Protect Your Home While You're Away

The National Realtors Association reports that there are more than six million second or vacation homes in the United States. Many people who seek escape from the cold, dark, icy days of winter head to second homes in warmer climates during the winter months.

Others leave their homes to enjoy summer vacations at the beach, or winter ski and snowboarding adventures in the mountains. No matter what your destination, here are a few things you should do to protect your primary residence while you're away.

Give It That Lived-in Look

When you're going away for an extended period of time, you should try to make your home look like it is still occupied. If there is the appearance of activity at your home, there is less chance that the house will be burglarized. Here are a few ways to make it seem like you're home:

• Set lights and a radio or television on timers so they'll go on and off at different times of the day.
• Use call forwarding to have your calls sent to your vacation home's phone line or cell phone. You can also turn off or lower the ringer volume on your phone so that it can't be heard from outside. If you are going to leave a greeting on your answering machine, be sure you don't leave any information about being away from home. Rather, leave a generic message like "we can't come to the phone right now, please leave a message."
• Arrange for landscaping services while you're away. Have someone mow the lawn, rake the leaves and shovel the snow.
• If you're leaving a car at your house and you don't have a garage, have someone move your car periodically or ask a neighbor to park their car in your driveway or in front of your house every so often.
• Have your mail held at the post office and suspend delivery of your newspaper. Or ask a neighbor to pick up your mail and newspaper daily.

Have an Expected Visitor

When you're going to be away, it's a good idea to ask someone to check on your home on a regular basis. Ask a friend or family member to stop by about once a week so that if there is a problem it can be taken care of quickly. They should check that doors and windows are secure and open and close curtains and shades every now and then to help make your house looked occupied. Be sure to give your "home checker" a spare key-don't hide a key anywhere near or around your house because thieves know where to look. Also, if you have a home security system, be sure that your expected visitor knows how to set and disarm the alarm.

Avoid Frozen Pipes in Winter

Frozen pipes are not only frustrating to deal with but they can also cause a great deal of damage to your home. So, before you leave this winter, be sure that your heating system is checked for proper operation and make any necessary arrangements for continued fuel delivery. Also make sure that any pipes in crawl spaces and attic spaces are well insulated and set your thermostats to at least 55 degrees so that your home is kept warm enough to prevent pipes from freezing. Finally, leave kitchen cabinet doors and bathroom vanity doors open so that heat can circulate to pipes under the sinks.

The 5 Most Common NC Homeowners Insurance Claims

Ever heard of Murphy’s Law? I’m not quite sure who exactly “Murphy” was, but if there’s one true statement that can almost always sum up insurance, it’s his law of “If it can happen, it will happen.”

Perhaps that’s a bit pessimistic, and I’m certainly not an insurance agent with a crystal ball, knowing when disaster will strike policyholders. Perhaps more appropriately, it can’t be said by anyone that you’ll ever face certain kinds of claims, or if you’re lucky, you’ll never face any at all. If that’s the case, that’s fantastic.

But you still shouldn’t dismiss Murphy’s Law. After all, if you believe in the law of attraction (aka ‘The Secret’) then you could end up knee deep in damages and claims. Similarly, you shouldn’t dismiss it and become a pessimist or paranoid. Instead, you should keep it mind to anchor reality and possibility — two things insurance hinges upon. When you’re buying insurance, you should look at your options and ask yourself if your coverage would please Murphy (whomever he may be) by adopting his motto.

That’s true for any insurance, but can be crucial to homeowners insurance. When you’re buying a house, it’s imperative that it’s insured properly to cover any kind of accident or damage involving your property. Many states require that homeowners have a certain level of insurance, and this is meant to act as a safety net. While it’s important to obey the law and get the required insurance, you should always look at getting additional coverage to cover any high-cost claims that you might incur. However, you may run into some of the following situations that any homeowner usually ends up dealing with at one time or another — and sometimes so do renters.

