There’s more to insuring your jewelry than you think…

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Sun Insurance Services

You might be surprised to know that most FL homeowner policies provide very limited coverage for jewelry. Why? Here are a few reasons; jewelry has high value, is easily lost or destroyed and is vulnerable to theft and fraud. If you own a few hundred dollars of jewelry, the limited coverage provided by a basic policy is adequate. However, if you own a substantial amount, you might want to consider buying special insurance coverage. You could buy supplemental insurance that would be attached to your homeowners or tenant’s policy. You could also purchase a separate jewelry policy.

Sun Insurance Services Insures Your Jewelry

Protect your jewelry investment under the Sun...

It’s really important to understand what your policy includes. Does the coverage consider jewelry values that increase over time? Will it cover mysterious disappearance (when you know the property is gone, but don’t know when or how?) What about other loss, or just fire and theft? Knowing the answer to these questions will help you understand the steps you must take to make sure that you keep the best amount of coverage in force and whether or not the coverage you receive is worth the additional price.

Here are some tips for taking good precautions with your jewelry:

Get new appraisals every two or three years, sending a copy to your insurer
Take photos of your jewelry from several angles; again, share copies with your agent or insurance company
Consider a quality in-home security system, including a hidden vault or storage area
Take care on where and when your jewelry is worn to try to avoid becoming a theft target
Keep original receipts and all appraisals, especially if they demonstrate that the jewelry’s value is appreciating
Ask your jeweler whether they have access to “Gemprint,” or a similar jewelry identification system that documents a jewel’s distinctive markings much in the manner of fingerprinting.
Consider storing jewelry that is rarely worn in a bank or saving institution’s vault. (Note that such special storage often qualifies for an insurance premium discount)

Our Jim really cares about your gems and wants to make sure you have the coverage you need at a price you can afford… Contact us today at Sun Insurance Services about protecting your jewelry investment.

Paying your Homeowner’s Insurance while in Foreclosure is the smart thing to do…

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Tonia Brewer

We are certainly not out of the woods yet, but certain economic indicators seem to be hinting at better times. Retail spending was up this past holiday season and, unemployment is coming down. Unfortunately, here in Florida we are still dealing with a very high rate of home foreclosures. Florida has consistently been among the Top 5 states with the highest foreclosures rate since the subprime mortgage mess exploded. The combination of speculative buying and rising consumer debt have resulted in thousands of homes being abandoned.

Many people are unable to make their mortgage payments and are sitting tight waiting for the foreclosure process to reach their door. Others are opting to walk away. Times are tough and we are all looking for ways to cut back. While it might be tempting, one bill you should not skip is your homeowners insurance policy. You could find yourself in a much worse situation by letting your policy lapse or not renew.

The foreclosure process can be quite lengthy and until it is completed, YOU are still liable for what happens on the property. Let’s say you are not living in, or maintaining the home, and the pool turns dark green and a child falls in and drowns… or, a tree from your yard falls on your neighbor’s house… You are responsible. Just because you are not paying your mortgage or maybe not even living there, does not absolve you of your accountability. Moreover, do not forget, the policy is in place to protect you and your belongings!

Another downside to not paying or renewing your homeowners insurance, is that the mortgage company could opt for a Force Placed policy that could cost you 4x the average rate. This policy (paid directly to the lender) only covers the remaining loan balance and lacks two things you need…liability, and, contents coverage. If you cannot afford to pay your insurance, here are some things that could be done to assist you:

Alter coverage’s
Raise deductibles.
If you are not living at the property, it might be possible to lower your liability insurance.

It can be expensive to reinstate insurance and some companies may even require you to pay a year’s premium upfront if you have lapsed. Don’t be stressed or embarrassed. You are not alone in this situation! Sun Insurance is here to assist you! Contact us today; we will help you do the right thing!

Are YOU ready to get out of Citizens?

