What’s the Difference between an Insurance Agent and a Broker?

insurance agent and broker

An insurance agent and a broker are both licensed professionals that assist individuals and businesses with purchasing an insurance policy. Although they both generally work towards the same goal, they have very different obligations.

In this article, we’ll discuss the key differences between an agent and a broker. This way if you ever find yourself choosing between the two you’ll know the benefits of each. Let’s get started.

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The Benefits of Life Insurance

benefits of life insurance

Life insurance is always a sound investment, especially when considering the well-being of your family. But even if it is a wise investment to make, it is usually very difficult to think about. No one likes to think about leaving their family behind, but it is something you need to plan for.

In this article, we’ll discuss the benefits of life insurance and how often you should look over and update your policy.

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Common Life Insurance Myths

life insurance

Around 267 million people in the US have insurance policies, making it one of the largest industries in the country. However, people often consider life insurance to be confusing and tricky due to all the rules and technicalities. You may be wondering do I even need it and how much coverage should I get?

Whether or not you decide you need life insurance, we are here to clear up some common misconceptions regarding it. Let’s begin.

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Fall Lawn Maintenance Tips for Georgia Homeowners

Have you started conducting your annual fall maintenance tasks? Now that it’s November, it’s a good time to start checking off those items on your to-do list. Taking care of your lawn in the fall is important to avoid headaches come springtime. Also, your yard is an extension of your home; therefore, many homeowners enjoy relaxing and entertaining in these spaces.

In this post, we’ve compiled some of the most important fall lawn maintenance tips for Georgia homeowners.

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Do I Need to Winterize My Boat in Georgia?

Since the temperature has begun to fall, many boat owners are winterizing their boats. However, you may notice many boaters claiming that they don’t need to winterize their boats. Well, in some cases, they’re right. Many anglers can continue fishing without winterizing their boat. However, if you have a boat with an inboard engine, you’ll need to take a few precautionary measures.

This may lead to many questions such as “do I need to winterize my boat?” If you’re a boat owner living in Georgia, this article will answer your question.

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How to get Atlanta car insurance from Auto-owners

Atlanta car insurance from Auto-owners

Atlanta car insurance from Auto-owners

If you’re looking to get car insurance, you probably want to get coverage that will truly be there for you when you need it. There are a lot of insurance carriers out there, and you’re curious about getting Auto-owners car insurance. But you aren’t sure that you want to go on that adventure alone…insurance is a little scary. And besides, how does one get a car insurance quote for Auto-owners car insurance in Atlanta? Here’s how our team can help you get a quote.

How to get a quote for Atlanta car insurance from Auto-owners.

1. Let us know you’re looking for car insurance.

The first thing that happens in this whole process is that you let us know that you need car insurance. Our team is really good at insurance stuff…not so much at reading minds. Anyway, we want to make insurance as easy as possible. That’s why we have a few different ways you can get in touch with us. You get to choose how you deal with your insurance. We don’t want to make insurance something that’s horribly frustrating, and our goal is to help you avoid the stress and headache that can come along with insurance. Here are a few ways you can get in touch with our team.

Phone. You can simply give us a call to let us know about your need for car insurance quotes. We enjoy having a nice chat on the phone, so if that works best for you, just give us a call and we would be happy to have a conversation with you about Atlanta car insurance from Auto-owners. We know that sometimes it’s easiest just to get things over with via a quick phone call.

LiveChat. You can also LiveChat with our team to find out more about Atlanta Auto-owners car insurance and whether it’s a good fit for you. If you’re not a big fan of talking on the phone, that’s no problem. That’s what our LiveChat is there for. Go ahead and reach out to us with LiveChat if that’s what you’d prefer.

Online form. We also have an online form that you can use to get in touch with our team. The form lets us gather some of the important details we need to get your car insurance quote. It’s a quick form – we don’t want to take up too much of your time. With this information, we can get straight to business and getting you that quote.

Email/Text. If you aren’t able to have a talk on the phone or sit at the computer chatting with us, that’s fine. We can email or text with you about your insurance – you just have to let us know that you’d prefer to email or text and we can definitely do that.

2. We have a quick chat about your insurance.

The next thing that happens is that we’ll have a quick chat about your insurance needs. We want to make sure that we get you the coverage that suits your needs. We’ll introduce ourselves and make sure we have all the information we need to get you the coverage that will suit your needs. We know you’ve got a lot on your plate, though, so we won’t take up too much of your time. We’re in the business of making insurance easy, after all.

