If you own a home, you probably have home insurance. In fact, it’s likely that you’re required to have it. But do you have a home warranty? If you own a home, you probably have home insurance. In fact, it’s likely that you’re required to have it. But do you have a home warranty? You may be asking yourself what is a home warranty and do you even need one? The answer is yes!

A home warranty, like home insurance, is a crucial piece of protection for any homeowner. And it’s when you are covered by a home warranty and insurance that you have the most security and best coverage any homeowner can hope for. Below we’ll go into greater detail about each type of policy and why, most importantly, it’s crucial to have both.

Homeowner’s Insurance: Or Why You Need to Worry About What MIGHT Happen.

Theft, storms, fires, natural disasters – will any of these things definitely happen while you own a house?

For many people, probably not. But they might happen and that’s when you’ll be glad you have homeowner’s insurance. Of course, most people are actually required to have homeowner’s insurance. You’ll generally be required to have one before a bank will give you a mortgage on a home.

A home insurance policy covers four primary areas: the interior and exterior of a house, personal property in the case of theft, loss or damage, and general liability if someone is injured on your property. Policies are renewed yearly and have an average annual cost between $300 and $1000. Policies offer a deductible (the amount you're responsible for on a claim) and only after it’s been met do they take care of the additional costs.

Home Warranty: Or Why You’ll No Longer Need to Worry About What WILL Happen.

A home warranty is a service contract that covers repair or replacement of home systems and appliances that fail due to both age and standard wear and tear. HVAC, electrical, kitchen appliances, plumbing and washer/dryer may all be covered under a home warranty. For example, an AHS® home warranty covers up to 21 of your home’s major systems and appliances. Unlike home insurance, home warranties are not mandatory and are typically purchased as 12 month contract terms. They usually don’t require a deductible and you’re instead charged a moderate service fee.

In practice, a home warranty works like this: If your refrigerator stops working, a licensed and qualified service technician is dispatched to come out and evaluate the problem. Assuming the problem is because of wear and tear, age or another circumstance covered under the terms of your service contract, the technician will either make the repair or replace the appliance for only the cost of your service call. Each visit from a service technician typically costs between $75 to $125. Given the cost of a repair or potential replacement of the affected appliance or system, this can result in savings of hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Homeowner’s Insurance and Home Warranties: Or Why It’s Time to Double Down on Protection For Your Home.

The best way to think about homeowner’s insurance and home warranties is as two different policies working together to give you maximum protection. Say you have a leaky pipe, depending on the nature of the leak it may be covered by one policy but not the other. The home warranty would cover the repair of the pipe but not the damage caused by the leak. On the other hand, homeowner’s insurance would cover the damage of a major leak but not necessarily the repair of the pipe.

With both policies you’re covered on both the repair and the damage caused by the leak. When it comes to home protection warranties and insurance are really two sides of the same coin. Home insurance protects you from the things that might happen. And with a home warranty, you no longer have to worry about the things that will happen. That’s coverage everyone can feel comfortable with.

Call Craig Pina at C. Pina Insurance Agency for your home warranty quote (508) 557-8224 or EMAIL

What exactly is wedding insurance - and how does it work? Here's the inside scoop.
​by Julie Komorn - The Knot
​
What Is Wedding Insurance?
Basically, wedding insurance protects a couple's investment from circumstances beyond their control, and reimburses expenses incurred. For example, what if your limo driver doesn't show up and you have to book another one the morning of the wedding—for three times the price? Or what if the groom's custom-made tuxedo is lost in airport baggage, and he has to buy a new one the day before the wedding? What if your reception space goes out of business a month before the wedding, and you lose your deposit and have to book another space? These are the types of wedding day financial losses that wedding insurance can help to protect.
​
Why Get Wedding Insurance?
Consider these scenarios:

• Janet and Dan spend months planning their winter wedding. But on the wedding day, their reception site is made inaccessible by an ice storm. With the right wedding insurance policy, the couple can postpone their wedding and receive every penny they lost (less the deductible)—including money for the invites, cake, catering, attire and nonrefundable deposits for ceremony musicians, a floral designer and other vendors.
• The bride's father is injured in a car accident just before the wedding and cannot travel. If the couple has to postpone their wedding, with wedding insurance they could be paid back their expenses to enable them to have the wedding when the father recovers.
• Right before the ceremony, Brittany's gown catches a gust of wind. Unfortunately, the tulle dances right over to the end of Uncle Howard's cigar and the dress instantly goes up in flames. Fortunately, the right insurance policy covers the replacement of the veil and gown.

How Much Does Wedding Insurance Cost?
A basic insurance policy that covers loss of photos, videos, attire, presents, rings and deposits usually costs anywhere between $155 and $550, depending on the amount of coverage you want. General liability insurance, which covers up to $1,000,000 for accidents, costs around $185. 

