R&R Insurance Blog

Small Tips to Prevent Large Claims: Dryer Sheets for Winterizing Vehicles

With Labor Day behind us and cooler temps in the future, it's time to think about storing those summer toys. From convertibles and boats, to motorcycles and jet-skis, unfortunately certain vehicles just aren't suited for Wisconsin winters. Below is a small tip for winterizing your car that can save you from a big claim next summer.

Believe it or not, dryer sheets and/or moth balls can prevent major rodent damage in your vacant vehicle. A garage will keep your car dry and relatively warm, but will also make your car attractive to rodents. By placing dryer sheets inside the vehicle and engine compartment, you'll combat any rodents that plan to chew their way through wires to make a new home.

REMINDER: It's important to make note of the dryer sheets prior to driving your vehicle! Hang a reminder on your rear-view mirror or on the dashboard so you don't forget!

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has been sending Letter 5699 to employers that have not complied with their Affordable Care Act (ACA) reporting requirements under Internal Revenue Code Section 6056 for the 2015 calendar year.

Letter 5699, Request for Employer Reporting of Offers of Health Insurance Coverage (Forms 1094-C and 1095-C), requests missing information from applicable large employers (ALEs) that were required to report under Section 6056, but failed to file Forms 1094-C and 1095-C with the IRS. The IRS identifies potentially non-compliant ALEs based on their Form W-2 total employee count reported for the 2015 calendar year.

The IRS began issuing Letter 226-J to certain ALEs that filed Forms 1094-C and 1095-C to inform them of their potential liability for an employer shared responsibility penalty for the 2015 calendar year. Similarly, the IRS has been issuing Letter 5699 as its enforcement mechanism to identify and assess penalties against ALEs that failed to file Forms 1094-C and 1095-C for the 2015 calendar year.

Employers who receive a Letter 5699 should respond to the IRS within the appropriate time frame. When responding to Letter 5699, employers should provide all appropriate information requested by the IRS, including any Forms 1094-C and 1095-C that are due. Keep in mind that penalties may apply for any failures to file with the IRS by required deadlines. The IRS will use information provided in response to Letter 5699 to identify non-compliant ALEs and assess any penalties that may be owed.

For more information regarding Letter 5699 and related ACA reporting penalties, click here.

To learn more about Letter 226-J, you can refer to our previous blog here.

Source: Zywave

To illustrate the benefits of rebalancing an insurance program to strengthen wealth protection and better manage expenses, the following example presents a before-and-after comparison for one of our newest valued clients.

Jeff and Tracy recently purchased a secondary home in beautiful Door County, Wisconsin. While they look forward to spending summers on the lake, they have realistic expectations about the amount of time they'll be able to spend in their new vacation home. With this in mind, they intend to rent out the property approximately 5 weeks out of the year. Unfortunately, in the world of home insurance, most carriers will not insure a secondary / seasonal property that is rented on a short term or weekly basis.

With the help of Tammy Cross, Jeff and Tracy were given a policy which provided full coverage of the home, including theft of personal property while rented. Without the experience and insight of Tammy, this commonly overlooked coverage would have been missed.

Click here for additional coverage information when renting your home. Or contact a Private Client Knowledge Broker!

 

*Client names have been changed to maintain anonymity.

When was the last time you reviewed your coverage?  Like other financial assets, life insurance policies require ongoing management to ensure your policy is performing up to expectations. There are a number of factors that influence life insurance policies and one major negative influencer in recent years has been interest rates. Agents and insurance companies that designed a number of these life insurance policies didn’t factor in lower interest rates, and the result has been that a number of policies are lapsing prematurely.

Learn about the Top 10 Reasons for a Policy Review and let us help give you peace of mind and assist you with reviewing your life insurance policy(s) at no cost. 

This year Wisconsin contractors and manufacturers with apprenticeship programs are saving 2% on their Workers’ Compensation insurance premium.

The 2% credit (maximum $2,500) is a no-brainer for any business to claim with an active apprenticeship program, but there are few qualifications to keep in mind along with the knowledge that some insurance carriers are opting out of the savings altogether.

In an atmosphere of record low unemployment rates, and the Foxconn behemoth on the horizon, the state is incentivizing apprenticeship programs in hopes they will help fill the growing trades’ skills gap. In March of this year, Wisconsin passed Assembly Bill 508 which slashed regulations in the trades requiring ratios often higher than 4 journeymen to 1 apprentice down to 1-to-1. In September of last year, financial incentives were announced, granting a 2% Apprenticeship premium credit on Workers’ compensation insurance for Wisconsin business going into effect next month.

Who qualifies?

Claiming the 2% credit for your business is not much of a hoop to jump through, but on the other hand Wisconsin isn’t handing them out like candy. The credit only applies to insurance workers’ compensation polices with effective dates of 10/1/2018 or later. If your policy has already renewed in 2018, you’ll need to change your effective date (not always recommended) or wait until next year to claim the credit.

Your agent must notify your insurance carrier that you are eligible for the credit and provide evidence of participation in an apprentice program administered by the Wisconsin Bureau of Apprenticeship Standards for a minimum of 6 months. This means to claim the 2% credit on 10/1/2018 your apprentice program must have been approved by WBAS and running since March of 2018.

Not Every Insurance Carrier is Opting-In

If your insurance policy is in the pool, your company is automatically qualifies for the program. If your business is in the private market, which most are, there is a chance it might not…

When the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance announced the credit in 2017, they made it clear that this was a voluntary program for the private insurance market.  While all carriers were automatically enrolled into the program, it was left up to carriers if they wanted to opt-out.

