Insurance Learning Center

At FarmerBrown.com we take the hassle out of shopping for auto insurance. As an insurance broker that deals with multiple insurance companies, we are able to provide you with the right coverage. If you want to get the best coverage, FarmerBrown.com is the smart way for you to obtain auto insurance.

What Kind of Coverage Do You Need?

Before calling the insurance company and getting your insurance quote, take the time to decide what kind of coverage you need. In every state, you have to have at least liability coverage. Liability insurance pays on your behalf for damages due to an accident or loss that is your fault. You also need to decide if you would like to add comprehensive and/or collision insurance coverage, which are optional coverages in most states. If your auto is financed or leased, these contracts generally require comprehensive and collision coverage. Additionally, they generally require you to have liability insurance in amounts that are greater then the state minimums. You should review your contract to ensure that you the required coverage. Comprehensive insurance coverage is insurance that helps pay for losses to an insured auto due to fire, theft, or other losses that are not the result of a collision as stated in the insured’s policy. An insurance deductible can apply depending on the insured’s requests at the start of the policy. In most states this is an optional coverage and is not usually a required coverage. Collision insurance coverage is coverage that pays to repair or replace your auto after an auto accident. A deductible can apply depending on the insured’s requests at the start of the policy. In most states, insurance collision or accident coverage is an optional and is not usually a required insurance coverage. If you choose comprehensive and collision coverage, you will need to decide what deductible amounts you would like. A deductible is the amount that you pay before the insurance policy kicks in. The amount of your deductible is the single most important factor in the cost of your auto insurance. Talk to the professionals at FarmerBrown.com, to go over all these factors so you can get an auto policy crafted to meet your specific needs. Protect your automobile now. Obtain homeowners insurance overage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the on-line chat icon and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you.

When you live in a condominium the association will have a master insurance policy that covers the building. If the association has a policy do you really need to have your own insurance? The articles of the condominium association and state law determine exactly which building components are covered under the association’s master insurance policy. Your condominium association insurance covers the condominium building, commonly owned property, and liability insurance for the association. In most instances, the association’s coverage stops inside the exterior walls, which means  you are responsible for the interior walls and possibly for fixtures, as well as your personal property and liability exposures. The master insurance policy doesn’t cover losses to your unit as a result of a burglary, if water damage ruins your unit, or if someone slips in your unit and is injured.  Further, owners often upgrade their units. (A common example would be upgrading the kitchen countertops and cabinets.) If the owner didn’t insure the improvement and the unit was destroyed, it would be under-insured. This is what we call a double disaster at FramerBrown.com-you have a loss and contact your insurance company only to find out you do not have proper coverage. With specialty flooring (which in some cases exceeds $14 per square foot!) and other high end appliance upgrades that are common today, the amount of your loss could be substantial. That’s why you need condominium insurance – designed specifically for condominium or co-op owners and available at FarmerBrown.com. Before purchasing a condominium policy, check with your condominium association to find out what parts of the interior are covered by your condominium association’s insurance and what items are your responsibilities. Your association’s master condominium policy does not provide any liability coverage for your unit or your personal exposures. So, make sure you purchase adequate liability insurance, depending on your situation. If your association has insufficient insurance to cover a liability claim, you may be assessed a proportionate share to pay for any shortfall. At FarmerBrown.com you can purchase this loss assessment coverage. Protect your assets and family. Obtain condominium owner s insurance coverage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the live chat icon and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you. Also do not forget that your association dues pay your master policy, ask the FarmerBrown.com agent for information on condominium association policies.

If you own a home, you need homeowner s insurance to protect what is probably your largest financial investment. It is a total package that protects your home, personal property, and you from personal liability. It is designed to pay for damages to your home and its contents. Homeowners insurance includes liability for bodily injury and property damage that you cause to others through negligence, and for accidents happening in and around your home, as well as away from home, for which you are responsible. A homeowners’ insurance policy also protects your possessions when you are away from home. Your policy extends to all your possessions no matter where you are. Homeowners’ insurance policies are standardized throughout the United States; the major differences among companies are their rates and the endorsements or riders that can be added to your policy. These riders and endorsements can provide you additional protection for your more expensive property, such as art work, jewelry and collectibles. At FarmerBrown.com, our highly skilled agents will work with you to get the best possible coverage at the best possible price. It is also important to determine how the insurance company will value any loss you may incur. Insurance companies will use one of the following methods to value your loss — actual cash value and replacement coverage. Actual cash value is the cost of replacing damaged or destroyed property with comparable new property, minus depreciation. Replacement coverage is the cost of replacing an item with one of the same kind and quality, equivalent to the actual cash value, minus physical depreciation. The objective is to place the insured in the same financial position after a loss as prior to it. If your policy does not already include replacement coverage, you can add this to your policy. Your experienced FarmerBrown.com agent will explain all these options with you and craft a policy that best suits your needs. Finally, homeowners’ insurance only covers the structure of your home, not the land on which it stands. Therefore, your policy should be for the value of your home. Protect your assets and family. Obtain homeowners insurance overage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the on-line chat icon and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you.