Do You Really Need Wedding Insurance?
Before you buy wedding insurance, check with your each of your vendors to see how well they're covered—your reception site or your caterer may already have their own insurance, so you wouldn't want to pay for overlapping coverage out of your own pocket. Ask your vendors for a copy of their policy, and then figure out where you aren't fully covered.
When Should You Get Wedding Insurance?

The sooner the better. Let's say you put a deposit on your wedding reception hall 12 months prior to your wedding date and then it burns to the ground a few weeks before the big day. With wedding insurance, you'll be sure to get your deposit back. But note: Most insurance companies have limitations on how far in advance you can purchase insurance.
What Does Wedding Insurance Cover?

Problems with the site, weather, vendors, key people, sickness or injury are the top concerns come wedding day. There's usually a specified maximum amount, which can be claimed under each section, and a deductible also applies. Be sure to find out the details of your insurance plan.

• Site: Check to see if your ceremony and reception site is already insured. If it's not, wedding insurance can cover the cost arising out of unavoidable cancellation such as damage or inaccessibility to the ceremony site—if your reception hall is unable to honor your reservation because it has burned in a fire, experienced an electrical outage or just plain closed down. Sometimes this policy covers the rehearsal dinner site too.
• Weather: Any weather conditions which prevent the bride, groom, any relative whose presence at the wedding is essential or the majority of the guests from reaching the premises where the wedding is to take place. Insurance covers rescheduling the wedding and all the details involved, including ceremony flowers, tent rental and reception food.
• Vendor no-show: What if essential wedding people—the caterer or the officiant, for example—fail to show up? A wedding insurance policy usually covers cancellation or postponement of the wedding for these reasons.
• Sickness or injury: Wedding insurance may also include sickness or injury to the bride, groom or anyone essential to the wedding.
• Military or job: It's true, military personnel may be shipped out at a moment's notice. Wedding insurance can cover postponement of the wedding due to the bride or groom suddenly getting called to military duty. This can also apply to a last-minute corporate move, like the bride's company suddenly relocating her to another city.

Additional Coverage
Couples can take out supplemental policies to defend against damages incurred by other wedding-related items such as photography, videography and gifts.

• Photography: Some policies pay to retake the photographs after the fact if the photographer fails to appear or the original negatives are lost, damaged, stolen or not properly developed. Some policies will pay to restage the event with the principal participants so that pictures can be retaken. A policy may also pay costs for rehiring a photographer and buying a new wedding cake and new flowers.
• Videographer: When a videotape produced by a professional videographer is damaged (he or she used faulty materials, for example), a policy usually pays a certain amount to have either a video montage created, a video compilation made of the photographs and other wedding memorabilia, or, if possible, a retaking of the official video at a restaging.
• Gifts: Whether they're mailed to your home or handed to you on your wedding day, valuable items like gifts are something else you might want to consider insuring. Think about a party crasher lifting unattended presents from your reception. Gift coverage pays to repair or replace non-monetary gifts that are lost, stolen or damaged. A police report is usually required for stolen gifts. The damage or theft generally has to take place within a limited time period (ranging from 24 hours to 7 days, depending on the specific policy) before or after the wedding, in order to be covered.
• Attire: This coverage pays to repair or replace the bridal gown or other special attire when it is in your possession and is lost, stolen or damaged (including financial failure of the bridal store). Special attire usually includes the clothing and accessories bought or rented that are to be worn by the bride, groom and attendants at the ceremony.
• Personal liability: Personal liability covers bodily injury or property damage caused by an accident that occurs during the course of the wedding (your best man trips and falls on his way up to the mic to roast you, or Uncle Dennis suffers a Harvey Wallbanger wall banger).
• Medical coverage: This covers reasonable medical expenses (up to the policy's limits) for each person who is injured during the covered events from a cause of loss, which would be covered by your personal liability.
• Honeymoon: Your honeymoon can cost as much as a new car. But before buying travel insurance to protect your investment, see if your credit card and/or homeowner's policy covers you if your luggage gets lifted, your trip is delayed or you have to cancel. If not, you can a buy separate, trip-only policy. Call your insurer, or ask your travel agent for details. Also, certain wedding insurance packages include optional travel insurance for your honeymoon.

Things to Consider
Every insurance policy and every wedding scenario is different. Be sure to contact Craig Pina at C. Pina Insurance—and have him explain the nuts and bolts to you. You want to make sure you understand every detail of your policy.

Ok, car insurance for new drivers – this can be a touchy subject – especially if you are letting the teen make the decision. It is your choice and there are many auto insurance companies to choose from.

In Massachusetts, teens driving on their learner’s permits with a licensed adult supervising them do not need to have their own auto insurance policies. Once they start driving on their own, however, teens need auto insurance, so you will want to explore options to keep these costs reasonable.

