Tag Archives: homeowners insurance

Five Reasons You Might Need to Upgrade Your Insurance

Outdoor living spaces have been a hot home design trend for the past few years. If you have been one of the many who recently added an outdoor living space, like an expanded deck or porch with seating, outdoor fireplace or kitchen, gazebo, pool, hot tub, etc., it may be time to check your homeowners insurance policy to ensure that those spaces are covered.

A recent article on the Equifax Finance Blog, “

5 Reasons to Update Your Homeowners Insurance This Summer,” gives five situations in which you might need to re-evaluate your policy.

If you recently made an outdoor improvement (these spaces may or may not be protected in your existing policy)
If your outdoor property is in poor condition (ex: an old wooden deck with deteriorating planks)
If you need different coverage (like bodily injury protection)
If you need more coverage (like the kind you can get with an umbrella policy added onto your existing property)
It’s been a while since you reviewed your policy (you may be eligible for savings or discounts)

Get more insurance tips and advice at the Equifax Finance blog, as well as tips on other finance topics like retirement, taxes,

credit ratings, identity protection and more.

Dealing With Injuries On Your Carolina Real Estate

homeowners insurance

homeowners insurance

Homeowners insurance is something that most people obtain and then forget about. After all, it’s not every day that an emergency occurs and forces you to dig up your policy information. If something does happen on your property, knowing how to handle the situation can save you plenty of stress in the long run.

In a recent article on the Equifax Finance Blog, “

Homeowners Insurance: Someone Gets Hurt On Your Property” Linda Rey offers advice for homeowners on what to do if someone gets hurt on your property.

If an accident does occur, you should first assess the extent of the injuries and determine whether or not to call 911. Depending on your relationship with the injured person, you may want to contact the police so both parties can make statements.

After that, try and take photos of everything – the injury (if possible) and the area where the accident occurred.

People with up-to-date insurance policies should have an attorney on retainer who will defend you if you are sued. If the injured party is merely looking for reimbursement of medical costs, your insurance policy should cover those expenses.

Regardless of the situation, call your insurance agent for guidance. An agent can help you much better if he or she knows about any injuries or potential claims right when they happen.

For more insurance advice, visit the

Equifax Finance Blog often. Let us know if this advice has been helpful.

Why You Should Cover Your Carolina Home With an Umbrella

Why should your home need an umbrella? Well, when litigation rains (and it seems to reign king in society these days), you’re going to want to make sure your home and all your assets are covered. An umbrella policy may be the extra coverage you need.

Especially for homes and families that have pools, dogs, teenagers, motorcycles, boats or RVs, lawsuits are the rain cloud that’s always hovering nearby. One accident, and you could end up paying with your current assets and your future earnings.

Homeowners insurance and auto insurance will cover some liability, but they have there limits. According to the

Equifax Personal Finance Blog, that’s where an umbrella policy steps in. It protects assets and income when the limits on your basic policies have been reached, plus it will step into some situations your other policies won’t touch.

The Equifax article, written by insurance expert Linda Rey, is titled “

Umbrella Insurance: The FAQs.” It says that some things an umbrella policy might cover where you would otherwise be left on your own are overseas claims, non-business-related personal injury cases, and liabilities that occur off your property.

Umbrella policies are sold in increments of $1 million, and you may think you don’t need one because you simply don’t own that much stuff. However, when you add the value of your Carolina home with your investments, assets, future earnings potential and even your future pension income, you may be surprised at how much you have to lose.

The good news is that you may be able to get a discount on your policy. Try purchasing auto, home and umbrella insurance from one provider, and you should receive a cut in your premiums. And that doesn’t count what you will save on peace of mind.

For more details on umbrella policies and to make comments or ask questions of the experts, visit the

Equifax Personal Finance Blog.