At first there was a bit of waffling, but in the end a majority of carriers have decided to opt-in. That said, a large minority are opting-out, some of whom are big players in the construction and manufacturing markets. R&R Insurance keeps an updated list of carriers opting-in and out.

Contact an agent to see if your carrier is opting-in for the 2% credit.

Insurance needs are often overlooked for college kids in the hustle and bustle of preparing for college. It's not uncommon for college kids to have thousands of dollars of electronic equipment and a closet bursting with clothes in the dorm rooms, as well as bicycles and instruments.

 

Students living on-campus:
Generally, this coverage is part of the parents’ existing policy and will cover up to 10% of the policy personal property limits for when a student is enrolled on a full-time basis.

Students living off-campus:
Generally, if a student maintains their parents’ address as their primary address and is enrolled as a full-time student, they will continue to be eligible for coverage under their parents’ policy. Students who have established their permanent primary address off-campus and no longer maintain their parent’s address as their primary address, and students who are enrolled only on a part-time basis, will need a separate renters policy to cover their personal belongings. Make sure that your student living off-campus is protected with this low-cost policy.

What about car insurance for the student who is away at college?
If your student is more than 100 miles away from home and does not take a car with them, you will get a discount on your car insurance rate because your vehicles are not being driven by your college student when the student is away at school.

Good Student Discounts:
Students who maintain a grade point average of a 3.0 / "B" or better will qualify with most companies for a "good student discount".

Wisconsin residents interested in a free insurance analysis for their personal insurance, please contact a knowledgebroker.

The IRS recently issued a Revenue Procedure to index the medical insurance premium contribution percentages used to determine the affordability of an employer’s plan under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). These updated affordability percentages are effective for taxable years and plan years beginning Jan. 1, 2019. For plan years beginning in 2019, employer-sponsored coverage will be considered affordable if the employee’s required contribution for self-only coverage does not exceed 9.86 percent of the employee’s household income for the tax year. This is for purposes of both the “play or pay” rules and premium tax credit eligibility.

This represents a significant increase from the affordability contribution percentage for 2018. The 2018 affordability percentage for the “play or pay” rules and premium tax credit eligibility was 9.56 percent. As a result, some employers may have additional flexibility with respect to their employee contributions for 2019 to meet the adjusted percentage. For more guidance on this and other compliance topics, contact a KnowledgeBroker.

Provided By: U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

While we had a cool start to the summer, there are plenty of hot days ahead of us. And studies show that working in direct sunlight can increase the heat index by 15 degrees. If you or your employees are working in the heat, OSHA's Heat Safety App is an important one to have at your fingertips.

According to OSHA, the App allows workers and supervisors to calculate the heat index for their worksite, and based on the heat index, display a risk level to workers.

With a simple click, you can also receive reminders about:

• Protective measures that should be taken at specific risk levels
• Drinking enough fluids
• Scheduling rest breaks
• Planning for emergencies
• Adjusting work operations
• Monitoring each other for symptoms of heat-related issues

Click here for more information about OSHA's App and for download instructions.

80% of Homeowners Overlook Costly Water Leak Exposure When Heading on Vacation

A study by Chubb Insurance shows that while on vacation, just 19% of homeowners view internal water leak damage as the most concerning threat to their home, despite the fact that water leaks are a more frequent risk than fire and theft. Homeowners are particularly vulnerable during summer travel season.

According to Chubb, "the time between when a leak occurs and when it is discovered is the single greatest factor in determining the amount of damage. As a result, leaks that occur while you're away result in greater amounts of damage in terms of both cost and severity."

Water damage claims have been rising over the last few years as well. In the last 10 years, the frequency of pipe bursts has nearly doubled. In addition to the increase in leaks, 90% of homeowners rate themselves as "vigilant" at preventative home maintenance, yet only 22% shut off the water main before heading out of town.

Before leaving on your next vacation, here are quick steps to properly protect your property:

1. Be sure all appliances and hoses are in good working condition
2. Inspect your sump pump 
3. Have your gutters cleared of debris
4. Ask a friend or neighbor to keep an eye on your house
5. Install a water leak detection device
6. Add a yellow tag to your water main shut off valve in case of a water emergency. Click here to receive free tags from us!

To learn more about water leak damage and protecting your home, view the following infographic, "Don't Get Water Logged" or contact a KnowledgeBroker.

Summer in Wisconsin is filled with a wide range of temperatures, which can lead to severe storms. While many of us enjoy a good summer storm and the lightning show that comes along with it, we can't forget how dangerous they can be.

In May of 2018, the National Weather Service reported two fatalities from lightning strikes, including a field worker and a child playing underneath a tree.

According to AAA, lightning can strike up to 15 miles from thunderstorms - even when skies are clear. If you hear thunder, slow rumbles, or loud cracks, lightning is close enough to strike you or your home. In recent years, the average cost of lightning damage to a home was $7,639.

Our partners at West Bend Mutual provided the following tips for Lightning Safety.

Real Life Example:
Ted Marino, resident of Brookfield, WI and an R&R customer since 1984, explains the peace-of-mind he had immediately after his home caught fire from a lightning strike during a storm in 2010. Ted and Chris escaped without harm, but their house was another story...

For additional resources to protect your personal assets from storm damage, contact a KnowledgeBroker at R&R.