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Tonia Brewer

Citizens was designed to be the insurer for FL homeowners who have no other options, not for insurance agents who have no other options! Currently, Citizens is talking about increasing premiums, decreasing coverage’s, and non-renewing policies!

Did you know that as a Citizens policyholder:

If Citizens sustains a deficit as a result of hurricane losses (or any other reason), your policy could be subject to surcharges as high as 45% of your premium?
Despite what you may have been told, Citizens Property Insurance is not supported by the full faith and credit of the state of Florida?

Based on information we have received from Citizens, we believe you qualify for coverage with one of Florida’s most prestigious, stable, insurance companies, Tower Hill Insurance.

If you would like to talk about better coverage, premiums and service, than you currently have for your home, contact us today for a quote with Tower Hill!

Sun Insurance, we revolve around you…

Our SUNny agents are ready to treat you right!

Call us 866.786.4615

This is going to BLOW you away!

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Tonia Brewer

Do not stop reading this if you are a Florida homeowner. Last week, our Orlando agency saved a client $2148 on his homeowner’s policy. Yes, you read that right $2148. Come on!….That is impressive! How did we do this you ask? Well, first, we educated him about his policy and then, we encouraged him to get a wind mitigation inspection for his home! As of March 1, 2002, the state of Florida mandated (Florida statute 626.0629) that insurance companies reduce rates for buildings that have specific wind mitigation features that enable them to better withstand storms.

Ninety percent (90%) of all homes built in Florida between 1980-2001 are eligible for this premium savings. Homes with a new roof after 2002 will benefit as well. That more than likely means your home. Some of the money saving features of wind mitigation includes:

Roof Covering
Roof Deck Attachment
Roof to Wall Connection
Secondary Water Resistance
Roof Shape
Roof Shutters
Type of construction

Making sure that your home has these features will not only provide for significant savings on your Florida homeowners insurance, it will also increase its market value! You can learn a few DIY tips for protecting your home against wind damage with this short video. To get the full benefit on your homeowner’s policy, you will need to do three things. First, you need to contact us at Sun Insurance Services! We will review your current policy and use our independence to provide you with the best rate and coverage you can buy! Then, you will need to hire a professional to provide you with a wind mitigation inspection and certificate (this will run you about $100). Knowing exactly how your home is constructed gives the best chance for a larger discount.

Lastly, you will need to decide what you will do with an extra $500-$800 a year in your pocket (or maybe $2148)! Don’t wait, it’s the perfect time of year to give yourself a gift that keeps on giving!

Allstate Removes Florida Homeowners Alarm Credits

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Dee Brandt

Earlier this week, WFTV reported that Castle Key, Allstate’s Florida insurance carrier, is removing the alarm credits from all of its homeowner’s policies. This change could result in an increase in premium of 10% – 20%. If you currently have a Florida h omeowner’s insurance policy with Allstate, check your renewal to see if your policy has been affected by this adjustment.

If you have been affected and would like to talk about better options, contact us today. As an independent insurance agency based in Orlando and serving all of Florida, we have access to dozens of homeowners’ carriers that have not removed the alarm credit…

Saving Time…

Posted on November 4, 2011 by Tonia Brewer

This weekend marks the end of Daylight Savings Time (DST). Most of us will wind our clocks back an hour at 2 a.m. this coming Sunday morning. Why do we do this? How did it all come about? I think you will find several interesting facts in our journey…

Did you know?

No federal rule mandates that states or territories observe daylight saving time? In fact, federal law only states that the switch back to standard time take place at 2a.m. on November 4, each year.
The U.S. Naval observatory in Washington D.C. sets “standard time” in the U.S. through the maintenance of atomic clocks but they have nothing to do with DST.
The overseeing of DST first resided with the Interstate Commerce Commission in 1918 (they were the only federal regulatory agency that existed at the time) then, in 1966 Congress gave that responsibility to the newly formed Department of Transportation (DOT).
The DOT overseeing time dates way back to they heydays of railroads. When the railroads came along, it became apparent that some sort of standardization was necessary so schedules could be published!
1883 the US railroad industry established official time zones with a set standard time within each zone. Congress signed the time zone system into law in 1918.