When the agents at FramerBrown.com, deal with customers concerning their insurance the question of Renter s insurance often crop up. Most customers if they do not currently have renter s insurance have the following misconceptions. MISCONCEPTION 1. My landlord has insurance so I do not need it. FACT. The landlord s policy insures the physical apartment building against damage from occurrences such as fire, hail, and vandalism. The landlord s insurance policy does not cover your belongings, so don’t expect the landlord to cover your loss should anything happen. The landlord s policy does not protect you against any accidents caused by other tenants. MISCONCEPTION 2. Renter s insurance is too expensive, I can not afford it. FACT. The average renter s policy is about $20 per month. This is a small monthly price for peace of mind. MISCONCEPTION 3. I’m in a great building, and I’m not worried about security. FACT. Renter’s insurance extends beyond on-premise theft and hazards. If you have property stolen while you are on vacation, you will likely be covered, along with property stolen from your car. Renters insurance can also protect against liability lawsuits or medical bills of guests injured in your apartment. MISCONCEPTION 4. I really do not have any thing valuable. FACT. If you really thought about it for a minute you would realize that you have accumulated a lot of property over the years. Think what would happen if you went to work one day and when you came home your building burned down. All you have is the clothes on your back. How much would it cost you to replace your clothes, furniture, tv, stereo, computers, DVDs, CDs and house wares? When you add all that up it turns out to be quite a lot of property. Obtain renter s insurance overage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the on-line chat icon and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you.

Do you own your home, significant assets such as large investment portfolio or retirement savings accounts? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you should consider purchasing a personal umbrella policy. The purpose of an umbrella policy is to protect you, your family and your assets in the event you are held personally liable for a disastrous claim that exceeds the coverage limits of your existing auto or homeowners insurance policies. If an unfortunate accident should happen that is your fault, do you have enough liability insurance from your current policies to cover your costs for negligence? Today, lawsuits are everywhere. Judges and juries are awarding larger amounts of money than ever. Homeowners and auto policies have a limit on liability insurance. Since no one can predict how much a judge or jury may award the injured person, umbrella insurance is not just for the wealthy anymore. It is a needed protection for every policyholder. Umbrella insurance is designed to give one added liability protection above and beyond the limits on homeowners and auto insurance policies. With an umbrella policy, from FarmerBrown.com, you can add up to 10 million in extra liability protection. This protection is designed to kick-in when the liability coverage on other current policies has been exhausted. The cost of this peace of mind insurance is surprisingly small. Protect your assets and family. Obtain umbrella liability insurance overage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the on-line chat icon and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you.

No one really expects a disaster to strike their business. But every small business is vulnerable to a major catastrophe or a huge lawsuit. Think about some of the devastating losses you’ve heard about recently and the large settlements that are awarded in courts these days. It is possible these losses could exceed your primary insurance coverage. Umbrella insurance is important because it covers these unforeseen events. It is not expensive and in certain instances, it could literally save your business. With a FramerBrown.com umbrella policy, you can get up to $10 million of liability protection over and above the limits of other insurance policies you have for your business. FarmerBrown.com will write umbrella coverage over business liability, auto liability and workers’ compensation. The cost of this peace of mind insurance is surprisingly small. Protect your business. Obtain umbrella liability insurance overage now by requesting a free on-line quote. It’s competitive, fast, and convenient. If you have any questions while filling out the online application, please call the toll free numbers displayed or click on the on-line chat button and a licensed FarmerBrown.com Insurance agent will assist you.

Life insurance is a critical part of any families financial planning. The main point of purchasing life insurance is to ensure that your family is financially protected in the event of death. It gives you and your loved ones a financially secure future. You will want to consider a policy that can protect them and at the same time be sure that the coverage you purchase fits your needs. The two most popular types of life insurance are term insurance and permanent insurance. Term Life Insurance Term life insurance is an insurance policy that is in effect for a specific period of time. If the insured dies within that timeframe, the beneficiary of the policy receives the death payment. However, if the insured survives that period of time, the beneficiary receives nothing and the policy is closed. Term life also provides the ability to convert to a permanent kind of coverage at a later time. The main reasons people buy term life insurance include:

• Term insurance is generally purchased by those with a temporary need for life insurance, or by those with limited budgets.
• Term insurance may be appropriate for specific needs, including the needs of some business owners.
• Coverage for a specific amount of time until you are able to build up assets to cover your needs.
• Coverage for the amount of time the mortgage is for so in the event of an untimely death, the mortgage is taken care of.
• Coverage for those that cannot afford a permanent policy, especially young couples and new parents.