Because the risk of a crash is significantly higher for young drivers, particularly during the first year of driving, your teen’s insurance rate likely will be higher than your own. Here are a few strategies to help you reduce insurance costs both now and once you add your teen driver.

The best way to go with a new driver – a teen driver – is to get her, or him (or have them save for) a “beater” car – like a 2000 Honda Accord or a 1995 Honda Accord – you know – a beater.

Then have them get just Liability insurance – including Part 5 – just to get it on the road. We always recommend higher limits of Liability like 50/100 or 100/300 – but with times being tight – not everyone can afford this when they start out.
So that is the angle I would take. Car insurance for a new driver or teen driver is very expensive in cities like Brockton – a bit less in the surrounding towns – you are looking at a substantial premium either way. Other ways to save on their auto insurance may include things such as;

• Raise deductibles to lower premiums. Ask your auto insurance representative how much you could save by increasing your deductible. If you file a claim after raising your deductible, you’ll pay a larger share of the costs.
• Investigate discounts. Many insurers offer discounts for students with a “B” or higher grade average and for teens who complete driver education or defensive driving courses.
• Share vehicles. How you classify your new driver—as the main or an occasional driver of one vehicle, for example, will affect auto insurance premiums, so consider sharing vehicles.
• Just say “no” to sports cars and SUVs. The kind of car your teen drives can impact safety. Many experts agree that mid-sized sedans are the best choice for teens. Small cars don’t offer as much protection in crashes, sporty cars may encourage speeding or recklessness, and SUVs and pick-up trucks are more difficult to maneuver and more likely to have roll-over crashes.
• Practice, practice, practice. Now is the time to drive a lot with your teen under varied conditions so there will be fewer surprises (and potential crashes) when you’re no longer in the vehicle.
• Be involved. Research shows that teens with more involved parents get fewer tickets and engage in less risky driving. Avoiding tickets and crashes will help keep your insurance rates down. A parent-teen driving agreement can help you set rules and stay involved.

​Have your teen take the approved Drivers Education course while they have their permit – this course can be expensive – costs can range up to about $700 but you get that money back in the form of a discount over the first three years they are driving. After your teen has been driving for 3 years – their price will drop. Massachusetts changes pricing after 3 years of driving and after 6 years of driving.

Should a teen get their own policy? Or be put on their parent’s policy? I have always felt it is best to keep the policies separate. If the kid is on your policy and they have an accident causing bodily injury to others – you don’t want the insurance company to be able to go after you, your home and your insurance policy.

This is why it is best to have the kid have their own insurance – then in an accident situation – the insurance company will only be dealing with the teen’s policy and not the parents.

Many parents realize that it is less expensive to have their kids on their policy. If you choose this route I always recommend increasing liability coverages to $250,000/$500,000 and adding an additional $2 million umbrella. This will help keep you safe in case something does happen.

Ask your agent about all the discounts available including – ask if there is a “good student” discount available for your teen. Any good agent will automatically give you every discount available – but be sure to ask anyway. Be sure to discuss the rules of the road with your teen. Absolutely NO SPEEDING! This is what causes all the other problems.

In addition – no texting while driving – not only is it very dangerous but in Massachusetts it is also against the law.
Bottom line? You call the shots. Tell your teen the best way to go.

I see it all the time – teens wanting a real nice car right away – getting Full Coverage – insurance is can be upwards of $10,000 for the year – then they can’t afford both the car and the insurance – they effect their credit rating and on it goes.
Tell your teen the best way – and in the long run they will be happy you did! When looking for car insurance for new drivers call Craig Pina at C. Pina Insurance today!
​
Good luck!

A recent study conducted by the global consulting agency Accenture estimates that by the year 2020, 40% of America’s total workforce will consist of sole proprietor independent contractors. What this will equate to is more than one hundred million new “companies” with only one employee and each one will be required to have the same type of business insurance as larger businesses do. So, if you’re thinking about leaving the grid of your day job to pursue a career as an independent contractor, if you’re already running a sole proprietorship, or if you own a company that ever hires independent contractors, then the information that follows will help you understand the types of insurance policies that sole proprietors should have in place to operate protected.
​
If you own a company that regularly hires and depends on 1099 contractors, it’s highly recommended that you require those contractors to have at least some of commercial insurance described below in place for any products or services they provide to or on behalf of your organization. If you’re an independent contractor yourself, the policies that follow will properly protect you in the event that your actions give rise to a claim.