3. Then we get your insurance quote.

And then comes the moment we’ve all been waiting for: we’ll go get your insurance quote. We enjoy getting quotes at light speed so we’ll do our best to get you that quote ASAP.

4. We’ll go over your quote with you.

When we bring the quote back to you, we’ll answer any questions you might have about the coverage. Insurance can be a little confusing, so feel free to ask any queries you might have. That’s what we’re here for. You don’t have to go through the insurance process alone when you team up with our agents. We’re happy to take the time to go over the coverage with you because we want you to feel comfortable with the car insurance policy that’s protecting you.

5. We’re here to answer any questions or address any issues.

If any questions or concerns about your insurance arise, we’re here to help. You can always reach out to our team to get some help resolving any issues that come up, no matter how small. We aren’t going to vanish right when you need us. That’s not how we do insurance.

Anyways, that’s how getting a quote for Atlanta Auto-owners car insurance works! You might be moving to Atlanta or you might have lived in Atlanta for years. Get started with your car insurance quote by filling out our online form, giving us a call, or messaging us on LiveChat.

How to get Atlanta Universal renters insurance

Atlanta Universal renters insurance

Atlanta Universal renters insurance

If you have an apartment, you may not realize just how much stuff you have there and how many treasures you’re accumulated over the years. You might want to protect your belongings with renters’ insurance. But you might not know where to start, though you’re interested in Universal renters’ insurance. How does one get a quote for Atlanta Universal renters’ insurance? Our team can help you get your insurance quote. Here’s how the insurance process works.

How to get Atlanta Universal renters insurance.

1. Get in touch with your team.

We know that communication can be a pain, especially when it comes to things you’re not particularly looking forward to dealing with, such as insurance. We strive to take the stress out of the insurance process, and that starts with the beginning. We want everything to be as convenient as possible so that you don’t have to get frustrated by endless rounds of phone or email tag. Anyways, here are a few ways you can talk with our team of insurance agents.

Phone: You can simply give us a call to start with your insurance quote. We’ll connect you with an agent who would be happy to have a conversation with you about your home insurance. We really enjoy having a nice chat about insurance, so we would be delighted to talk with you on the phone. Don’t hesitate to give us a call.

Online quote: We also have an online form, and the form allows us to get some of the information we need to get your Atlanta renters’ insurance quote from Universal. So, you can reach out to us with our online form. By filling out our form, you help us gather some of the information we need to get started with your quote.

LiveChat: There’s also a LiveChat feature you can use to reach out to our team. LiveChat allows us to message back and forth with you so that you can work through the insurance process online. We get that not everyone enjoys talking on the phone, so that’s why we have an online option so that the phone can be avoided.

Email/Text: You might not have the time to talk on the phone or LiveChat with us. That’s fine – we can email and text with you. If that’s what is most convenient for you, all you have to do is let us know. It’s no problem if you would rather email or text – like we said, we want to make insurance as easy as possible.

2. Chat with us about your insurance needs.

The next step in the whole process is that we’ll have a quick talk about your insurance needs. We’ll make sure we have all the information we need to get you that Atlanta renters insurance quote from Universal. We know that you’re busy and you have a lot on your plate, though, so we won’t take too much of your time. We just need to have a quick conversation with you about your insurance needs. Plus, we want to have the chance to properly introduce ourselves – that’s good manners, right?

3. We’ll go get that quote.

This is the actual “quote” part of the entire process. Our insurance superheroes will leap into action and go retrieve that quote at top speed. We know that you probably just want to get the whole insurance thing over with as soon as possible, so we’ll be quick about fetching that quote and getting back to you. This is all part of the make-insurance-easy thing that we strive for. We don’t want you to be stressing out while waiting for your quote.

4. We’ll go over your quote with you.

Insurance can be overwhelming. You might have some questions about your coverage or just some things that need to be clarified. That’s what we’re here for. We love talking insurance, and in our books, there are no silly questions. So feel free to launch any queries our way – we’re ready to go over anything you’d like to talk about. Consider us to be your insurance translators.

