Texas Auto Home Insurance Archives - 2/2008
News, questions and answers about Texas automobile and home insurance. To have your question featured here, click here to submit your inquiry.
Commerical Property Insurance in San Antonio
Monday February 25, 2008Texas Auto Home can provide
three forms of commercial property insurance in to San Antonio businesses. It is important to understand what these coverage options are in order to make the most economical and practical level of investment
The following briefly examines the
three types of coverages we offer and explains what you can expect each one of them to do for your business.
1. Basic
Basic commercial property insurance is a San Antonio business owner’s most inexpensive option It indemnifies the property against damages from common perils such as fire, lightning, high winds, and vehicle collisions. The lower premiums are due to lower policy limits. This is a front end savings but offers back-end risks if you have to file a claim. If damages exceed policy limits or go beyond policy scope, you will suffer out of pocket loss.
Basic form’s offers its best value to startup real estate investment. It provides a property owner in San Antonio with commercial insurance that meets minimum Texas law requirements at the point of his or her budget.
The investor should upgrade the policy to Broad form coverage, however, as soon as funds become available.
Broad form commercial property insurance will give San Antonio businesses more protection on the business itself and not just the building.
2. Broad Form
At its foundation, Broad Form Insurance for San Antonio commercial property acts much the same way as basic insurance. Like a building, it offers much more than base level support.
It not only protects your business from the common perils of Central Texas weather and structural impact damage, but it also insures against less common—but often exorbitantly costly—calamities like broken windows, water damage, or building collapse.
Texas Auto Home also provides broad coverage commercial insurance for the San Antonio landlord’s HVAC equipment. This insures the system itself both on a component level and an operational level.
When necessary, we will extend broad coverage to exterior signage and glass so that all structures on premises, not just buildings and windows, are covered.
3. Special Form
Special form commercial property insurance offers San Antonio businesses the best protection from common perils, unexpected calamities, and specified items of concern.
A new acquisition of adjacent property, for instance, may require immediate coverage. Texas Auto Home can provide this quickly and cost effectively at the time of purchase.
When you need to repair or renovate your property and lose money from downtime, the Texas commercial property special form insurance can reimburse you for lost finances for up to 12 months.
Other, additional coverages are too extensive to describe in length, but they are essential to protect the highly diversified San Antonio Landlord. A few examples include, but are not limited to:
· Contractor liability coverage- for service specialists and artisan contractors
· Advertising liability insurance- protects San Antonio companies against litigation resulting from print, media, or Internet advertising.
· Personal injury- covers your personal medical bills resulting from accidents on premises
· Bodily Injury- covers the medical bills of a third party hurt on your premises
· Property Damage- specific damages covered as addendums to policy.
While
commercial property insurance in San Antonio may appear complex and even overwhelming, George White, President of Texas Auto Home Insurance, will help explain all coverage options simply and help you determine which options are best for you.
Prior to founding his company, George spent several years in underwriting and is well versed in the complexities of commercial property insurance that San Antonio investors often face.
Click here to read about all forms of
commercial insurance for San Antonio property owners and businesses of all kinds throughout Texas.
Insurance for Texas Landscape Contractors
Friday February 22, 2008Texas Auto Home Insurance helps Texas landscape contractors establish more solid business plans and protect their interests in a variety of ways. The most important is excellent rates. Almost as important, however, is the role we play in educating our clients. Many people are not aware of the vast number of insurance perils that can afflict landscape contractors and their many clients. Things such as vehicle accidents, flying objects, equipment malfunctions, and debris can all directly impact a contractor’s revenue stream unless proper insurance coverage is firmly set in place to offset such incidents and possible calamities.
The following summaries represent some of the basics covered in a policy written specifically for Texas landscape contractors. Insurance in these areas will provide a robust and dependable coverage for the many perils encountered both while on the job and in transit to and from the job.
1. A Commercial Auto Insurance policy can protect a contractor against liability claims arising out of the loading and unloading of landscape equipment used in lawn maintenance, tree trimming, sprinkler installing, and numerous other tasks associated with landscaping.
2. The landscape contractor also needs insurance on his trailer and also must make certain that the policy covers all the equipment against liability claims and physical injuries. Often such claims will arise when there is a collision and the other party claims the trailer impact was caused by contractor negligence while driving. Covering this contingency will enable the contractor to continue business while these legal matters are sorted out.
3. The landscape contractor needs an insurance policy that will provides some medical coverage for the employees should they be hurt in an auto accident without having to file a workers compensation claim.
4. Mowers and trimmers are always hauling away sticks, limbs, bricks, stones, and other debris. Inevitably some of this debris falls off, creating a hazard for other motorists and homeowners. Commercial Auto insurance and General Liability insurance protects landscape contractors in such circumstances against possible lawsuits for damages filed by home and automobile owners.
5. The business of tree pruning and removal can result in many cases of alleged negligence such as neighbors property being damaged, people getting hurt, debris falling onto a neighbor’s property and left there, and even the property owner claiming the pruning resulted in damage to the property. Such claims should be address by an insurance carrier rather than the landscape contractor who needs money to run his business, not pay court costs on frivolous and victim-minded lawsuits.
