5 Big Risks for Home-Based Business Owners to Watch Out For

Are you a home-based business owner? Though running a business from home can have a lot of upside, there are also many hazards that need to be guarded against. Read this article by Hartford to learn about 5 big risks you may face (and how to prepare for them).

Still have questions? Please feel free to get in touch with us!

5 Holiday Mishaps: Does Your Policy Cover That?

The Holidays are upon us! It is always good to be prepared, especially during the time of year when you will be having lots of family and friends over. Read Safeco's article here on 5 Holiday mishaps and whether or not they are covered by your policy.

Still have questions? Always feel free to give us a call!

Looking into Buying Renters Insurance? Ask Yourself These Questions First

Are you considering purchasing renters insurance? Check out this helpful article by Safeco Insurance: 8 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Buy Renters Insurance.

If you have questions regarding your current policy or decide to move forward with purchasing renters insurance, feel free to contact us. We're here to help!

Home Insurance: The Difference Between Market Value and Replacement Cost

"Choosing the right amount of home insurance coverage will allow you to rebuild your home in the event of a total loss. This amount is known as the replacement cost of your home, and it’s different from the market value of your home." 

Image and quote owned by Hartford insurance. To view original post on their site, click here. 

What does it mean to qualify for the ‘good driver’ discount in California?

What does it mean to qualify for the ‘good driver’ discount in California?

To some, being a good driver means you follow the speed limit and that you haven’t had any real bad accidents.  To the insurance company, the statement or discount for ‘good driver’ means more. 

Did you know in California you don’t even qualify for the good driver discount until you have three years licensing experience?  For example, if you are 18 and got your license at age 16, you don’t qualify.  The same goes if you are 30 and just got your license last week, you don’t qualify either.  The discount is not dependent on age, just licensing experience and that discount will not show up on your policy until that three years is met. 

Now that we understand how to qualify for the good driver discount let’s discuss how a driver can lose it.  Let’s say you are driving one day and you get pulled over.  The officer hands you a speeding ticket.  Do you lose that discount?  No.  One ticket, which equals one point on your record, won’t do you in.  It’s the second one you receive that will do it.  One ticket = one point on your record.  Two tickets or the combination of a ticket and an at fault accident will result in two points on your record, which means you lose the good driver discount.

Also, if the at fault accident results in your insurance company paying out bodily injury to the other party, then that counts as a two point occurrence.  

For more, visit:

http://www.alohawestinsurance.com/carlsbad-auto-insurance-car-insurance-san-diego-north-county-car-auto-insurance-encinitas-oceanside.php

What is this quote thing, and why do all of these numbers matter?

"In my field of health insurance, this question, or ones like it are frequently asked. I have a number of customers who, while having worked with an agent before, don't understand what a health insurance plan really does, but with a bit of guided reading, all of the numbers, networks, and plans become useful information as opposed to a bunch of insurance jargon.

When you are shopping for a plan, one of the most important things to keep in mind is that you as an individual have unique needs. If you are interacting with an agent or broker, a key topic to bring up is what medical services you need frequently. Every plan is different and some will fill your prescription, or cover your CAT scan, but some will not. With this in mind, and a list of insurance plans before you, there are some things to keep in mind as you look over your quote.

See the "deductible" and the "out of pocket maximum" categories on your quote? The dollar amounts listed are your responsibility. When you are paying for a plan, the insurance company gives some responsibility to you in order to reduce your monthly cost. For example, let's say that your plan has a $2,000 deductible and a $6,350 out of pocket maximum. Your responsibility is $2,000 in the course of a year, that includes the co-pays (dollar amounts for prescriptions, office visits, etc.), and usually 100% for things like hospital stays, surgery, and other large services. Once this deductible has been met, surgery, hospital stays, and other large services are attended to at a percentage of the cost. The out of pocket maximum is a sort of cap on expenses. That number (in our example $6,350) is the most you will have to pay for covered expenses per calendar year. (These numbers tend to double if there are two or more people on the plan together.)

You will also notice some letters near the plan name. Insurance plans have three structures, the HMO (health management organization),the EPO (exclusive provider organization), and the PPO (preferred provider organization).

The HMO was made popular by plans offered through employers. These plans tend to offer more services as every medical visit is prefaced by a trip to your "Primary Care Physician" or your family practice doctor. This physician determines whether or not you need to see specialists, or to receive testing.

The EPO is the next step up in terms of your access to care. The insurance company allows you to see specialists, get testing done, and many other services, but all doctors and hospitals seen must be inside the network of contracted doctors. These networks can be small in some zip codes, so it is always good to ask your agent if there is a large number of doctors in your area.

The PPO is the best way of accessing your doctors. In the past (before 2014), PPO networks were much larger than they are now, but you can still go outside of the network of doctors for care. This tends to come with higher medical costs as the insurance company does not offer the same coverage, but it is a viable way to have complete access to any doctor you want.

One thing that tends not to be on your quote is the Doctor list. In the past, it was easy to assume that if you signed up for a PPO, you would find plenty of doctors, but this is not always the case anymore.

I hope this short summary of insurance plans will help you assess which plan is best for you and your family, but I do encourage you to go to a local agent appointed with multiple insurance companies. They will have the resources to create a comparison of plans and find what will work best for you and your family (and they tend to not charge for service!).

[for more Click Here]

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The Admin of nationalmortgageprofessional.com posted image for public use and scoial sharing. A beautiful image, learn more about them at the website below:

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"

Post written by Johnny Savage. 

Link to post:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20140708202446-279645557-what-is-this-quote-thing-and-why-do-all-of-these-numbers-matter?trk=prof-post

--Permission granted to use as blog by Johnny Savage as Employee of Aloha West Insurance-

Workers Comp? But that employee is a 1099! (Who needs coverage)

"Are you a business owner? Thinking of starting a business? Perhaps your business is booming and you need to hire some help? Did you know it’s a California State Law to carry Workers Compensation insurance if you have employees? Perhaps you want to use independent contractors (aka 1099s)? You could still be held responsible for their Workers Compensation insurance.

How you ask?

If you have 1099’s that strictly work for you, on your time, at your demand, and you have the right to direct and control then you are responsible for providing Workers Compensation Insurance.

Protect yourself!

Verify the business or individual you hire has a license and insurance. If the industry doesn’t require a license, other tests to determine eligibility include:

• Whether the person performing the service has independently chosen the burdens and benefits of self-employment.
• Whether the person performing the service is engaged in a distinct occupation or business.
• The skill required in the particular occupation.
• Whether the employer or the person performing the service supplies the instrumentalities, tools,

and place of work.

• Whether the person performing the service has the right to hire and terminate others.
• The right to terminate the relationship at will.

How is the WC policy rated?

• Rate x $100 payroll x Experience Modifier= Premium

Premiums are determined at final year end audit. The insurance company verifies your projected payroll and your actual payroll records match. You could get a refund or you could get a bill. The goal is to break even and have a $0 balance. If your annual premium is less than $30,300, you will not have an Experience Modifier.

If you have questions or would like to learn more, contact us today!

Aloha West Insurance

760-547-2626

www.alohawestinsurance.com

"

Post written by Kelly Dirk. 

Link to post:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20140911192139-338837230-workers-comp-but-that-employee-is-a-1099-who-needs-coverage?trk=object-title

--Permission granted to use as blog by Kelly Dirk as Employee of Aloha West Insurance--