5. We’ll be here to help with your insurance needs.

If anything comes up and you have questions about your insurance later on or you have any issues at all, we’ll be right here to help you out. You don’t have to deal with complicated insurance matters on your own. Our team is at your service to help. We fancy ourselves to be insurance superheroes, so we love it when we’re able to be helpful.

There might be an underlying sense of dread that happens whenever you think about insurance, but we want to help you through the insurance process. That’s how we roll, and that’s how we can help you get Atlanta renters’ insurance quote from Universal. Give us a call, LiveChat with us, or use our online form to get started with your quote.

How to find the Atlanta renters insurance that’s right for you

Renters insurance can help you protect your belongings.

 

If you rent an Atlanta apartment or home, you may be considering getting renters insurance. The world of insurance can be overwhelming, and you might have some questions about it, such as what it covers, how much it costs, and what to look for in a renters insurance policy. And then there’s the question if whether or not your landlord’s insurance will already cover your belongings. So, here we go – we’re going to answer those burning renters’ insurance questions!

Does my landlord’s insurance cover me?

No. In most cases, it does not. Their policy will only cover the structure itself, not your belongings and treasures. That’s why it’s so important to consider renters’ insurance. If there was a fire or you get burgled, your belongings would not be covered, and replacing the possessions that were lost could be a substantial financial hit.

So, what is covered by renters insurance?

Your insurance can protect you against losses like fire, smoke, lightning, vandalism, and theft. The cool thing is that your renters’ insurance will most likely follow your belongings – and you – wherever you go.

Renter’s insurance also covers your liability, meaning your legal obligation if you’re found responsible for causing someone bodily harm or property damage. So, you’re most likely covered if a guest trips over a rug, breaks their wrist, and decides to sue. Legal defense is also typically covered.

How much does renters insurance cost?

It is most likely not as expensive as you might fear. You’re only covering your belongings, not the structure itself (that’s the landlord’s purview.) If you decide to get a renters insurance quote, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised at how affordable it is.

What other factors do I have to consider?

Do you have a dog? Some insurance companies can be funny about covering certain breeds or sizes of dogs. You’ll have to make sure that your fluffy friend is covered under the policy you choose and see how a dog may affect your insurance rates.

Can you bundle and save? You might be able to bundle the renters’ insurance with your auto insurance and save money. Insurance companies like it when you get more than one policy from them, so they might give you a discount. And who doesn’t love a good discount?

Are there any exclusions? Make sure you know exactly what is and is not covered under your policy. For example, flooding is most likely not covered by renters insurance. If there are any exclusions or gaps, you may have to add extra coverages to your policy.

Is relocation covered? You need to know what would happen if something changes and you have to move out of the apartment or house. Will your policy help you cover the costs of relocation?

Do you have valuables such as jewelry? If you have any valuables, you’ll need to make sure you check the limit of coverage for them to see if it’s enough. If it’s not enough, you’ll have to find out how you can add extra coverage for your jewelry.

Renters insurance helps protect your belongings while you’re renting a place. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that your landlord’s insurance covers your belongings, only to discover that it doesn’t. Instead, take matters into your own hands and look into getting a renters insurance policy. It might take a little bit of looking to find the one that’s right for you, but it’s worth it for the peace of mind you’ll enjoy. And you’re not in it alone – we can help you find the insurance plan that’s right for you. To get renters insurance quotes and shop for the best rate, all you have to do is fill out our quote form or give us a call today.

How to reduce cyber and computer risks at your Atlanta business

Are you controlling your business's cyber risks?

Are you controlling your business's cyber risks?

It’s impossible to escape the influence of technology in our lives. If you’re a small business owner, you may have had to make changes to adapt to the constant evolution of technology. While technology and computers certainly make our lives easier and help us be more efficient, they also present risks to your business in the form of viruses, hackers, and data breaches. You know to protect your business from risks like burglary, but what about invisible risks? Many businesses, including small businesses, have been targeted by hackers. Fortunately, there are a few simple things you can do to protect your business against cyber risks.

1. Train your employees in cybersecurity.

It’s worth it to take some time to educate everyone about how to be smart online. You can inform your employees about scams and how to identify suspicious emails and websites. Remember the GoogleDocs phishing scam that went around a while back?

2. Get antivirus and antispyware software for every computer.

It’s important to protect your computers against viruses and hackers. You need to keep your antivirus software updated and current. Make sure that you don’t skip any computers – devices that aren’t protected could become infected, and they could spread the virus to the healthy computers.

