Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some of our more frequently asked questions. Some topics require longer discussions and can be found in our Blog .
If you have a question not addressed below, click Contact Us in the main menu and fill out the form. We will respond with the Question and Answer in this section or discuss it in a Blog Post.
So lets get started.
Insurance can be several things. It is one method of protecting your family and your possessions from financial loss. It is part of broader process known as Risk Management.
Insurance is basically a method of managing risks so one person does not experience financial ruin due to a large loss. Insurance spreads that risk across a large group of people and pays for the claims of the few who suffer a loss. As a result, insurance is sometimes referred to as a Shared Risk Proposition.
The short answer is “NO”. Full Coverage normally means that you have the following Auto coverages:
• Bodily Injury Coverage
• Property Damage
• Uninsured and Under Insured Motorists
• Medical Coverage
• Comprehensive Coverage
• Collision Coverage
• You may have towing / loss of use etc.
“Full Coverage” does not indicate how much of each coverage you have or what your deductibles are. It only indicates that you have those coverages.
It also does NOT mean that all of the damages you cause in an accident will be paid by the insurance company.
Liability coverage is included in almost all packaged insurance policies including auto and home insurance. For example: The liability portion of your auto policy will pay for losses or damages you are legally obligated to pay because of the operation of a covered vehicle.
If you hit someone else’s car with your car, your insurance company will pay for the damages to their car out of the Property Damage liability part of your policy. If you injure another person in an accident, your Bodily Injury liability coverages will pay for their medical bills etc.
But be careful. Just because you have liability coverage does NOT mean it will pay for anything you do. There are limits as shown on the declarations page of your policy. (This is normally the page with all of the numbers.) Your policy will pay for the damages / injuries you cause UP TO to those amounts.
Your Liability coverage is one of the most important coverages in your package of coverages. So, make sure you have enough.
If you have any questions about whether or not you have enough liability coverage give us a call or send us an email.
An accident is considered a Collision loss when your car collides with, strikes or hits something else, particularly something that is not moving like a light pole or pot hole. It also includes colliding with something moving, like another car. If you hit a car, that is a collision loss. If a another car hits you, that is a collision loss.
Having a collision loss does NOT mean you are at fault. That is another issue.
About the only exception to this is if you hit an animal which jumps out in front of your car. That is a comprehensive loss.
If you have some more questions about this, give us a call. There are a lot of possibilities.
The Comprehensive and Collision coverages are physical damage coverages for your car. Collision is discussed in another question. Comprehensive coverage basically protects you in the situations where Collision coverage does not provide any protection. It is sometimes called Other Than Collision coverage. These are some examples of the more common types of comprehensive losses:
• Glass Damage
• Hitting an animal like a deer.
• Hail damage
• Wind damage
• Flood damage
• Theft of your car
• Theft of some parts of your car. (Not household goods.)
• Fire
These are losses that you have very little, if any control over. If you have questions about this give us a call @ 419-874-8055 or Contact Us.
An accident is considered an At Fault accident when you have SOME degree of responsibility for the accident. At Fault accidents are normally chargeable and will often cause an increase in your insurance premiums.
You would most likely be 100% At Fault if you hit another car in the rear and you were NOT pushed into that car by a car which hit you in the rear. This would apply even if you stepped on your brakes and your car skidded on wet payment. You are supposed to maintain a safe distance between your car and the car in front of you considering all driving and road conditions.
Another At Fault situation would occur if you and another car were both trying to pull into the same parking space at the same time. Both would probably be considered At Fault in this situation.
Most insurance carriers will only charge you for At Fault accidents. Others will charge you for ANY activity or claim. So, keep all claims activity to a minimum.
If you have any other questions about At Fault accidents, call us at 419-874-8055 or click the Contact Us link at the top of the page.
The amount of coverage on your home is often listed as the dwelling coverage. For many packaged homeowners policies, this is the amount of money that the insurance company has calculated will be required to replace your home if it is totally destroyed. This amount is often referred to as the Replacement Cost of your home.
The amount of money your “Home is Worth” is the Market Value of your home. Or what someone is willing to pay for your home on the open market.
The difference between these two numbers is often caused by the location of the home, maintenance and depreciation over time. A new home built in a very popular area will have a higher market value than an old home that is not very well maintained in a less popular area.
The question that some people ask is “Should I insure my home for Replacement Cost Values or Market Value? ” Contact Us and we can talk about that.
Your dwelling coverage limit protects the home and structures connected to it such as an attached garage.
Structures that are NOT connected to the house are considered separate structures. This is a partial list:
• Detached Garage
• Fences
• Pool
• Shed
• Barn
• Children’s play house
• Pole barn
Many homeowners have very few if any separate structures and the package policy minimums are usually adequate. But others do have separate structures that require more attention to be insured properly.
If you have something that you think might be a “separate” structure and you have a question, Contact Us.