Part of the Act of 1918 legislated for DST nationwide but that was repealed the next year and given back to local jurisdictions. We then nationally observed DST during WWII but not uniformly after the war. In 1966 Congress passed The Uniform Time Act, standardizing the start and end dates for daylight saving time. It allowed for states to remain on standard time if their legislatures permitted it. Arizona, and Hawaii are the only two states that don’t observe DST along with the American territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and America Samoa.

Why DST? The reasoning for DST was to allow for daylight hours when most people are awake and moving about! The research has shown that more available daylight increases energy savings while decreasing the number of traffic accidents, traffic fatalities, and incidences of crime.

So, don’t forget to set your clocks back this Sunday! It’s also a great time to change your batteries in all smoke detectors and check your vehicles tires for the correct inflation pressure! Did you know that the correct pressure will not only help optimize tire performance and fuel economy but that proper pressure also stabilizes the tire’s structure, blending the tire’s responsiveness, traction and handling, keeping you safer on the road!

When saving money on insurance can be a bad thing

Posted on February 3, 2011 by jamie

I was looking over my last few posts here on the blog and I spotted a trend. I’ve written a lot lately about how to save money on insurance. It’s a common request from our clients and understandably so. Who wants to spend more than you need to for an insurance policy? Definitely not me. But there is a caveat here. Sometimes the desire to save can get in the way of buying the policy that you really need.

I touched on this in a recent post but I think it’s worth repeating. If you choose an insurance policy based purely on price, or if you strip important coverages out just to save money, it will cost you more in the end. I’ll give an example unrelated to insurance that helps to illustrate this concept.

How can you be mad at a face like this?

A couple of weeks ago my 6-month-old puppy decided to chew through the cord of our iron. Thankfully it wasn’t plugged in at the time but she definitely rendered it useless. I went to Target to buy a new one and discovered there is a whole range of irons to choose from. You can buy one for $10 that basically just has an on/off button or you can buy one for $30 that has all sorts of bells and whistles. (Too bad they don’t have one that will iron for you!) So I stood there checking out the irons and finally I decided to go the cheap route and bought the one for $10. We used it maybe five times before one day I turned it on and it just wouldn’t get hot. Unfortunately I didn’t save the receipt or the box it came in so I had no choice but to trash it and buy a new one. This time I bought the middle of the line model for $18.

The moral of the story here? I ended up spending more because I shopped purely on price. Had I spent a few extra dollars the first time I would have saved myself time, hassle and money. The same can apply to insurance.

We’re experts on insurance. We can tell you exactly what type of insurance policy you need and shop around to find the best price. Call it the Goldilocks Experience. We’ll make sure you don’t spend too much or too little. It will be just right for you!

–
Sun Insurance Services, Inc. is a family-owned and operated insurance agency located in Orlando, Florida. We write with twenty of Florida’s most prestigious insurance carriers and offer our clients a broad range of choice and customization for their insurance needs. Find us on the Web at www.suninsuranceservices.com.

Lower your home owner insurance costs

Posted on January 26, 2011 by jamie

Homeowners insurance premiums often take a substantial bite out of a family’s budget. You may, however, be paying too much for this coverage. The following are some approaches you can use to reduce your homeowners insurance costs.

