Do YOU have an Umbrella Liability Policy?

🤦🏼‍♀️ Sheesh.

The world of Personal Property and Casualty Insurance is SO convoluted and confusing. It is for this reason, that I love helping clients make sure they have the right coverages.

I wanted to share my recent learnings from reviewing my own coverages. I speak the language, and I will admit that this was QUITE THE ORDEAL! I have had multiple conversations with multiple agents in my quest to achieve the best coverage at the best price.

I wanted to share some of what I learned in the process, and provide an offer to review your coverages for you. 

🚘 Let's start with car insurance.

🚘 Make sure you have the appropriate coverages here - especially for liability and Un/Underinsured Motorists. I'm now paying more for higher coverage limits that I feel good about. Note, my policy was initially just sent to me -- with no review. I had to make this review happen.

🚘 Before you use your car insurance to replace/repair your windshield, call your agent. I was told that insurers are considering these as 'claims' which could increase your premiums.

🚘 Insurers charge for 'Roadside Service.' If you have your own coverage, in our case we pay a different service, you may want to discuss the cost/benefit of that coverage.

🚘 Rental car reimbursement - make sure you have enough, if being without a car is a hardship. Rental prices have increased, and your current coverage may not be enough if you find yourself needing a rental.

🏠 Now let's discuss home insurance.

🏡 You should understand the true cost of rebuilding your home, in a disaster. So many inputs, think labor and materials, have increased in price these last few years, but oftentimes our replacement values in our policies have not.

🛁 Also, have you renovated, added solar panels, or made other improvements? Discuss these updates with your agent. They are too busy to ask, and as a result, we're often underinsured.

🖼️ 💍 Do you need a special endorsement or policy, to cover any precious items such as artwork or jewelry? Be sure to discuss this!

🏖️ And last -- UMBRELLA insurance!  What IS an Umbrella Liability Policy, and do I need one?

Umbrella policies provide insurance coverage above your auto, home, or renter policies -- just like a real ☂️ umbrella. It serves as an added layer of protection should you find yourself or a family member in a sticky situation where you're being sued beyond the limits of your home/auto policies. 

👍🏽 As a rule of thumb, you should consider having coverage up to your LIQUID NET WORTH, with a $1 million minimum.

So if you have $2 million in retirement and taxable assets, we would want at least a $2 million umbrella liability policy. The additional premium dollars are not exorbitant, and well worth the 'sleep at night' factor. I was recently quoted approximately $300 per $1 million dollars of coverage. However, my CURRENT carrier was way more expensive. In fact, I'm still pushing back on them to find a different carrier.

💸 And if your liquid assets exceed $5 million, you should be discussing coverage limits with higher end insurers. While your coverage may cost you more, you'll improve your protection.

📆 If you're a current client, and would like an insurance review, please send me your "declaration pages" of your existing insurance policies. A "deck" page is the initial pages of your policy, that we look at when reviewing/updating your coverage.

🤔 If you're not a client, but would like to review your coverage, please schedule an insurance consultation here.

The opinions voiced are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. And of course please note that this email is not intended for specific tax or insurance advice. Consult your advisors.