Insurance Online : Keep Your Belongings Safe in Storage

Over the years, you accumulate all sorts of possessions that have sentimental value – treasured holiday ornaments handed down through families, prized stamp collections that have been a hobby of yours since you were young, and photos and videos that preserve some of your favorite memories. These items must sometimes be stored in basements, attics, and/or storage units as it’s not always feasible to display them in your home.

However, storing these items can often leave them subject to damage from water or high temperatures. Here are a few tips for keeping your beloved belongings safe from these perils.

Invest in Reliable Containers

With the holiday season quickly approaching, you’ll be digging out decorations – for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, Saint Patrick’s Day, etc. –  and storing one after another for the next few months.

Plus, storing important documents such as birth certificates, passports, Social Security cards, the deed to your home, a home inventory, and a copy of your insurance policy is a best practice. If you keep these items – along with photos and videos, you must make sure they’re stored properly.

Basements in particular are at risk for sump pump failures, bursting pipes, flooding, and so on. Severe weather and power outages only increase the probability of these events taking place.

Place your valuable items in sealed, waterproof containers and place them high on shelving units in your storage space – albeit not on a shelf against a concrete wall or one near an exterior door, which could leave your items vulnerable to leaks, humidity, and high temperatures. High temperatures can cause photos, documents, and decorations to stick together, leaving them susceptible to damage when you attempt to pull them apart.

Take the Safe Route

If you want to feel most confident in your method of storing valuable documents, opt for a safe. Some safes can be more resistant to high temperatures. Plus the lock-and-key or confidential combination aspect can keep you at ease knowing your valuables are secure from potential thieves.

If you choose this route, it’s still wise to place the safe on a higher shelf.

Consider Storing Valuables at Other Locations

If you’re too worried that your basement or attic could mean ruin for your treasured possessions, consider moving them to a storage unit or safe deposit box.

You can also upload photos and videos to websites like Flickr, which will allow them to always be accessed, even if the originals are harmed or destroyed.

Maintain Your Storage Space

Conduct annual inspections of your sump pump and check it when severe weather is rolling through your area to help prevent water damage to your basement. And keep an eye on the exterior of your abode so that you know when to replace roof shingles to protect your attic and its contents.

Make sure all storage areas are kept as clean as possible to keep pests from ruining important decorations and documents.

If your home insurance policy doesn’t include protection for your rare coin collection that you’ve stowed, call your agent and ask about upping your coverage limits or scheduling an endorsement.

Photo credit for preview image: Flickr user/Peter Dutton

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Insurance Online : Conflicting Exclusions Result in Duty to Defend

   The Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's finding that the insurer had a duty to defend in light of conflicting endorsements in the policy. Panfil v. Nautilus Ins. Co., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 14621 (7th Cir. Aug. 20, 2015).     JRJ Ada, LLC was a contractor. JRJ's two members, Joe Panfil and Renee Michelon, had a CGL policy with Nautilus. The employee of JRJ's subcontractor, Astro Insulation, fell through a hole while performing insulation work, injuring himself. The employee sued JRJ, who sought a defense from Nautilus. Nautilus refused to defend because JRJ was not an insured under the policy. Further, Nautilus relied upon the policy's Contractor-Subcontrated Work Endorsement and Employee Exclusion to deny coverage.    Panfil and Michelon sued Nautilus. Cross-motions for summary judgment were filed and the court granted plaitniffs' motion while denying Nautilus' motion. The district court first found that the policy should be reformed to inlcude JRJ as an insured. Nautilus did not appeal this determination. The court also found that Nautilus breached its duty to defend and was therefore estopped from asserting policy defenses to coverage.    On appeal, the Seventh Circuit considered the two exclusions. The Contractor-Subcontracted Work Endorsement exclusion stated: "This insurance does not apply to 'bodily injury' . . . arising out of work performed by any contractors or subcontractors unless such work is being performed specifically and solely for you."    The Employee Exclusion barred coverage for"'bodily injury' to any 'employee' of any insured arising out of and in the courts of employemnt by any insured." "Employee" was defined as "any person who provides services directly or indirectly to any insured . . . including but not limited to . . . a contractor, a subcontractor . . . and any person . . . hired by . . . employed by . . . any insured . . . ."    Nautilus argued that coverage was excluded by the Employee Exclusion. The employee of a subcontractor was injured during the course of his employment. The plaintiffs argued the Employee Exclusion  could not be considered alone, but must be read with all the terms of the policy, including the Contractor-Subcontracted Work Endorsement. The plaintiffs submitted that the Contractor-Subcontracted Work Endorsement excluded coverage unless "work is performed specifically and solely" for the insured. Since the injury arose out of work performed by a subcontractor who was working specifically and solely for JRJ, plaintiffs argued that the Employee Exclusions seemingly precluded coverage completely while the Contractor-Subcontracted Work Endorsement preserved coverage for specific occurrences like the one in the underlying lawsuit.    The court agreed. As the drafter, Nautilus could have written the policy to make clear that the Contractor-Subcontracted Work Endorsement preserved coverage for bodily injury to non-employees only. It did not do so. Therefore, the two provisions conflicted and the ambiguity was resolved in favor of JRJ.  