Try to increase your deductible to the highest one you can afford, even if the premium savings do not appear to justify it. This will decrease your premium and increase the likelihood that your loss history will be excellent, since minor losses will be paid by you and not your insurance company. A loss-free record over time saves premium dollars. For example, if you currently have a $250 deductible on your homeowners policy, consider increasing it to $500 or $1,000.
Consider purchasing a monitored burglar alarm. Alarms have proven successful in reducing burglary rates. In addition, most insurers provide premium discounts to consumers with these alarms, some as high as 20 percent.
Maintain your home in optimum condition. If a repair is needed, perform it as soon as possible. For example, loose or missing roof shingles should be repaired or replaced immediately. A home in excellent condition is much less likely to experience a loss.
Buy your home insurance and your auto insurance from the same company. Discounts normally apply when you do. There’s only one company in Florida that offers this type of combo product and we are one of the few agents who offer it! Call to find out if you can save by combining coverages into one policy with AAA Insurance.

Get more personal lines insurance and risk management tips and ideas from IRMI.

Want to pay less for insurance? Choose an independent insurance agent.

Posted on December 21, 2010 by jamie

There are lots of commercials on TV and radio advertising for insurance. Most are by the “big name” advertisers like Allstate, Nationwide or Geico urging you to call their 800 number or visit their Web site for the lowest insurance price. It seems like a good way to buy insurance because it’s fast and it’s a name you’ve seen a hundred times so they seem trustworthy. It’s not really the best way to buy insurance though and here’s a great reason why.

Price!

Nine times out of ten people want to buy the cheapest insurance policy they can find. I like to save money just as much as the next person so I completely understand this mentality but it’s really not the best way to choose your insurance policy. Let’s say you go online and buy home insurance from Allstate and you pick the one with the cheapest price tag. The policy is issued, you file your papers away and forget about it. Then six months later you have an electrical fire and everything in your living room is burned and ruined. You call the insurance company to file your claim and they tell you that you don’t have coverage for the things inside your home, only for the actual structure of your home. Now you have to foot the bill to buy a new couch, coffee table, lamps, carpet, entertainment center, television, etc.! It’s easily a $7,000 problem you’re facing all because you opted to “save” $300 a year by choosing the cheapest insurance policy. So did you really save? No.

The best way to save money on insurance is to find an independent insurance agency like Sun Insurance Services. Independent agents are like brokers who have access to dozens of insurance companies that don’t sell directly to the public. The independent agent can look at what you need and then shop around to find you the best price while still making sure you have a policy that offers you the right kind of coverage.

Most homeowners in Florida can tell you that insurance prices can go at renewal time so if your policy is with someone like State Farm or Allstate and your premium goes up you’re stuck with it. If you’re with an independent agent they can shop around at renewal time for you and find a better rate.

Unless you are very knowledgeable about the insurance industry it’s best to turn to an expert to help you find the right insurance for you and your family. Price is just one aspect of insurance so it shouldn’t be the only thing you consider when shopping.

Sun Insurance is based in Orlando, Florida and we sell all lines of insurance from home insurance and auto insurance to business insurance and liability. We are more than happy to help you find the best insurance policy for your needs at a price you feel good about. Call or visit us online today at www.suninsuranceservices.com.

What is Force-Placed Insurance Coverage?

Posted on November 22, 2010 by jamie

If you have noticed your mortgage payment has increased, or you received an expensive bill from your mortgage company stating it was for homeowners insurance, you might be paying for force placed insurance coverage.

This is a type of insurance coverage that a mortgage company purchases when the homeowner lets their insurance policy lapse or they don’t pay their insurance premiums. It can also happen if you change insurance companies but don’t tell your mortgage company leading them to believe you don’t have coverage at all.

A force-placed policy only protects the mortgage company’s interest in the outstanding loan. There is no coverage for adjacent structures, personal property, or additional living expense for the homeowner so it’s not the type of policy you want for your home.

Also, the force-placed policy is normally in the name of the mortgage company. Sometimes the actual homeowner is added as an additional insured. However, it is the mortgage company’s policy and they have all rights as the insured, although the premium is charged to the homeowner.

This means if your home were to be destroyed by something like a fire or natural disaster, you wouldn’t receive any money from the insurance company for contents or to rebuild.