3. Don’t skip the firewall.

Firewalls are great at keeping snoops out of your computer systems. You can even get a network firewall if you have over five devices to protect your entire network.

4. Have backup copies of important data.

If you lose your business’s valuable records or data due to a cyber attack, you’d be in a real bind if you don’t have backups. At least one of your backup sets should be kept off-site in a secure location that only a few trusted individuals can access. Lock up your backup data.

While they are invisible, cyber risks are very real and need to be mitigated.

5. Control access to your computers and networks.

How many movies have you seen where the hacker or super spy poses as a janitor and then hops on a computer, stealing information by downloading it onto a flash drive in the nick of time? Make sure you know who’s coming in and out of your business and don’t let people play with your computers.

6. Secure your Wi-Fi network.

Your Wi-Fi network should be password-protected. Wi-Fi networks are easy ways for hackers to gain access to things that you would rather they didn’t. The password needs to be strong and something not easily guessed. Throwing in some numbers and special characters can’t hurt, either.

7. Have individual accounts for all employees.

It’s a good idea for each employee to have their own sign-on account to your computers. That makes it easier for you to keep track of who’s doing what online.

8. Limit authority to install software.

If one of your employee’s computers does get compromised, imagine the look on the hacker’s face when they realize they can’t download software. Their plot would perhaps be foiled. Only authorized personnel should be able to download things onto your business’s computers.

9. Have a password policy for your business.

A simple way to protect your computers is to have strong passwords on them. Your password policy can encourage employees to change their passwords every three months and to make them hard to guess. Like we said, it’s important that passwords include letters, numbers, and special characters. That makes them harder to crack than a simple password like abcde.

Another simple means of protecting your passwords – make sure your employees aren’t in the habit of writing them down and leaving them lying around. This is why passwords should be easy to remember but hard to guess.

10. Consider cyber liability insurance.

Cyber insurance protects you in the event of a data breach or hack that renders your computers broken. It can protect your business from breaches and cyber extortion (hackers have gotten quite creative and will sometimes take over a system, demanding ransom for the computer’s release. Scary.) If your business relies heavily on computers or stores the personal information of your customers, you might want to consider adding a cyber policy to your business insurance plan.

Cyber liability insurance can help protect your business from hacks and data breaches.

Yes, computers are great. They can do lots of cool things and help us run businesses more efficiently. Plus, they help businesses connect with clients. However, they’re also a huge liability. The plastic and metal box sitting on your desk might seem nice and secure, but the danger lies on the inside. Don’t forget about your computer risk when you go about creating a disaster response plan for your business. Make sure that you take steps to protect your business’s computers and limit your cyber risk.

If you want a quote for cyber insurance or business insurance, we can help! All you have to do is fill out our online quote form or give us a call today and we’d be happy to get you a business insurance quote. We can help you identify your risks and stay protected from them. We’ll help you create a customized insurance plan that’s just for your business.

Source:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikekappel/2017/11/08/5-ways-to-improve-your-small-business-cybersecurity/#1d597ae51f6f

Does my nonprofit need D&O liability insurance?

nonprofit insurance

Nonprofits strive to make the world a better place. They’re committed to helping people and making a difference. Lately Atlanta has become a real hub for the nonprofit sector. Georgia itself has 16 nonprofits ranked in the top 400 nationally. Five of those nonprofits (all located in the metro Atlanta area) are in the top twenty. Some well-known, powerhouse nonprofits like The Boys and Girls Clubs of America, The American Cancer Society, and CARE have their headquarters in Atlanta. That’s quite an accomplishment.

While the mission of the nonprofit is to make some sort of difference, there are times when things might get off-track. People bring lawsuits against nonprofits for a variety of reasons, and the truth of the matter is that nonprofits don’t always have the money to defend themselves in these situations. Besides, lawsuits can come from anywhere—shareholders, employees, competitors, regulatory bodies, other corporations. But there’s good news: you can invest in D&O liability insurance for your nonprofit organization.

What’s D&O insurance?

D&O stands for Directors and Officers Insurance. Any company, public, private, or nonprofit, can purchase it. The point of D&O insurance is to cover the cost of defending a director or officer of an organization’s board if they have charges brought against them.