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Insurance Online : Are You Just Lost in the Flood?

In the aftermath of the rains that have drenched the East Coast, and particularly the Southeast, over the past couple of weeks, it’s time to take stock of the damage and sort through what’s covered by insurance, what might be, what’s not, and what to do going forward.

The TV weather folks have been assuring us that a number of factors converged to make this The Imperfect Storm. At any rate, some areas affected suffered heavy damage after getting a month or more’s rainfall in just a few days.

Here’s the skinny:

What’s not covered

First and foremost, understand that flood damage from rising waters is not covered by standard home insurance. You need a separate flood policy for that. A good place to start is the National Flood Insurance Program’s FloodSmart.gov website. If you’re counting on federal disaster relief, you should know that it usually comes in the form of a loan – that means it must be repaid.

Also not covered: Damage from sewer system backups, a common occurrence when there’s so much water. You can purchase an endorsement for your policy to cover this going forward.

What might be

If the combination of heavy rains and a leaky roof (that you didn’t know about) causes mold in your home, you could be covered. Obviously, it takes time for mold to develop, so this is a tricky one. Your best bet still is to check your roof now for missing shingles and leaks. To be thorough, you’ll also need to spend a little time in the attic, too, to look and feel for moisture, which is what causes mold.

If you find moisture, hire a professional to make sure it’s dried property before mold develops. Trust us on this – you’ll be glad you were proactive.

The other thing that could be covered is your car, even if it’s completely submerged by rising waters. The reason we say it ‘could’ be protected? Your auto insurance policy would have to include comprehensive coverage. Your lender likely requires this if you’re financing the vehicle.

What’s covered

Some other types of damage caused by the heavy rains likely would be covered. If the rain or wind involved in the storms the past couple of weeks caused roof damage, you’re likely covered. It the water leaking through the roof damaged furniture or electronics, it’s likely covered.

If the rain or wind caused a tree to fall on your house, your homeowners policy likely will protect you (even if it’s your neighbor’s tree). If winds caused a branch or other object to shatter your windows, again you’re likely covered. And again, any of your ‘stuff’ damaged because of the breaches to your roof, walls, or windows also could be covered.

What to do if you are covered

Assess the damage and take photos to document it. Contact your insurance provider as soon as it’s safe and get the claims process started.

Don’t make permanent repairs until you get the OK from your insurer, but you can take temporary measures to keep things from getting worse – for example, you could cover any holes in the roof or broken windows with tarps.

Going forward

There’s not much you can do at this point about damage from these storms that isn’t covered. But you can prepare yourself and your home for the next time. First, look into a flood policy. You say you don’t live in a high-risk flood area? Be aware that more than 20% of flood insurance claims come from areas that are lower risk.

And don’t put this off. Flood policies typically don’t take effect for 30 days after they’re purchased. And we’ve still got nearly two months of hurricane season left!

Finally, compile a home inventory – a room-by-room listing of your possessions, complete with photos, descriptions, and, when you have them, receipts. Make several copies, including an electronic one, and store them in safe places. This will greatly improve your claims process, regardless of the type of loss you suffer.

