Today is the first day of summer and fire season is in full swing. As part of our continuing series on “what to do if,” today we will discuss, “what to do if you are ordered to evacuate by the Fire Department, Police Department, or local authorities.” While many people living in more developed areas will hopefully never have to deal with this situations, folks that live within a mile or so of areas that are experiencing fires may very well be ordered to evacuate. This exact situation happened to several of my policyholders during the Station Fire, and it has happened numerous times throughout recent history. Leaving your home due to fire or some other reason can be very traumatic for all involved, especially if you have young children. The uncertainty of what to take, what to leave behind, etc. can leave a family paralyzed with doubt and fear. Sometimes, people refuse to leave. This is a very, very bad idea. This is a bad idea for several reasons. First of all, their presence creates an extra burden on the authorities responsible for putting out the fire. They may possibly be required to commit extra resources to protecting that family, and leave other people or other people’s property unprotected. Also, if the situation becomes dire, the option of getting out may not be available. There have been many, many situations in which people who refused to leave their homes ended up losing their lives as well as their property. This is a tragic situation that could easily be avoided. Another reason that some people give when they refuse to leave their home is that they don’t know where they will stay. This is where having a good insurance agent, and good policy, come in. Most of the major insurance companies have a provision in their policies that will provide Additional Living Expenses (ALE) coverage in the event of an ordered evacuation. Your insurance policy will provide the additional costs associated with being away from your home, such as food, shelter, and clothing. What’s especially amazing about this coverage is that there is often NO DEDUCTIBLE! Additional Living Expenses coverage pays first dollar. Another way in which you can feel secure in leaving your home is that insurance companies respond to fires in much the same way that first responders do in that they identify areas that need resources and respond appropriately. Farmers Insurance, for example, has a sophisticated system of claims vehicles placed throughout the United States so that they can be up and running and serving policyholders within 12-24 hours of an identified event. In fact, Farmers is often the first insurance company on the scene and helps other insurance companies assist their clients. In the event of a catastrophic event, insurance companies generally work together to make people’s lives a little more bearable. So to recap, if you are ordered to leave, the best course of action is to….leave! If you live within a mile or so of a brush area, it would probably be wise to have a pre-packed “grab bag” that you can grab and go, depending on how much time you have available. If you have your “grab bag” already packed, and you have an hour to evacuate, you can then devote time to packing the irreplaceable items like family mementos, pets, or even some high value items that may be difficult to replace. If you live in horse country, the authorities will often direct you to the location where you can take large animals. It may also be a good idea to find a fellow horse owner BEFORE the fire who can temporarily board your animals. During fire season, be wise. Remember, there’s nothing in your house worth risking your life, or the lives of your loved ones. Get to a safe place, then call your insurance agent. I hope that this information has benefited you. This blog entry is not intended to replace advice on your specific situation. Contact an insurance professional to see how your specific situation may be addressed. You may also call me or my licensed staff at (661) 946-4224. You can also email me at dave@thedaveowens.com. Be safe!!
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Many of us (I mean, hardly ANY of us) have taken the time to actually read our homeowner’s insurance policy. Maybe we may have STARTED to read it, since we felt that knowing what was in our policy was a pretty important thing. I’ll tell you, that even for a hard-core insurance guy like me, slogging through all of the “who is an insured,” and “what is a contract,” and “time is of the essence” stuff in the insurance contract, well, it can get a little mind-numbing......
There are, however, little tidbits in the homeowner’s insurance contract that I’ll bet you didn’t know about. Items that could provide you with coverage in places and situations that you least expected! I’ll go over three different coverages that you may very well find yourself needing at some point in your life. First of all, your homeowner’s insurance policy could extend liability to another location. For example, if you were to buy a home in another part of the state, like in the mountains, and could only get a California Fair Plan policy, your homeowner’s insurance could be amended to provide liability to that location. In many cases, at absolutely no extra charge, or for very little charge. This is a huge amount of potential savings to you and your family! Call your insurance agent to make sure this coverage is included. Secondly, hall rental is probably covered by your policy. As some of us get older, we start facing the prospect of our kids getting married. Without opening up ANOTHER can of worms, insurance-wise, I’ll stick to talking about facilities’ rental. Most facilities require that you provide at least $1,000,000 worth of liability coverage prior to using their hall. If you were to get this coverage out on the open market, the cost would be around $150 per event: per location! Your homeowner’s insurance policy can most likely be temporarily tailored to accommodate the $1,000,000 requirement for just pennies a day. I have actually had policyholders tell me AFTER the wedding that they had paid close to $200 for event insurance that I could have provided for almost free. Yes, your homeowner’s policy can do that! Finally, your policy covers Additional Living Expenses. Did you know that your policy could provide you with a place to stay EVEN if absolutely nothing has happened to your house? This recently happened to a couple of my insureds. There were fires all around their neighborhoods, and the local law enforcement and fire departments had ordered residents to voluntarily evacuate. One of my insureds was hesitant to leave because it would have cost a large amount of money to get a hotel room. I called them personally to inform them that their policy would provide Additional Living Expenses (ALE) coverage EVEN IF nothing had happened to their home. All that was needed was an order from the Civil Authority to evacuate. Bottom line, the insurance company doesn’t want to have anybody in the home getting in the way in the event of a large-scale fire or incident. There you have it! Three different coverages that are provided at little or no cost to you, all included! To find out what additional coverages might apply to you, please give or office a call at (661) 946-4224 or email me at dave@thedaveowens.com. This article obviously does not take the place of speaking with a licensed professional about your policy. Make sure you look at your individual policy to see what is specifically covered. |
AuthorDave Owens, Owner/Agent. I have proudly served in the Insurance Industry for over 20 years. Archives
October 2019
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