Are electronics your child takes to school covered under your home insurance policy?
Are electronics your child takes to school covered under your home insurance policy?
It’s almost that time of year again - back to school for many students of all age groups.This past year has brought about many changes, with one major one being the increased use of technology used ‘in the classroom’.
While many schools may provide technology to support learning, there will be times when students will be taking their own electronics to school with them.
Naturally, many parents will be wondering whether these devices are covered under their previous home insurance policies. To answer this question, it is important to know that it will likely depend on when and where, and how these devices are being used.
For instance, while a range of personal belongings, including electronics are covered under the main home insurance policy, the use of these electronic away from the home may change this scenario.
Peril Insurance, for example, can help protect items lost or damaged in the home due to events such as fire or flooding, as well as theft and vandalism. However, this initial home policy may not be valid when it comes to covering replacement costs for items that have been damaged or lost while being used at school or on the way to and from school.
With that being said, it will most likely be necessary to purchase additional coverage for this type of expense. With the extended coverage for personal contents, specifically for electronics used outside of the home, these costs, up to a certain value, can be claimed depending on the extent and nature of the damage to these items.
This will typically include, devices that are either lost or stolen, as well as those that are subjected to accidental damages. In some cases, accidental damage coverage will also be its own specific add-on to the current policy.
It is also important to factor into the situation of whether a child is attending day school or attending university or college away from home. If your child, for example, is moving away for a school term, however it is not considered a permanent move, many home insurance policies can be adjusted to protect the electronics they are using while away at post-secondary institutions.
Alternatively, if your child moves away on a more permanent basis, then it is more than likely that they will need to look at purchasing renters’s insurance to support the coverage of these types of devices.
In the end, it is commonplace that a current home insurance policy will need to be re-evaluated to include extra contents coverage for items such as these electronics, especially those that are being used outside of the home.
If you find that your child will be using electronics away from home this school year, it is recommended that you discuss your options with an insurance agent who has direct knowledge of these policies.
At Leaders Insurance, we are happy to re-visit your existing home insurance package with you, in order to help you feel more assured that your coverage meets all of your home contents needs, this school year and into the future.
How Home Renovations Can Impact your Home Insurance
How Home Renovations Can Impact your Home Insurance
As a homeowner, having the proper home insurance is an important part of maintaining your home. While there are different types of coverage for different home ownership realties, one aspect of your home insurance policy to give some additional consider, is how home a renovation will impact your coverage.Whether planning to transform your home on a large or smaller scale, there are elements of your current policy that may covers these, and others that may not be covered.
When re-evaluating your home insurance, one initial step is to identify the nature of your renovating needs. For example, will this be a minor project or a major one.
If you are planning a smaller sized reno, then is it possible that your current coverage may still be suitable. For example, if you are painting or touching up some small features of your home, this may not require any further insurance.
However, if you are planning for a major construction job, then re-assessing your coverage is definitely in your best interests.
With that being said, if your home or property becomes a ‘construction site’, there are many extenuating circumstances that can occur and this will add some more risk to your role as a homeowner.
Some Additional Factors to Consider
As mentioned, undergoing a major renovation will require additional considerations. First and foremost, your home may turn into a construction zone of sorts, and this might mean there will be building items and equipment left on your property during this time. If this is case, then having extra insurance for instances such as vandalism or theft may be worth an added precaution and in turn, an adjustment to your insurance may be warranted.
Secondly, you may also want to factor in business liability or general liability insurance as this will help to cover professional contractors who are working on your property. In the event, the contractor’s actions lead to damages to your property or the property of others, this specific type of coverage can help you cover these costs.
Another scenario worth considering, is whether you will need to move out of your home during the renovation process. If this is the case, and if you are not residing in the home for more than 30 days, you may also want to look into whether or not you need to obtain extra coverage known as a Vacancy Permit. If necessary, this added insurance peace can help keep your home covered during this timeframe.
Finally, adding onto your home can also increase the value of your home. As a result, it may be necessary to add on more insurance to cover needs such as replacement costs in a variety of situations. Should your home, for example, require repairs due to water and fire damage, to mention a few, you are ensuring your have enough coverage to align with these types of unexpected expenses.
In the end, when you are in the beginning stages of planning to renovate your home, it is best to get in touch with your home insurance agent to find out more about what additional insurance may be required.
To ensure you have right coverage, Leaders Insurance can assist you in identifying your home insurance renovation needs. We look forward to helping you make your home renovations dreams come true.
The In & Outs of Commercial Insurance
The In & Outs of Commercial Insurance
Whether you own a small, medium or larger sized business, there are specific types of insurance coverage that will meet individual business needs. To learn more and to help identify the type of commercial coverage you should consider for your business, here is some more information that will give you a clearer picture of the the different types of existing commercial insurance.