We sincerely hope you didn’t suffer damage and can be compensated if you did. But be sure to learn lessons from this unusual but not unprecedented rainy season and get ready for the next time.

Photo credit for preview image: Flickr user/U.S. Geological Survey

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Insurance Online : Are You Just Lost in the Flood?

In the aftermath of the rains that have drenched the East Coast, and particularly the Southeast, over the past couple of weeks, it’s time to take stock of the damage and sort through what’s covered by insurance, what might be, what’s not, and what to do going forward.

The TV weather folks have been assuring us that a number of factors converged to make this The Imperfect Storm. At any rate, some areas affected suffered heavy damage after getting a month or more’s rainfall in just a few days.

Here’s the skinny:

What’s not covered

First and foremost, understand that flood damage from rising waters is not covered by standard home insurance. You need a separate flood policy for that. A good place to start is the National Flood Insurance Program’s FloodSmart.gov website. If you’re counting on federal disaster relief, you should know that it usually comes in the form of a loan – that means it must be repaid.

Also not covered: Damage from sewer system backups, a common occurrence when there’s so much water. You can purchase an endorsement for your policy to cover this going forward.

What might be

If the combination of heavy rains and a leaky roof (that you didn’t know about) causes mold in your home, you could be covered. Obviously, it takes time for mold to develop, so this is a tricky one. Your best bet still is to check your roof now for missing shingles and leaks. To be thorough, you’ll also need to spend a little time in the attic, too, to look and feel for moisture, which is what causes mold.

If you find moisture, hire a professional to make sure it’s dried property before mold develops. Trust us on this – you’ll be glad you were proactive.

The other thing that could be covered is your car, even if it’s completely submerged by rising waters. The reason we say it ‘could’ be protected? Your auto insurance policy would have to include comprehensive coverage. Your lender likely requires this if you’re financing the vehicle.

What’s covered

Some other types of damage caused by the heavy rains likely would be covered. If the rain or wind involved in the storms the past couple of weeks caused roof damage, you’re likely covered. It the water leaking through the roof damaged furniture or electronics, it’s likely covered.

If the rain or wind caused a tree to fall on your house, your homeowners policy likely will protect you (even if it’s your neighbor’s tree). If winds caused a branch or other object to shatter your windows, again you’re likely covered. And again, any of your ‘stuff’ damaged because of the breaches to your roof, walls, or windows also could be covered.

What to do if you are covered

Assess the damage and take photos to document it. Contact your insurance provider as soon as it’s safe and get the claims process started.

Don’t make permanent repairs until you get the OK from your insurer, but you can take temporary measures to keep things from getting worse – for example, you could cover any holes in the roof or broken windows with tarps.

Going forward

There’s not much you can do at this point about damage from these storms that isn’t covered. But you can prepare yourself and your home for the next time. First, look into a flood policy. You say you don’t live in a high-risk flood area? Be aware that more than 20% of flood insurance claims come from areas that are lower risk.

And don’t put this off. Flood policies typically don’t take effect for 30 days after they’re purchased. And we’ve still got nearly two months of hurricane season left!

Finally, compile a home inventory – a room-by-room listing of your possessions, complete with photos, descriptions, and, when you have them, receipts. Make several copies, including an electronic one, and store them in safe places. This will greatly improve your claims process, regardless of the type of loss you suffer.

We sincerely hope you didn’t suffer damage and can be compensated if you did. But be sure to learn lessons from this unusual but not unprecedented rainy season and get ready for the next time.

Photo credit for preview image: Flickr user/U.S. Geological Survey

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Insurance Online : EHR Malpractice – Records Risk

The advent of electronic records has established a new opportunity for errors, which some have called Electronic Health Record (EHR) malpractice, and a new exposure for both medical malpractice insurance underwriters and for Cyber Risk Insurance underwriters. Health records are a critical component of any medical malpractice case, and can be beneficial or detrimental depending on how well the records are maintained. And these health records are all going electronic. Medical practitioners utilize and rely on electronic health records to provide care, and inaccuracies in the records can have significant consequences, both legal and operational. Health records are critical in medical malpractice litigation (see here): In the overwhelming majority of cases, health records are the “single-most important piece of evidence”...

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