on at least one of their cars. The collision coverage will be necessary for you to be paid for the damages to your vehicle that they are test driving. The third is that you will need to have an agent who specializes in used car dealers who will understand this policy form and who can help you intervene in the claims process and get the necessary information to the customer’s insurance company so that the claim never gets filed against your garage policy.
So what must you do? Call your agent and ask them if your garage policy will pay on behalf of a customer test driving your vehicle. If they answer yes, then you may need to find another agent, one who specializes in used car dealers. If you need help with this process, please fell free to call Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, toll free at 1-877-687-7557 or visit us online at www.TheAutoDealersHelper.com. We can help you find a company using their own garage liability form that can give you these advantages.
The source material for this article came from an article at www.InsuranceAnswerGuy.com.
Monday, August 3, 2009
NC Contractors Insurance – 4 Important Reasons Why You Must Be Sure To Get A Commercial Auto Insurance Policy
Many small contractors start their businesses from their home and run them out of their back pocket. As they gain success and confidence, most will begin to search out a separate office location and separate their business affairs from their personal affairs. But one thing that gets left behind in this process is the move to a true commercial auto insurance policy. Here are some of the reasons for switching over to a North Carolina commercial auto insurance policy instead of trying to use a personal auto insurance policy to cover the vehicles used in the business.
Reason #1 – The Tax Angle. Check with your CPA for your specific situation but in most cases, the IRS is going to be more understanding about expensing the costs of insurance if that insurance policy is written in the name of your business instead of in your individual name.
Reason #2 - Tickets. In North Carolina, speeding tickets and even accidents are not chargeable on a business auto policy. If you have a couple of speeding tickets, it will probably be cheaper to insured your business vehicle on a commercial auto policy than it will on a personal auto policy that can charge points against you for those tickets. Now, if you have accidents and a bad driving record, the insurance company may not be as generous with the policy credits so you could lose any advantage you have here with a really back driving record.
Reason #3 – Title. If you have your vehicle titled in your business name, then you must have an insurance policy where the name of the policy holder matches the name on the vehicle title. So, once you title the vehicle in your business name, you simply must purchase a business auto insurance policy.
Reason #4 – Nonowned Autos. In any business there will come a time when someone, be it an employee or even a friend or family member will run an errand for you. When that happens, if an accident occurs, your business could be involved in the claim. Your personal auto insurance policy will not protect your business from this kind of exposure. However, you can add liability coverage, called nonowned auto coverage to your business auto insurance policy. This will provide protection to your business for liability from any vehicle that you don’t own. This is very important protection and costs very little; often $100 per year or less.
At Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, we specialize in helping all kinds of small contractors with their business insurance needs. We want to help all insurance consumers be informed consumers. If you need help with your business or your personal insurance policies, please call us, toll free at 877-687-7557 or visit us on line at www.ClinardInsurance.com.
The source material for this article was taken from an article found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
Reason #1 – The Tax Angle. Check with your CPA for your specific situation but in most cases, the IRS is going to be more understanding about expensing the costs of insurance if that insurance policy is written in the name of your business instead of in your individual name.
Reason #2 - Tickets. In North Carolina, speeding tickets and even accidents are not chargeable on a business auto policy. If you have a couple of speeding tickets, it will probably be cheaper to insured your business vehicle on a commercial auto policy than it will on a personal auto policy that can charge points against you for those tickets. Now, if you have accidents and a bad driving record, the insurance company may not be as generous with the policy credits so you could lose any advantage you have here with a really back driving record.
Reason #3 – Title. If you have your vehicle titled in your business name, then you must have an insurance policy where the name of the policy holder matches the name on the vehicle title. So, once you title the vehicle in your business name, you simply must purchase a business auto insurance policy.
Reason #4 – Nonowned Autos. In any business there will come a time when someone, be it an employee or even a friend or family member will run an errand for you. When that happens, if an accident occurs, your business could be involved in the claim. Your personal auto insurance policy will not protect your business from this kind of exposure. However, you can add liability coverage, called nonowned auto coverage to your business auto insurance policy. This will provide protection to your business for liability from any vehicle that you don’t own. This is very important protection and costs very little; often $100 per year or less.
At Clinard Insurance Group, in Winston Salem, NC, we specialize in helping all kinds of small contractors with their business insurance needs. We want to help all insurance consumers be informed consumers. If you need help with your business or your personal insurance policies, please call us, toll free at 877-687-7557 or visit us on line at www.ClinardInsurance.com.
The source material for this article was taken from an article found at www.insuranceanswerguy.com.
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