Permanent Life Insurance Permanent life insurance is insurance that you own for your entire lifetime. The amount of the death benefit or face value can be selected to meet your needs. Premiums are fixed and can be paid monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annually. As more premiums are paid, your policy accumulates a cash value, which grows on a tax deferred basis. This kind of insurance combines death benefits with a savings component. Permanent insurance, including Whole Life Insurance, Universal Life Insurance and Variable Universal Life Insurance, can provide protection for your entire lifetime, or in certain instances up to a specific age at which point the insurer pays the policy owner the cash value. You can borrow against and in some instances, withdraw to help meet future goals, such as paying for a child’s college education. In order to build up this cash value, you will pay higher premiums. Whole Life Insurance Whole life insurance is life insurance that insures you for your whole life. Over time a savings component, called cash value or loan value, builds and can be used for wealth accumulation. Whole life is the most basic form of cash value life insurance. Regular premiums pay both the insurance costs and fund the savings account. The insurance company will invest these funds in low risk investments. A fixed death benefit is paid to the named beneficiary along with the balance of the savings account. The premiums for this type of insurance are fixed throughout the life of the policy. Universal Life Insurance Life insurance which combines the low-cost protection of term insurance with a savings component that is invested in a tax-deferred account, the cash value of which may be available for a loan to the policyholder. Universal life was created to provide more flexibility than whole life by allowing the holder to shift money between the insurance and savings components of the policy. Additionally, the inner workings of the investment process are openly displayed to the holder, whereas details of whole life investments tend to be quite scarce. Premiums, which are variable, are broken down by the insurance company into insurance and savings. Therefore, the holder can adjust the proportions of the policy based on external conditions. If the savings are earning a poor return, they can be used to pay the premiums instead of injecting more money. If the holder remains insurable, more of the premium can be applied to insurance, increasing the death benefit. Unlike with whole life, the cash value investments grow at a variable rate that is adjusted monthly. There is usually a minimum rate of return. These changes to the interest scheme allow the holder to take advantage of rising interest rates. The danger is that falling interest rates may cause premiums to increase and even cause the policy to lapse if interest can no longer pay a portion of the insurance costs.

Variable Universal Life Insurance Variable universal life insurance is a combination of universal life insurance and variable life insurance in that excess interest credited to the cash value account depends on investment results of separate accounts (equities, bonds, real estate, etc.). You have a choice as to how the cash value is invested — stock and bond mutual funds. However, there is no guaranteed minimum interest rate with a universal life insurance policy. Survivorship Universal Life Insurance Survivorship universal life insurance provides a policy in which two people are covered on one policy. The death benefit is paid upon the second death. The premiums for this joint life policy are significantly lower than a regular policy. Many people take this type of life insurance to help pay estate taxes after the deaths of both a husband and wife. Term Life Insurance vs. Permanent Life Insurance Deciding between term life and permanent life insurance is no easy task. Each policy has its benefits. The younger generation tends to opt for term life insurance. It provides maximum coverage at the lowest premium. However, term insurance also has its disadvantages. This type of life insurance provides a death benefit only for a specific period of time. When the policy expires, so does the protection. While many term policies are convertible to permanent policies, others may not be. So there is the possibility of being uninsurable once the term policy expires. Also, with term insurance, premiums increase with each renewal, so the policy can become very costly. Permanent life insurance, on the other hand, can be the best long-term solution for many. Cash value life insurance provides life-long insurance protection. As long at the premiums are always paid, your policy will never be canceled. Although permanent life insurance premiums are often more expensive than term insurance premiums, your permanent life insurance policy can actually be less expensive in the long-run. This is because most permanent policies pay dividends, which can be applied toward the next payment. Therefore, premium payments may end after several years, yet coverage will continue for life. This kind of policy also allows for future loans, borrowing against your established cash value. Buying a life insurance policy is an important financial decision. Before choosing your policy, be sure you understand the kind of insurance you are buying, as well as the advantages and disadvantages to each policy. For more information on life insurance policies, contact your friendly FarmerBrown.com agent.