D&O insurance gives you coverage for things like errors and omissions, misleading statements, neglect, or breach of duty. Sometimes miscommunications and accidents happen. When they do, D&O takes care of the defense costs and indemnity coverage for the party who’s specified on the policy.

What does D&O do?

When a D&O policy is written, there are usually three parts, or branches. These branches show the insurer’s promise to cover the insured, and they also specify the amount of coverage the organization has.

Think of D&O like a triangle. It has three parts to it, and these parts are known as sides. The three sides that make up the D&O policy are:

  • Side A (D&O Liability Coverage)—This piece of the D&O triangle protects individual directors or officers against losses. Usually a nonprofit will protect their director in the case of a legal mishap—sometimes this is written into the organization’s bylaws—but sometimes they don’t have the funds to cover the costs of doing so. In that case, the director would be in a bit of a pickle, as their personal assets would be at risk. To get to the point, Side A protects the personal assets of the directors and officers. A lot of the time people won’t join boards of nonprofits unless they have D&O coverage, so Side A goes a long way in drawing qualified people to work for the organization.
  • Side B (Corporate Reimbursement Coverage)—Side B of D&O reimburses the nonprofit or organization for the expenses of legally defending its director. These expenses can quickly overwhelm any company, so this part of the puzzle is important.
  • Side C (Entity Coverage)—This section of D&O protects the nonprofit itself. Sometimes the organization is pulled into the mess along with the director if someone brings charges against the entire organization. If that were to happen, Side C would protect the nonprofit’s assets and cover the cost of legal defense.

What’s excluded from a D&O policy?

It’s extremely important to look at your policy closely. Study it with a magnifying glass. Not all D&O policies are the same, and they all might have different exclusions tucked away within the pages of fine print. You really need to understand your exclusions and clarify and questions that you might have.

Here are some of the common exclusions that you might find in a D&O insurance policy:

Exclusions relating to the time of the offense…

  • Known circumstances: Insurance won’t cover a claim about an incident that happened before the beginning of the D&O policy. Typically the premium will not be refunded to the company.
  • Rescission: There’s a section of the insurance application called the Warranty Questions, and these ask if the insured are aware of any situation that could lead to a claim. The carrier will void the policy if they find out that the insured falsified information on their application, although they will usually give the premium back.  
  • Prior acts: This states that the insurer is not responsible for protecting the insured against any wrongful acts that occurred or were attempted before the coverage began.

Exclusions relating to duty to defend…

The insurer might have what’s called right to duty to defend. This gives them the right to choose the insured’s defense and that they have more say in the legal fees and payment method.  

  • Reasonableness of defense: The insurer is only responsible for paying legal fees that are deemed reasonable and necessary.
  • Consent to settle: This means that the insured has to have written permission from the insurer before they settle a claim.
  • Hammer clause: Sometimes the insured wants to keep fighting even though the insurance company has called it quits. 

Exclusions relating to other coverages…

  • “Other insurance”: The D&O insurance policy assumes that the organization has more coverages than just D&O. They may exclude claims that would be covered under a different form of insurance. This is where it becomes really important to be upfront with your agent about what kind of coverage you have and what coverages you don’t.
  • Contractual liability: Policies don’t have to cover claims that relate to a contract between the organization and another party because the contract was entered voluntarily.

Exclusions relating to deliberate actions on part of the director…

  • Conduct exclusions: The insurer does not have to cover claims dealing with allegations of fraudulent or criminal behavior or defend against claims of illegal profits.  

Insured vs. insured exclusion…

  • Insured vs. insured: Insurance claims get messy when one insured party goes after another—for instance if one director who’s insured picks a fight with another director who’s insured. Normally insurance companies like to keep their noses out of office politics. However, if one of the directors was a whistleblower of the allegation, they’ll most likely cover it.

Atlanta is a major center for nonprofits. The city houses many charitable organizations that strive to make a difference. Unfortunately, the good intentions of nonprofits don’t make an organization exempt from a killer lawsuit. That’s why nonprofits need to consider D&O insurance. When looking into getting a D&O policy, it’s important that your agent is highly knowledgeable about D&O and that the insurance company has the financial capability to protect you.

AtlantaInsurance.com has plenty of experience with insuring nonprofits, and we’d love to get to know you and your organization. We can help you identify your risks and find the coverage you need, and we can even provide you with a free quote.

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