R&R Insurance Blog

Ken Balda, President of Quality Truck Care Center of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, describes how R&R's claims management process saved his company from what could have been a very large claim...

"For our garage package renewal last year we chose to go with R&R Insurance Services who represented American Hardware Mutual. Mike Obertin and Bill Katzfey put together the proposal and presented us with a solid package that appeared to best suit our needs. When I made my decision and spoke to Mike Obertin, I told him the most important thing for me was for them and the company to be there if, and when, a big claim were to happen. Well; their test came in short order when a substantial claim arose. R&R brought in one of their experts, Jerry Aman, to handle this difficult claim and he was able to work with the insurance companies involved to resolve the claim for us."

"Being in business has many risks and as business owners we tend to buy our insurance based on what we hear at the proposal and the price we are willing to pay. The people at R&R insurance services have shown me what a leading agency can do to better protect my business. I had not experienced a team of professionals coming together to partner with me and work so hard to protect us. The people at R&R are true professionals and I highly recommend them and would be open to sharing my experience. When you get a chance to receive a proposal from them it may be one of your better business opportunities; it was for me and my company. " - Ken J. Balda

We saw a great article written by Russ Banhan of Independent Agent magazine, about personal and business exposures from the use of social media. Here's eight ways to reduce your exposure:

1. On Facebook and other social media sites, take advantage of the highest security settings and only allow "friends" - not "friends of friends" - to see your profile.

2. When creating a profile, choose a different year of birth than your actual one.

3. Be parsimonious with your "friendships": if you don't know the person in the real world, do not friend them in the cyber world.

4. Make sure that your friend really is who he/she says he/she is. Follow up your friend requests with an e-mail, text or phone call.

5. Make your children friend you. This enables you to watch them, and them to know that you're watching.

6. Don't post or tweet your location or when you're going to be any place specific, to reduce the chance of being burglarized.

7. Search for yourself using search engines like Google and people search sites like Pipl to find out what is being said about you, and then contact websites that have posted inaccurate or personal information to have it removed.

8. Consider investing in online repuatation management services that will monitor the Internet for information about you.

Information taken in part from an article by Russ Banham.

See also: Cyberbullying and Age-Based Guidelines For Children's Internet Use

Students at the local Greenland Elementary School in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin are learning how to combat bullying issues through CLIMB Theater. CLIMB (an acronym for Creative Learning Ideas for Mind and Body) performs interactive drama classes on the topics of bullying prevention for second, third and fourth graders.

CLIMB's program reached almost 200,000 students last year! Congrats to Oconomowoc Area Schools and CLIMB for addressing the hot topic of bully prevention in a new fun, creative and educational way. This Full story was printed in the Living Lake Country, Tuesday January 4, 2010.

For more information on CLIMB, visit: www.climb.org.

Municipalities, public schools and anyone employing "public sector" employees must complete an OSHA 300 log. The deadline is March 1 each year for public sector employers. Additionally, they are required to annually complete form SBD-10710 which is the same information that is on the OSHA 300A form. Unlike OSHA that requires completion of the log by companies that employ 10 or more employees, the Wisconsin Department of Commerce makes no distinction. Whether municipalities have 1, 100 or 1,000 employees, the log must be completed.

Global news is showing that bullying and cyber-bullying issues aren't just making national headlines - it's a serious problem on a global scale. In a recent article posted in DailyIndia.com, a Norwegian researcher indicates that two out of three children experienced bullying via the Internet or mobile phones on a regular basis, while twice as many girls as boys reported having being bullied digitally.

Chances are, if you’ve had a total loss on your home due to a fire or storm, you're going to need to replace it. Hopefully you had Replacement Cost coverage on your homeowners policy.

If you are going through the rebuilding process and wonder why the rebuilding costs are 30-40% higher than new construction, here are 9 reasons that explain why it could be higher.

