2699 Main Street
Lake Placid NY 12946
518-523-3196
Gordon W. Pratt Agency, Inc. &
I.B. Hunt Agency
(A Division of the Gordon W. Pratt Agency Inc.)
Home - Auto - Business - Life
staff@gwpratt.com
73 Church Street Suite 1
Saranac Lake NY 12983
518-891-6600
Important Insurance Info
Automobile
- Have you thought about the liability consequences of a serious accident? Would you like to increase your liability and uninsured motorist coverage up to $500,000? We are recommending that insureds take a look at their limits because of the size of lawsuits as a result of an automobile accident.
- Do you want the maximum personal injury protection coverage? This is your NY state no-fault insurance. This coverage covers medical bills after an accident no matter which vehicle is at fault.
- Are you willing to pay a higher deductible to reduce your premium? Higher deductible options include $500, $1,000, and in some instances $2,500.
- If you aren’t a member of AAA or another type of motor club towing coverage can be added to your policy for as little as $7 per vehicle.
- The price of renting a vehicle after an accident has increased over the past few years. We have found the average cost to be $50 a day. If you do not have this coverage or if you only have minimal coverage you would have an out of pocket expense.
Homeowner
- Have made over $5000 in improvements? If you have, it can affect your replacement cost and we need to notify the company. Do you feel your dwelling limit is enough to replace your home?
- An umbrella or excess liability policy is highly recommended. This coverage is over and above the liability on your personal policies. Depending on your exposures, the coverage could cost as little as $150 for a $1,000,000 limit.
- Do you have valuables or collectibles: antiques, fine arts, stamps, coins, jewelry, firearms, furs, photography equipment, hearing aids, etc.? You may be able to include them on your homeowners policy or take out a separate policy.
- If you already have scheduled items, have you updated the appraisal? Remember most items increase in value every year.
- Do you have a business in your home, or do you have clients that come to and from your home? There is no automatic business coverage and would need to be added.
- Do you own tools or equipment that are used for business purposes?
- Do you keep a large amount of others’ property, either business or personal, or samples or items for sale in your home?
- Do you own rental or income property?
- Do you have a secondary residence?
- Do you have a central station fire or security alarm?
- Do you have an above-ground or in-ground swimming pool?
- Do you have detached structures: garage, gazebo, storage barn, shed, etc.? If yes, do you rent this structure out?
- Do you ever rent your home out for more than 4 weeks per year?
- Has your home been converted into (or always been) a 2+ family home?
- Do you have a wood burning stove or pellet stove?
- Are you concerned about possible earthquake damage to your home?
- Identity theft is becoming a problem. Would you like to add coverage for the cost of recovering your identity in case your identity ever becomes stolen?
What Is Umbrella Insurance?
Umbrella coverage can protect both assets and future earnings, providing an extra layer of insurance for catastrophic losses. Umbrella insurance is secondary only and applies when an underlying (or primary) policy doesn't provide sufficient liability protection. It can also provide excess coverage with only a $250 retained limit (like a deductible) for losses not covered by underlying policies and covered by umbrella.
Customers typically appreciate an umbrella policy when they want extra protection from accidents or injuries that can occur. For example, what if a dog bites a neighbor's child? An accident occurs on a rental property? Or a fire in a condo spreads to other units?
Do you own a boat or RV? Is there a young driver in the family? Umbrella can provide personal liability protection when a borrowed snowmobile hits a stranger’s car. Umbrella is also beneficial to international travelers or anyone at risk of being sued—basically, anyone with assets to protect.
Coverages and Limits
How does umbrella work with other types of coverage?
Umbrella applies when other types of liability insurance have paid out or don’t apply. Umbrella policies work with all kinds of underlying coverage, including auto, home, watercraft, motorcycle, etc.
In addition, umbrella insurance may provide coverage (less a retained limit) when an underlying policy doesn’t.
What’s an example of umbrella coverage with an underlying policy?
Imagine you have an auto policy with $250,000 of liability insurance. You also have $1 million of umbrella coverage. On the way home from work, you accidentally run a red light and hit a biker. The biker is injured and seeks damages of $700,000. The court finds you liable for the full amount.
The maximum liability on your auto policy is $250,000. After that coverage has been depleted, your umbrella policy steps in and pays the final $450,000.
If you had not been protected with the additional liability coverage, you personally would have been responsible for $450,000 in claims against you.
*Basically, umbrella applies when any activity for which you are found liable results in the payout of a claim that exceeds the limits of an underlying (typically home or auto insurance) policy. Accidents, lawsuits, injuries while traveling, and damages caused by teen drivers are just a few examples.
Does umbrella ever cover the entire loss?
Umbrella requires an underlying liability policy; however, umbrella insurance can cover situations that may not be covered by another policy.
In such cases, the umbrella coverage provides the primary liability insurance, after the $250 retained limit (like a deductible) has been satisfied.
What are the coverage limits and cost?
Umbrella coverage comes in $1 million increments and in most cases can be provided by your current homeowner company. Depending on your exposures, the coverage could cost as little as $150 for a $1,000,000 limit.
Flood Insurance
Your homeowners policy does not cover loss caused by a flood.
What is a flood?
“A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from overflow of inland or tidal waters, from unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source, or from mudflow.”
Everyone is at risk of flooding. Floods can be caused by storms, melting snow, hurricanes, failed protective devices such as levees and dams, inadequate drainage systems.
To be eligible for National Flood Insurance you must live in a community that participates in the National Flood Insurance Program. Most communities in our area do participate.
Premiums are determined by the level of risk determined by FEMA. You can determine your property risk by going to www.FloodSmart.gov.
Please contact us if you have questions concerning this coverage or if you would like to have this coverage.
Ordinance or Law Coverage
A practical understanding:
When a building or structure is built it has to meet all current building codes. A building that was built to code at one time may not be in compliance at a later date. The time from being compliant, at the construction date, to being out of compliance can vary from six months to several years depending on the frequency and nature of changes in ordinances or laws.
What triggers coverage:
This coverage responds when a covered loss triggers the application of ordinance or law, but only a portion of the building is damaged. If the undamaged portion of the building is rendered as unusable, or condemned, by an ordinance then it would have to be torn down, thus a total loss of the building would be incurred. This coverage would indemnify you for the undamaged portion even though there was not direct peril damage to the building.
Specialty Lines
Do you own recreational vehicles: boats, jet skis, campers, motorcycles, ATVs, snowmobiles, etc.? Are they currently insured?
Do you have a watercraft? Have you checked the actual cash value as boats do depreciate over time?
At Gordon W. Pratt Agency Inc and IB Hunt Agency, we can work with you to make sure you've got the coverage you need, while at the same time using all possible credits and discounts to make that coverage affordable. Just give us a call at 518-523-3196 or 518-891-6600, or send us a note at staff@gwpratt.com. We want to help you meet your goals, and make sure what's important to you is protected!
Call us today for your insurance needs!
518-523-3196
518-891-6600
Our business was founded in 1978.