6. Like the landscaper, the commercial mower can face many of the same business risks such flying objects for the equipment, debris damage, collisions while turning on or off roadways and pedestrian and cyclist claims of roadway infringement. This too can be covered in a Texas landscape contractor’s insurance policy.
7.The commercial mower and landscaper may need certificates of contractor insurance that proper coverage when the owner sends his equipment to do work on certain corporate properties. We will this certification at no additional charge.
Because scenarios such as the ones described above are hypothetical, the actual specific perils encountered by contractors vary from landscape to landscape, even job to job. Insurance polices by TAHI are written with this fact in mind and are customized to be specific to the individual landscape contractor’s needs.
Click here to read more about
commercial landscaper insurance and
commercial vehicle insurance.
Why Get Business Insurance?
Thursday February 21, 2008You may think that running your business is more important than paying adding the cost of insurance.
Nothing could be farther from reality.
After all the time and investment you have spent building your business, one uninsured peril or one lawsuit could grind everything to a halt—or even worse, possibly shut your doors.
Business insurance through Texas Auto Home can protect your investment in ways you may not have thought possible. Consider the following answers to questions we are frequently asked by our clients.
Q: I don’t have enough business or customers. Can’t I just wait to get business insurance?
A: No. The day you open your business, you could experience a loss.
As a wide range of perils exist in all parts of Texas, business insurance can protect your prosperity for years to come.
This is so much better than constantly putting your livelihood and resources at risk.
Also, please consider as well that Texas requires certain businesses have insurance to operate. Many leases also stipulate per mandate of the landlord that the occupant be insured before opening his or her doors.
If you would like to know if your business falls into one or both of these categories, call us today and we will help you identify minimum areas of coverage your operations require.
Q: I don’t have any business assets, isn’t business insurance in Texas unnecessary?
A: Your business itself is an asset, and it needs to be covered against liability, damages and losses.
If you own any property tools, equipment, computers, desks, files, you will need some sort of commercial property insurance.
The income you earn from your business also needs insurance in Texas, as it can be subject to court judgments if a lawsuit is ever filed against you.
Q: I don’t own property. I only rent. Under Texas law, do I still need business insurance?
A: We recommend you at least invest in General Liability insurance.
Q: What exactly does general liability insurance offer the Texas business owner?
A: General liability insurance protects your businesses against claims for bodily injury that result from the operations of your company, occur on your premises, or that arise from injury liability resulting from products and or advertising.
It can also include fire legal liability, medical payments coverage, and property coverage
For example, if you rent space for your business from someone else, fire legal liability covers damages you or your employees may inadvertently cause to the building.
Medical payments coverage can cover the costs of doctor and hospital bills for expenses resulting from an accident on premises owned or rented by you. These payments are made regardless of whether or not you are ruled at fault. It is an excellent way of “taking care of your employees.”
Click
here to read more about commercial and business insurance in Texas and the many options we at Texas Auto Home Insurance offer for
commercial auto,
commercial truck, and
commercial property insurance to businesses throughout our great state.
Choosing the Right Form of Commercial Property Insurance for Your Texas Business
Wednesday February 6, 2008While commercial property insurance in Texas may appear complex and even overwhelming, Texas Auto Home Insurance seeks to explain all coverage options with simplicity and clarity with the purpose of helping you determine which choices are best for you.
The following summaries discuss the most important points in regards the three main types of coverage available to property owners in the state of Texas.
1. Basic
Basic commercial property insurance in Texas tends to be the cheapest because it is the most elementary in nature. It insures against common perils such as fire, lightning, high winds, and some other stated perils.
Like all things, it has its advantages and disadvantages. Basic commercial property insurance is obviously less expensive due to the limitations on indemnity. The premiums are typically lower as well because the policy limits are lower.
For a new property investor on a tight budget, starting out with basic commercial property insurance may leave exposure at the time of claim that could certainly exceed any savings garnered due to lower premiums.
This is a strong point for California investors that are beginning to buy up property in Texas. Starting with the most cost effective investment prior to opening your doors may help save money better spent on relocation costs and licensing. You can always expand your coverage to broad form or special form coverage just prior to business launch date.
2. Broad Form
For owners of more sophisticated structures looking to give their business, not just the building, the best protection, Broad Form Insurance is generally recommended.
In addition to perils of weather and structural impact damage, broad form coverage protects against less common—but often exorbitantly costly—calamities like broken windows, water damage, or building collapse.
Texas Auto Home also provides Broad Form commercial insurance coverage for the landlord’s HVAC equipment. It can also be extended to exterior signage and glass. Less extensive policies may now cover glass except by specific scheduling.
3. Special Form
Of all the forms of commercial property insurance in Texas, Special Form coverage gives you the maximum amount of protection from common perils, unexpected calamities, and specified items of concern.
For example, a new purchase of adjacent property may require immediate coverage. Texas Auto Home Insurance can provide this quickly and cost effectively at the time of purchase.
Loss of income can also be insured against under Texas commercial property special form policy. If your property is under repair and therefore unoccupied due to a claim, you may file a claim for Loss of Income due to the untenantable state of the property for a period of up to 12 consecutive months.
Furthermore, when buildings undergo reconstruction, building laws may change and require you to update or rebuild to meet compliance. Our coverage for this peril includes any necessary demolition costs as well.
Click here to read about other coverages and how to obtain specific information for your particular investment protection needs.