1. Extensive planning and matching of labor and materials required to build around an existing structure with partial losses.
2. Contractors specializing in reconstruction and restoration charge more for their expertise.
3. The use of hand tools, such as wheelbarrows and dollies rather than heavy equipment due to limited access created by surrounding buildings and landscaping.
4. The increased cost of dwelling reconstruction is comparable to rebuilding an automobile part by part. The labor and materials are more expensive when building a single home versus a tract home. The labor and materials for rebuilding an automobile part by part are more expensive than a mass produced car.
5. Labor and material shortagesdue to supply and demand, especially in the aftermath of a catastrophe. Good examples are the fires in northern California some years back, and some of the recent tornadoes in Wisconsin.
6. Older home construction such as plaster walls and custom woodwork. It’s often difficult to even find craftsmen that still do this type of work.
7. Rebuilding to code. The requirements and expenses associated with updating the structure to meet current building ordinances. For example, new electrical codes often are stricter and will require heavier wiring and additional electrical services. All municipalities will do inspections.
8. Demolition and debris removal. While new home construction normally begins on open site with perhaps some brush removal and grading, rebuilding begins with a partially or totally destroyed structure occupying a building site with trees, plantings, driveways, sidewalks and other structures that have to worked around. Imagine the cost and extent of debris removal after a major fire or a tornado.
9. Economy of scale. When contractors have many homes under construction at once, materials can be purchased in large quantities and work can be scheduled for the most efficient use of carpenters, plumbers, electricians, and other tradesmen.

If you are a homeowner and don’t have Replacement Cost coverage on your homeowners policy, here’s why you should have it.

Wisconsin residents: Contact a knowledge broker at R&R Insurance today about insuring your home for it's true replacement cost.

According to a survey by Zogy International for MetLife Auto and Home, 31% of homeowners don’t know how much their home is insured for. Not only do we not know how much it’s insured for, most don’t understand that there are two very different coverage scenarios: Market Value and Replacement Value. In recent years with the home market decline and plummeting home market values, Market Value policies have become more common. As well, deeply discounted homeowners’ policies leave a lot of coverage on the table, coverage that could mean the difference of tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The following definitions of Market Value and Replacement Cost will help to ensure that you can have a knowledgeable conversation with your insurance agent about the coverage for your home and obtain the proper coverage you deserve.

Market Value Policies
Some insurance companies will offer what is called a Market Value type of policy. It is also known as a “Functional Replacement Cost” or “Modified Loss Settlement”. Market Value is the amount a buyer would pay for a home, including the land regardless of how much it would cost to rebuild it. Many factors enter into the Market Value of a home; a desirable neighborhood, the condition of the home, scenic views, quality of the school district, weather pattern, size of the lot, etc. Market Value policies were generally only used for older, very well maintained homes where the cost to rebuild them was far, far greater than the market value.

Market Value policies affect the loss settlement on a homeowners policy. Every company has a different definition of what a Market Value policy will cover; but in general the coverage will provide the homeowner who has a partial loss with repairs that will be done on a basis of “like kind and quality”, which simply means repair or replacement will be done with commonly available materials and methods (so drywall in place of plaster walls for example). The company will pay only up to the amount of coverage stated on the policy.

Be careful when considering such coverage and be sure to discuss the coverage in detail with your insurance agent. Make sure that you understand the loss settlement thoroughly to make sure that this is the right type of policy for you.

Replacement Cost Policies
Replacement cost is the cost to actually rebuild your home. It is not the home’s purchase price less the value of the land, the outstanding amount owed on the mortgage loan, or the assessment for taxing purposes. Replacement costs will include the material (lumber, roofing shingles, siding material, carpet, drywall, etc), the labor costs, site supervision, architect’s services, the contractor’s profit and overhead, and the foundation. Keep in mind that changes in building codes may prohibit rebuilding on the current foundation.

There are several ways to obtain a replacement cost estimate on your home. Building contractors or professional replacement cost appraisers are a good source for obtaining the estimated replacement cost of your home. Estimates from these sources should reflect your home’s features, like upgraded bathrooms and kitchens (granite, custom cabinets, built in appliances), finished basements, specialty rooms, custom molding, built-in bookshelves, arched and specialty windows, and many other unique features. If you are unable to obtain a detailed estimate from these sources, your independent insurance agent can discuss other options for estimating the replacement of your home.

If and when you do renovations or additions to your home, be sure to let your agent know, as this may change the replacement cost of your home. It’s the homeowner’s responsibility to make sure the home is insured for full replacement cost.