​The Rise of the Extended Workforce

In many cases, contractors provide professional services like consulting or software development so they should carry some level of professional liability insurance. Typically, a $1,000,000 policy would be sufficient providing a substantial buffer between any claim that traces back to work performed by the contractor the company that hired them, and their insurance. It is also important to ensure that independent contractor’s purchase their own worker’s compensation insurance. This coverage will respond to pay any medical bills or disability payments injuries or illnesses they sustain while providing a client with their work and services. Because of the high costs associated with worker’s compensation claims, many companies opt to cover their contractors within their own worker’s compensation policy because the costs to the company are nominal. However, if you operate a business in an industry where the likelihood of injury to employees or contractors is high (construction, logistics, manufacturing), you likely want to avoid including contractors on your policy because their claims can adversely affect your rate for years. To round out a robust independent contractor insurance portfolio, consider carrying general liability insurance to protect against potential property damage or bodily injury and commercial automobile liability insurance if the contractor regularly uses their vehicle to perform services. Lastly, it’s never a bad idea to put in place an umbrella policy to provide additional limits over any underlying policies.

Verifying Business Insurance Coverage

Properly validating and tracking the coverage for independent contractors is critical. Companies should always keep updated certificates of insurance, or proof of insurance, on file which confirm that the contractors not only have the above-mentioned coverage in place but that they haven’t fallen behind on payments which can cause the insurance to lapse. Also, companies should require that their entity’s name is added as an additional insured to guarantee the contractor’s insurance responds first. Finally, businesses should also make sure that contractor policies provide their entity with a waiver of subrogation which will prevent the insurance company from subrogating (coming after) the company for claims filed by its contractors.

Keep in mind that there are other insurance policies that may be required and the requirements will vary from industry to industry. At the end of the day, as long as contractors have the coverages discussed above, both the contractor and their clients will be sufficiently protected against any potential claims.

At C. Pina Insurance Agency, we strive to make it simple, fast, and affordable for small businesses including independent contractors and sole proprietors to purchase and manage the commercial insurance they need to be effective. We will soon be announcing our self-service portal, available through our website, where contractors can produce proof of insurance instantly from any connected device and deliver the certificates directly to their customers. Keep an eye out for announcements regarding our self-service portal by following us on Facebook Here.

Insurance can be a complicated purchase. You’re not buying bread or milk. You’re buying a promise of protection that could potentially make or break your financial well-being. How do you know that you’re making the right choices about coverage? Are you sure you’re getting the best possible value for your dollar? The options can seem bewildering.
Various national and regional companies strongly value their relationships with independent agents.  An agents' advocacy and advice tremendously benefit their policyholders. Here are seven reasons why the independent agency experience benefits you:

1. They give you a choice – Independent agents represent many different insurance companies that offer a wide variety of coverage options and price points. Most on average sell for five to eight different insurance companies. There’s no need for you to accept one quote from one company, and there’s no need for you to spend time filling out many different online applications to get your own quote comparisons. With their connections and their knowledge of the market, agents can often find a better value for your insurance dollar than you might find searching on your own.  Agents do the shopping. You do the saving. They find you the right blend of price, coverage, and service.
2. They are licensed experts – Independents can explain the complexities of insurance in simple terms, helping you make smart decisions. They make a career out of assessing their customers’ insurance needs and matching them with the insurance carrier best equipped to meet those needs at a price the customer can afford. Think about it. While you might research wording for wills on the Internet, you’ll likely go to an attorney to ensure that the document is drawn up correctly. Why wouldn’t you seek the advice of a licensed insurance professional to be certain that your home, your auto, or your business is properly protected?
3. They are personal advisers – Agents not only find you competitive pricing, they make sure you are adequately covered. Working with you face-to-face, your agent becomes your personal adviser, taking the time to listen to you and understand your individual needs. They know it’s not just about finding a price you can afford; it’s also about making certain you are appropriately covered so that you don’t end up insurance-poor if you do suffer a loss.
4. They are your advocate – If you have a billing or claim concern, or need to change your coverage, your agent can be your advocate, working with the insurance company on your behalf.
5. They are right around the corner – Independent agents are your neighbors…they share your interest in the community where you live, and understand the benefits and challenges of living in your locale. They are often highly involved in the community, sponsoring youth sports teams, buying from your local businesses, supporting school organizations, and voicing opinions at the monthly Chamber of Commerce meeting. They are right around the corner, ready to help.
6. They offer one-stop shopping – Independent agents can often meet all of your insurance needs with the companies they represent, providing auto, home, renter’s, and business coverage. Many offer life and health insurance as well.
7. They are consultants for a lifetime – Independent agents periodically review your coverage. They are there to help you through all the changes in your life, whether you’re going from renting an apartment to buying a home, starting a business, getting married, renovating your home, adding a teen driver to your auto policy, or looking to cover that retirement condo.

C. Pina Insurance Agency is an independent agent that believes in close personal relationships. When you become a client of C. Pina Insurance, you become a member of the family. You can expect to receive personal service and attention unmatched in today's market.