Charlotte NC Homeowners Rates Set to Rise 8.4% in 2013

NC State regulators and homeowners insurance companies reached a settlement that will allow overall statewide homeowners rates to increase an average of 7 percent beginning July 1, 2013. 

“It was better to settle at where we did than to take the risk that a hearing would have led to much different and costly results,” said Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin.

Under the settlement, rates will increase by as little as 1 percent in some areas of the state, and as much as 19.8 percent in some beachfront areas of coastal counties. The industry had requested an average rate increase of 17.7 percent back in October that ranged from a high of 30 percent in parts of coastal counties to a low of 1.2 percent. 

Under the settlement announced Tuesday, rates in Durham and Raleigh will increase 2.8 percent, well below the 11.8 percent requested by the industry. Rates in Charlotte will increase 8.4 percent, just below the 8.5 percent filed in the rate request.

The largest rate increase – 19.8 percent – will be in the beach areas of Brunswick, Carteret, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender counties. The beach areas of Currituck, Dare and Hyde counties also will see an increase of 17 percent. The areas farther inland in those coastal counties will see much smaller increases.

The settlement eliminates the need for a June hearing where the companies and Insurance Department staffers were scheduled to present arguments for and against the industry's October increase request.   Read more here

Should You Make a Claim on Your NC Homeowner’s Insurance?

In the wake of one of the worst storms in centuries, many homeowners may be shocked to learn filing a claim on their insurance may actually hurt them over time.

Paying for the repairs out of pocket should be weighed against filing a claim. Too many claims in one year will send a red flag to your insurance company causing them concern and possibly canceling your policy. 

 

Every time a claim is made or even inquired about it goes into an industry database called Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange, or CLUE. This information is available to most insurance companies, making it harder for the consumer to obtain insurance from another company after being dropped.

Under federal law, you can get one free copy of your report every 12 months at ChoiceTrust. You can also look at claims made on specific properties. If you are considering purchasing a home, you should check its history. For a fee, you can obtain a“Home Seller’s Disclosure Report” detailing the insurance loss history of the home you are considering. Knowing this information before your purchase can help you decide if you are making an informed decision. Too many claims on a property, can affect the rates of your homeowner’s insurance even if the claims aren’t yours.

A Word about Adjusters

You should receive the same claims adjustment whether you use an independent or the insurance company’s claims adjuster. The adjuster is a licensed professional who is trained to find the source of damage. They report to the insurance company their findings and if the claim is legitimate. If you do not agree, you can dispute your claim with your insurance company.

 

At Marshall Insurance, we are here to help you with your insurance needs. As a long standing independent insurance agency, we are committed to helping our clients in not only finding the best rates but helping in times of need.

10 Tips to Prevent Chimney Fires in North Carolina

This is the time of year when the nip of Old Jack Frost has many of us imagining a cozy night snuggled up in front of the fire. Wood burning fireplaces can feel like a luxury in the winter providing additional warmth and heat in the home. What most of us don’t think about is the possibility of a chimney fire. 

By following a few simple safety tips, you can enjoy your next fire without the fear of disaster.
 

1. Have your wood stove or chimney inspected by a certified chimney specialist each year and check monthly for damage or obstructions.

2. Never burn trash, paper, green wood or Christmas trees.

3. Clear the area around the hearth of debris, decorations and flammable materials. Combustible material too close to the fireplace or a wood stove can easily catch fire.

4. Keep chimneys clear and capped. Make sure tree branches and leaves are at least 15 feet away from the top of the chimney. Contagious flames or sparks can jump from the fire source, quickly igniting other close objects. Installing a chimney cap can help prevent debris and animals from blocking the opening.

5. Use a fireplace screen heavy enough to stop rolling logs and big enough to cover the entire opening of the fireplace to catch flying sparks.

6. Close the damper and doors tightly when you are done. A fire may appear completely dead, but a midnight draft can reignite embers and a slight breeze can blow them into your living room.

7. Store cooled ashes in a tightly sealed metal container outside the home.

8. Install and test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and replace batteries once a year.

9. Make sure everyone in the family respects the fire. Remind everyone not to get too close and to move carefully when in the vicinity. A fireplace screen to establish a safe perimeter is a good idea if you have small children or pets.

10. Have an escape plan in place in case of fire and review it regularly with your family members.

If you do have a chimney fire, close the damper and doors tightly if possible. Then leave the house and call 911. With the right home maintenance practices you can avoid chimney fires and enjoy the cozy, ambiance of your fireplace on cold mountain nights. We are available to answer any questions you have regarding coverage and your homeowners policy.