At R&R Insurance, we recommend to all of our personal lines customers that they insure their home for at least 100% of it’s replacement cost. Get an estimate for the cost to rebuild the home and then insure your home for that amount! For most homeowners, insuring at the correct coverage amount will have a minimal affect on the homeowners insurance premium. Wisconsin residents: Contact us for a quote today! We have dozens of markets eager to write your homeowners insurance.

While the internet technology allows children unprecedented access to information and knowledge, it also leaves them potentially vulnerable to online predators and cyberbullying. Here are parental tips and the age-based children's internet use guidelines that the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests:

For Parents:

• Monitor you child's internet use and content. Make rules regarding appropriate and inappropriate sites.
• Use the interet with your children. Place the computer in the family room rather than in your child's bedroom or secluded office space. Consider tracking software if and when supervision is not possible.
• Research software or services that can block or filter offensive and inappropriate web sites and materials.
• Learn about the internet regulations at your child's school, the local library, and homes of his or her friends.

Age-Based Intenet Use Guidelines:

Up to age 10- Children this age need supervision and monitoring to ensure they are not exposed to inappropriate materials. Parents should us the Internet safety tools to limit access to content, web sites and activities, and be actively involved in their child's internet use.

Ages 11-14- Children need supervision and monitoring to ensure they are not exposed to inappropriate materials. Children this ago also need to understand what personal information should NOT be given or posted over the internet. Note: Facebook's use is intended for users 13 years old and older.

Ages 15-18- Parents should be available to help their teens understand the inappropriate messages and avoid unsafe situations. Parents may need to continually remind teens what personal information should NOT be given or posted over the internet.

This is a fantastic quick read from Kenneth S Trump posted on District Administration in September, 2010. One of particular interest for us - being a trusted advisor for so many schools in Wisconsin - the comment about non-traditional partners. Your insurance agency should most definitely be a part of these conversations. At R&R Insurance we have an in-house resource center dedicated to improving safety as well as connections with external resources that our district clients utilize - our clients are right on track with this!

From Kenneth Trump's article:
School budgets are tight, but there are still many things school leaders can do to keep schools safe.

1) The five-minute safety rule. Take five minutes at every faculty meeting to discuss one topic from your school's safety or crisis plan.

2) Diversify drills. Conduct lockdown drills during nontraditional times such as lunch periods, during student arrival, and just prior to dismissal. Block exits (unannounced) during fire drills to teach students and staff to think on their feet. Lock down one section of your school while evacuating another area during the same drill.

3) Engage students. Draw students into school safety plans through student-leader group discussions, poster contests and increasing awareness of drills. Train students not to open exterior doors for strangers during the school day.

4) Reach out to nontraditional partners. Work with your county emergency management agency (EMA) to update crisis plans, participate in drills with first-responders, and collaborate on joint applications for security grants.

5) Hold mini-tabletop exercises. Build abbreviated tabletop scenarios into faculty meetings and district wide principal meetings several times during each school year.

6) Conduct safety roundtables. Add an agenda item to district principal meetings.

Contact Bill Hattendorf - R&R's School Practice Group Leader about your school district today!

American Medical News is reporting that the AMA has adopted a policy saying that young athletes suspected of having a concussion should have written approval by a physician before they can return to play or practice.

The policy calls for the AMA to promote the adoption of such a requirement for school and other organized youth sports. The AMA also will encourage educational efforts to improve the understanding of concussions among athletes, parents, coaches and trainers.

Concussions account for nearly 10% of all high school athletic injuries. "Any movement forward [to protect against concussions] is positive," said Dr. Welsh, an alternate delegate for the Indiana State Medical Assn. "What I don't want to see is someone have a concussion that's missed, and the next one is the bad one."

Research on the prevalence and impact of concussions on athletes has created new awareness about the problem nationwide. The Center for Injury Research and Policy said 40% of high school athletes with concussions return to play too soon.

The National Football League and the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. have instituted policies to prevent players with concussions from returning during the same game. State legislatures have pursued measures requiring removal of athletes suspected of having concussions.

Medical organizations also have issued guidance. Most recently, the American Academy of Neurology in October published a position statement that athletes suspected of having a concussion should be removed from play until they are evaluated by a physician.

"Concussions account for nearly 10% of all high school athletic injuries," said AMA Board of Trustees Member Edward L. Langston, MD.

Excerpt from American Medical News - November 29, 2010 issue