1. Water Damage

Water damage is one of the most common claims, and you don’t have to live on the riverbank or next to the ocean to have a serious claim. Depending on the age of your home, there is always potential for a pipe to burst. We’ve all heard horror stories of someone coming home to find the basement under a foot of water due to a busted pipe. Add that to your water bill and your tears will only make the damage worse. Make sure you find a policy that will cover water damage despite the source of the water.

2. Wind & Hail

As you can imagine, severe weather can take its toll on a house, especially if you are in a severe weather prone state such as Texas or Florida. Many of the coastal states will experience high winds during hurricanes, which can also bring hail, and other states further inland have to endure tornadoes, strong winter blizzards, and even uncommon occurrences such as the derecho that hit several states this past summer. Exterior damage can be costly depending on the amount and severity so make sure you have legitimate coverage based on your state’s weather history.

3. Accidents

It happens whether you are ready for it or not. You never expect any visitor on your property to get seriously hurt, but if they do, you must make sure you are adequately covering all of your bases. Because there is a high possibility that someone could sue you after getting injured on your property, you want to make sure that you have the appropriate liability coverage and also a good lawyer. This won’t always be the case because it may be your brother that is injured and he would never dream of suing you, but if you have the right kind of insurance, it will provide the monetary support and protection you need for surprises of this kind.

4. Dog Attacks

If you have a dog, be sure that it is properly restrained at all times. Even if you believe your dog would not hurt a fly, the wrong person could walk by, causing your dog to feel threatened. If they are bitten, they have every right to sue you and you could find yourself wading in thousands of dollars owed. With claims of this nature, despite the intentions of the bitten, the dog owner assumes primary responsibility and you could end up having to pay out a good chunk of money. Make sure you have at least $300K of coverage in liability coverage to protect you — and keep Fido on a leash.

5. Fire

Losing everything in a fire is devastating to begin with, but the claims process that takes place afterwards can be just as much of a headache. When you’re trying to make a fire claim, you must be able to prove the worth of what was lost and sometimes the insurance company may not agree on the value of your property. Then, an investigation can ensue placing a price tag on the things that made up your life. Talk about adding insult to injury! However, this is a necessary process to make sure you get the fair amount to start rebuilding. Be sure to keep a running tally of your possessions as well as their value, and if this unfortunate accident happens to you, at least the insurance process won’t burn you.

The whole point of insurance is to provide coverage for the unexpected, but if you don’t have the right kind of limits, you can find yourself paying more out of pocket than you expected. When you’re searching for a homeowner’s policy, always look for the best rates, but don’t forget to weigh the heft of the policy with the price. Even if you get a good deal for your coverage, make sure it’s worth its weight in gold, or you could be looking at an unwelcome surprise after a loss.

Renters Insurance

Protect your apartment and your belongings from burglary, fire or other damage with a Renters Policy. This coverage is for:

• Personal property, wherever it may be.
• Loss of use, which covers the additional living expenses you incur due to temporary relocation.
• Personal liability for bodily injury, property damage or personal injury claims brought against you anywhere in the world.
• Medical payments to others who are injured in an accident arising from your premises or personal activities.

Extra Features

The Renters Policy protects you with many features, including:

• Coverage for loss due to theft, forgery or unauthorized use of a credit card and unknowingly accepting counterfeit money.
• Payment up to the personal property limit for loss to contents of a refrigerator or freezer from either power or mechanical failure.
• Coverage for theft of jewelry, watches and furs.
• Reimbursement for fire extinguisher recharge after a fire loss.
• Payment for replacement of automatic garage door transmitters which have been stolen. Coverage is also provided for cost to reprogram the frequency on additional transmitters and/or the control unit box.
• Coverage for theft of guns and related equipment.

Optional Coverages:

Some optional coverages you may choose to add to your Renters Policy include:

• Replacement cost settlement on personal property
• Sewer or drain backup
• Incidental business occupancy
• Earthquake coverage
• Scheduled personal property
• Expanded endorsement
• Identity recovery coverage

Need a quote? To get started, give us a call at 704-684-0082 or fill out our quote form.