>>Find a Certified Chimney Sweep in Your Area:  The National Chimney Sweep Guild &
The Chimney Safety Institute of America

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.

Smoke Detector Safety

Most home fire deaths happen in the middle of the night between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. A smoke detector can save your life by waking you and giving you time to escape. When purchasing a smoke alarm, look for one that is accepted by an independent testing facility such as Underwriters Laboratories or Factory Mutual.

Location, Testing and Maintenance!

The best place for your smoke alarms:
•On every level of your home, including the basement and workshop.
•Outside every bedroom.
•On the ceiling or on the wall, 6 to 12 inches below the ceiling. Keep detectors away from air vents.

Check the alarm batteries once a month by pressing the test button with your finger. The batteries should be replaced once a year.

You should clean the alarm by following the manufacturer’s instructions. The grillwork on the detector should be vacuumed periodically to keep it dust-free.

Preventing Nuisance Alarms To prevent false alarms, move the detector away from a kitchen or bathroom. You may also want to consider purchasing a smoke alarm, like a photoelectric, that’s less sensitive to common causes of false alarms. Some smoke alarms also are equipped with a silencing feature, so that nuisance alarms can be stopped quickly and easily

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.

Trampolines: Spotting Danger in Your Backyard

Using a trampoline is supposed to be fun. Children laugh and get more excited with each jump and tumble. While the popularity of trampolines among 8 to 15 year-olds is growing, many people are unaware that playing on trampolines can result in serious injuries including fractures, dislocations, muscle damage, and broken legs. Even worse, some trampoline injuries damage the neck or spinal cord, which can result in permanent paralysis.

Why are trampolines so dangerous? Part of the reason is the tremendous power generated when people jump on them. For example, an activity such as launching involves multiple people on the trampoline at once, creating an energy force strong enough to send a full-grown person five feet in the air. This energy force can also literally catapult a person off the equipment or send someone high enough to come crashing back down on another person.

The growing trend in trampoline use is leading to more injuries every year. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission showed that the number of trampoline-related injuries treated in hospital emergency rooms had grown from 19,000 in 1976 to 91,870 injuries in 2001 (the latest statistics available). Because of the potential for injury, many groups including the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend against the use of trampolines at home. However, for people who do choose to have a trampoline, the following guidelines from the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons may help prevent injuries:

• Make sure adults are present to supervise.
• Limit jumpers to one at a time.
• Post adult spotters around the trampoline to guard against falls.
• Use adequate protective padding for the trampoline's supporting bars, springs, and surrounding landing surfaces.
• Use protective equipment for somersaults and other high-risk maneuvers.
• Make sure the trampoline frame and mat are in good condition.
• Use a trampoline in well-lighted areas.
• Disable trampoline when not in use.

Insurance Guide for Older Homes

Owning an older home can be a dream for many people. These homes were built in prime locations, contain larger rooms than many newer homes, and have loads of charm. But people who own homes 50 or 100 years old or more may find themselves running up against some nightmares with insurance that they didn’t bargain for when they fell in love with the house.

The majority of mortgage lenders require home owners to have home insurance as a condition of their mortgage, but older homes have many problems that make them a bigger risk to insure. Many times, elements of the house may be so worn out that insurance companies will refuse to insure the house without some repairs or replacements.
“Depending on the age of a home, most insurance company require the parts of the home to be updated,” says Brian Boak, an underwriter who has worked in personal insurance for 25 years and works for Singer Nelson Charlmers. “Depending on the company, if these are not updated, they may not insure the location due to the additional risk.”

Even if insurance companies don’t outright refuse to cover your home, insurance premiums for older homes can shoot through that outdated roof. With an older home comes an increased chance for damages caused by parts not functioning properly, and insurance companies don’t take on these risks without charging you more.

Replacement costs for homes that are considered antique or historic are also higher since specialized materials and labor are required to restore the home to historical accuracy.
A home inspection can help reveal the age of components of your home, whether you’ve just put in an offer or have lived in your home for years. Many insurers will perform their own inspections to determine if the home is insurable, particularly if the house has a high replacement cost.

“Some companies rely on their agent to provide the replacement cost; some companies hire an outside inspection service to do either an exterior inspection or a full interior inspection. Some companies do the inspections themselves,” Boak says. “The higher the replacement cost the more likely (and desired) that you will get a comprehensive inspection inside and out.”

Biggest problems for insuring older homes

Older homes across the country face many of the same problems that scare insurers away. Inspectors will be looking for these issues and fixing them will likely bring your premium down significantly.

