Fire Safety and Prevention: Home Safety Tips

Fires are the leading cause of home injuries and death. Does your family have a plan if a fire started in your home?

Fire Safety
The best way to practice fire safety is to make sure one doesn’t break out in the first place. This means being aware of potential hazards in your home. Start by keeping the following tips in mind:

• Check all electrical appliances, cords and outlets. Make sure they are all in working condition, without loose or frayed cords or plugs.
• Use caution with portable heaters. Never place one where a child or pet could accidentally knock it over, and keep it at least three feet away from flammable objects.
• Be careful in the kitchen. Cooking is the leading cause of home fires. Always practice safe cooking habits, such as turning pot handles to avoid being knocked over, and supervising children while cooking.
• Check the fireplace. It should be kept clean and covered with a screen to keep sparks contained. Burn only wood in a home fireplace and never leave a fire burning unattended.
• Beware of cigarettes. They are the number one cause of fire deaths in the U.S. Most are started when ashes or butts fall into couches or chairs, so use caution if you smoke in your home.
• Use candles safely. Keep them out of the reach of children, away from curtains and furniture, and extinguish them before you leave the room. Do not allow children to use candles when unsupervised by an adult.
• Be aware of holiday dangers. If you use a cut Christmas tree, be sure to keep it watered daily, and inspect all lights yearly for worn or frayed cords.

Fire Prevention
Make your home fire safe by following these tips:

• Install smoke alarms on every level of your home.
• Use the smoke alarm’s test button to check it every month and replace the batteries at least once a year.
• Replace smoke alarms every 10 years.
• Have at least one working fire extinguisher in your home.
• Plan escape routes by determining at least two ways to escape from every room.
• Caution everyone to stay low to the floor while escaping and never open doors that are hot.
• Select a safe location outside your home where everyone should meet, and practice your escape plan at least twice a year so everyone knows it well.

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.

Insurance and Your Dog

Dog bites are no fun, especially if it was your dog that did the biting. You can be faced with a lawsuit and will need to defend your dog even if the bite was due to someone provoking your dog. Do you have insurance coverage for it? In a lot of cases, your homeowners insurance should cover damages like that. But there are some cases when it might not.

There are some breeds of dogs that are considered more aggressive and dangerous than other breeds in the insurance world. If you own a dog, it is important that you know if he will be covered or not if he bites someone. It is hard to defend a dog that falls into the aggressive category, so a lot of insurance companies have decided to consider them a higher risk. You may need to have increased limits of liability on your homeowners policy if you own a dog that is on the list.

The list is quite extensive and contains about 75 different breeds including Rottweilers, Akitas, Alaskan Malamutes and American Bulldogs.  Talk with us to see if your carrier follows the list when determining what type of insurance we can offer you. Your current homeowners insurance may not be enough to protect you if your dog decides to bite someone – even if it was in defense of you, himself, or the household.

If you never mentioned your dog to us before, you will want to do it now. You don’t want to find out later that you will not be covered under your policy if something goes wrong. If your current policy isn’t enough, find out how to get more. Protect your dog and your finances by having the right insurance policy.   

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.

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

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.

5 Reasons You Should Get a Home Security System

You’ve been thinking about a home security system for some time, but you haven’t decided whether to make the commitment. On the one hand, you’d love the peace of mind it will provide. On the other, it could put a serious dent in your budget.

That said, it’s time to take a fresh look at some reasons you might want to install a system and pay the monthly monitoring fees. There’s also a reason why your system might end up costing you less than you might think.

Consider the following:

You can’t ignore the statistics

According to the FBI, a break-in occurs every 15 seconds in the U.S. The average loss from those incidents was $ 2,185. Those numbers could catch up with you sooner or later. A home security system will make it harder for criminals because the proper authorities will be notified at the first sign of an incident at your home. In the case of a home invasion, it is vital that you get help in a hurry.
But there’s another factor, too. Just having a security system sign in your yard and decals on your window, in many cases, will send criminals looking for the next house. They much prefer easy prey to a home with a security system.

What if criminals strike anyway?

There are two ways a security system can pay off in case burglars accept the challenge and break into your home. If your system has video surveillance, you’ll collect evidence that can be used by law enforcement agents to identify – and prosecute – the people that ransack your home and take your stuff.

The other way having a home security system can help is that some security providers have offers in which they will pay at least part of your deductible for your home insurance claim if your house is burglarized while the system is armed.

Systems don’t just prevent break-ins

Security systems don’t just protect you from break-ins. Many also have options to include sensors that detect smoke, carbon monoxide and other problems. Early warning of a fire can greatly reduce the damage you could suffer from a blaze. The carbon monoxide sensors can detect a menace that can affect your health with little or no warning. Many systems also have medical alert capacity in case you or an older relative suffers a problem.

Forget the creepiness factor

OK, this might seem a little Big Brother-like at first. But some security systems also allow you to monitor the comings and goings of people in your household. You’ll know when your ‘tween gets home from school. You can also tell when your teenager really got home on Friday night. All creepiness aside, this is important information for a parent.

A system can save you money

You’re convinced now that you need a system, but there is still the matter of the expense. However, buying a home security system actually could save you money elsewhere in your budget. Home insurance providers typically offer discounts for policyholders with monitored security systems. Will it offset the total cost of the system? No. But it will cut the price down enough that it could make a system fit within your price range.

Peace of mind is hard to quantify. But be sure to consider the question of buying a home security system from a number of perspectives before ruling it out.