What Type of Commercial Do You Need?Property Insurance
Property Insurance is a key aspect of a commercial policy. This type of insurance can cover a broad range of areas, including various potential damages to your property. In the event, there is damage done to your physical business assets, exterior property fixtures, this coverage can help with repair and replacements costs.
Damages or losses that occur as a result of fire, flooding, storms, vandalism and thefts are circumstance that are commonly covered under these plans.
Specific property items that are typically covered under the insurance policy will include, computers and other business equipment and documents, furniture and inventory, other’s property, indoor and outdoor signage, and the building premise, itself.
In the event, you may have to shut down all or partial areas of your business, having Business Interruption Insurance can be greatly beneficial as it can help you to continue to pay your bills, while also meeting payroll needs.
Do You Need Extended Coverage?
While properly insurance is a main type of insurance coverage you will want to include in your policy, there are other areas of coverage also worth some additional consideration and these typically fall under the scope of extended coverage.
Professional Liability
Professional Liability insurance can support any legal fees you may be subject to as a result of being found at fault for any professional services you have supplied. For example, this may include instances of customers claims that the work or services did not fulfil contractual agreements.
Product Liability
Also relating to customer claims, however in this case specific to the products and services themselves being faulty or problematic, this Product Liability coverage can protect you by also reimbursing expenses associated with your legal defence needs.
Cyber Insurance
Regardless of the size of your business, having cyber insurance in place is an important way of protecting your business against a range of cyber-attacks and the financial costs that can occur as a result. Some of these threats include, loss of income from online sales disruption, data loss, as well as damages affecting business reputation and legal defence expenses.
Auto Insurance
If your business involves the operation of vehicles, having commercial auto insurance is also a good idea. Similar to personal auto insurance, business auto coverage, relates to damages to vehicles related to theft and vandalism, and storm-related destruction. Commercial auto policies can help with replacement and repairs costs of your company vehicles.
Equipment Breakdown Insurance
One final type of commercial coverage also worth mentioning, is known as Equipment Breakdown Insurance. To avoid, significant loss of operations and income, this type of insurance can help with repair and replacements costs so that your business can be back up and running as soon as possible.
When all is said and done, there are many aspects of commercial insurance that you will want to consider. To learn more about the ins and outs of commercial insurance, connecting with and insurance agent can provide the most effective pathway forward.
Contact Leaders Insurance and we can help you find the most comprehensive commercial insurance coverage for your unique business needs.
Top Cyber Trends for 2021
Cyber Security 2021 (Top Trends)
Issues of cyber security have been an ongoing challenge for companies and individuals for many years now. With that being said, there certainly has been an increase in these threats in the past year, perhaps partially responsible for some of these issues occurring more readily, is the shift to more online and remote work.Whether or not your company’s security has experienced the increase in cyber attacks due to remote or in person working environments, the reality is that keeping your data private has likely become even more necessary compared to in previous years.
Here are some of the top trends in cyber security to be aware of in 2021.
Increase in Ransomware Attacks
The unwanted presence of ransom-ware attacks have been on the rise and companies are being threatened with issues that can range from frozen internal systems, stolen software and data breaches – often coming at a high financial cost.
In order to help protect these cyber weaknesses, you can to turn to products that can ensure a stronger perimeter around your networks. Cyber Security products such as SASE (secure access service edge) and XDR (extended detection and response) to mention a few are designed to support these purposes and can also be used in remote working environments.
Broadening Scope of Phishing Scams
Other major cyber-attacks that have escalated this past year, is malware and phishing scams. While these are not new occurrences, cyber thieves has definitely seemed to have expanded their scope, as they continue to look to steal confidential data through various means. These include email and social media accounts, and text messaging systems, where a link is attached, and if accessed, information and internal systems can become compromised.
That being said, text message or SMS-related phishing scams, knowns as ‘smishing’, have been more common place lately as well, and while email systems may already filter out these as spam, text messaging platforms do not typically have the same initial protections in place. With more employees working remotely, the use of cell phones and text messaging has also become a more common form of communication and as a result, can be more easily accessed by employees and businesses unknowingly.
In addition to increased employee diligence, such as not opening links from individuals or organizations you do not recognize, businesses can also protect themselves by implementing anti-virus software that requires URL/domain authentication.
The bottom line really is, that by being proactive and having these important cyber security measures in place, you will stand a better chance of being able to fend off the damaging effects of cyber attacks. Looking into the types of products and services that will be best for you is an important step in the right direction.
Growing Importance of Cyber Insurance
Furthermore, you can also elevate your own level of protection by having the right cyber insurance for your needs.
With a high volume of cyber claims typically ranging from hacking, phishing and ransomware threats, it is even more critical that you factor in this type of insurance into the management your business, whether you are working remotely or in person.
At Leaders Insurance, we want to help you protect your business. Contact us to find out more about the insurance policies we offer and how you can continue to stay on top of cyber security in 2021.