• The roof: Roofs typically have a life expectancy of about 25 years, according to Boak, so if you have a roof older than that, your chance of a leak is greater. And with water damage being so serious, old roofs can be a sign to insurers that your premium should be raised.
• The electrical system: Most older homes were originally outfitted with small circuit breaker boxes. This combined with old fuses and old wiring can become a problem when faced with the demands of today’s home, Boak says. Air conditioning, electric heat, microwaves, and electric ovens and stoves weren’t used when the home was built, so the extra workload on the electrical system can increase the chance of a fire.
• The plumbing system: Besides plumbing problems being unpleasant to live with, they can also cause leaks and water damage. The invasive nature of repairing water damage makes old plumbing systems costly to insure.

Finding the right policy

If you care about preserving the original features of your home, you’ll want to make sure your policy will pay for the materials that are no longer standard.

Lath and plaster: Older homes often had walls of lath and plaster instead of sheetrock. “Depending on your insurance company they may not pay to replace your lath and plaster walls as they may say that sheetrock is equivalent (and less expensive for them),” Boak says. “Lath and plaster is much more expensive and if you want to keep your old home accurate, you want lath and plaster. Ask your broker what your company will do.”

Lumber measurements: Another consideration to make is your home’s lumber. Today, two-by-fours are actually only 1.5 by 3.5. If you have an old home with “full dimensional” lumber, Boak says, many insurance companies may want to replace it with the cheaper “equivalent,” but you’ll want the original dimensions if you’re trying to preserve the home’s accuracy.

Other added costs to consider are custom molding, solid core doors, and trim that must be custom-made. Anyone with a historic home should make sure they find a company who will insure them for the full replacement value for original features. “You want to make sure you have a true guaranteed replacement cost,” Boak says. “Many companies have replacement cost but it is capped at 20% or 25% above the insured value. You want a company that will rebuild the home exactly how it was with all the quality you had, regardless of the cost.”
Watch out for any cash value policies. These will only pay for what’s damaged including depreciation, so you could be covered for much, much less than you need or even realized with one of these policies.

Buying an old home

So what do you do if you’re house hunting and have fallen in love with an old house? Don’t rush into anything!

Call us before closing on your mortgage. By giving yourself and us time to shop around for home insurance before closing, we can work together to see what you can reasonably expect to pay in premiums, find the best prices, and maybe even stumble on some discounts. You may find that the replacement cost is going to be significantly higher than what you’re paying for the house and that the house isn’t affordable for you because of insurance costs.

Getting quotes from insurance companies will probably also help you find the problems with the house. If you find a few small problems during an inspection, you can budget for it. And if you discover that the whole electrical system and plumbing system need to be replaced, you can walk away.

If you do decide to go ahead with buying a house that needs repairs to make it insurable or bring down your premiums, consider asking the current owner to make the fixes. “If items are old and you are buying the home, you would either want to have the current owner discount the price of the home or update the items for these improvements you will need to make ,” Boak says. “Or expect to add that cost into your budget.”

Tips for home owners

If you already own an old house, you may worry about your insurer raising your premiums significantly or even dropping your coverage altogether. Many insurance companies change the status of your coverage if you file a big claim or several claims in a row. So if your roof gives out and you file a claim, you could be hurting your chances of continuing to be insured.

To avoid this problem, it’s best to try to stay ahead of all repairs and updates if you can. They can certainly be costly, so keep an eye out for warning signs of problems so you can choose what absolutely needs to be fixed first.

Roof: Roofs really aren’t made to last more than 20 or 25 years, but even younger roofs might need replacing. Check for several shingles lifting up, broken, or gone, and then go into your attic to see if you can see any pinholes of light or new water stains.
Electrical system: Look out for flickering lights when you turn on an appliance, switches and plates that are hot to the touch, two-prong outlets, burning plastic smell at switches and outlets, and improper fuses.
Plumbing system: Check out any exposed pipe in your house and look for discoloration, dimpling, stains, and flaking, which could mean your pipes are corroding. It’s a good idea to also look at the color of your water, especially after it’s been sitting in the pipes for a while — try filling your bathtub after a vacation. If it’s brown or yellow, there is probably rust in your pipes.

Old homes can be beautiful investments if you’re prepared to take care of them and keep them up to modern safety standards. If you don’t have the time and money to dedicate to updating your systems, you could find yourself buried under insurance premiums that may cost as much as the repairs in the long run.

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Phone: 704-684-0082

E-mail:  gary@marshallins.net

Website:  http://www.marshallins.net

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