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Steve Brooks Insurance Services eNewsletter
Phone: 800-915-3090 |
Safeguarding the interests of you and your family
May 2009 |
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Dear Friends,
May 1st was the 20th Anniversary of Brooks Insurance Services and I would like to extend my sincere thanks to each and every one of you for your valued business and for putting your trust in us. We are looking forward to the next 20 years by continuing to provide you with professional and caring service and the best insurance products on the market today.
The weather is heating up here in SoCal, and fire and earthquake "seasons" are also upon us. Our thoughts are with those that were injured or lost their homes in the recent Santa Barbara fires.
We cannot stress enough how important it is for you to take a minute and make sure that you have proper and adequate insurance coverage for fire and earthquake damage. Don't rely on FEMA to help you out or rebuild your home, please call our office and let us help you.
In this month's eNewsletter, we look at insurance for celebrity's body parts, California earthquakes, the importance of renters insurance, a cat with over 500,000 followers on Twitter, and much more.
With kind regards and thoughts of safety,
Steve M. Brooks, CIC, CPIA
Founder/President
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| Los Angeles Shakes From 4.1 Magnitude Earthquake |
Los Angeles recently felt a 4.1 magnitude earthquake, emphasizing the need for consumers to prepare for disaster and evaluate their individual needs for earthquake insurance.
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"Disaster will strike when you least expect it," said California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. "Our state is home to many devastating natural disasters - from wildfires to earthquakes. It is essential that all homeowners are prepared for the possibility of a catastrophic loss. I encourage every Californian to evaluate their individual situations and consider whether earthquake insurance is right for them. I also urge consumers to regularly inventory their assets and make sure to have adequate insurance coverage."
A recent National Association of Insurance Commissioners survey revealed that 69 percent of American consumers do not have the coverage necessary to protect themselves from losses related to earthquakes.
The Commissioner is advising consumers to speak with their insurance agents and offered the following tips:
-Take an inventory of your valuables and belongings. Take photographs or a video of each room. This documentation will provide your insurance company with proof of your belongings and help to process claims more quickly in the event of disaster.
-Keep sales receipts and/or canceled checks. Also note the model and serial numbers of the items in your home inventory. As you acquire more valuables — jewelry, family heirlooms, antiques, art —consider purchasing an additional "floater" or "rider" to your policy to cover these special items. These types of items typically are not covered by a basic homeowners or renter's insurance policy.
-Remember to include in your home inventory those items you rarely use (e.g., holiday decorations, sports equipment, tools, etc.).
Store copies of all your insurance policies in a safe location away from your home that is easily accessible in case of disaster. You may want to store your policies and inventory in a waterproof, fireproof box or in a safe, remote location such as a bank safe deposit box.
-Consider leaving a copy of your inventory with relatives, friends or your insurance provider and store digital pictures in your e-mail or on a website for easy retrieval.
-Know what is and is not covered by your insurance policy. You might need additional protection depending on where you live. Make sure your policies are up to date. Contact your insurance provider annually to review and update your insurance policy.
-Keep a readily available list of 24-hour contact information for each of your insurance providers.
-Find out if your possessions are insured for the actual cash value or the replacement cost. Actual cash value is the amount it would take to repair or replace damage to your home or possessions after depreciation while replacement cost is the amount it would take to repair or replace your home or possessions without deducting for depreciation.
-Speak with your insurance provider to determine whether purchasing replacement coverage is worth the cost. Also speak with your insurance provider to find out if your policy covers additional living expenses for a temporary residence if you are unable to live in your home due to damage from a disaster.
-Appraise your home periodically to make sure your insurance policy reflects home improvements or renovations.
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| News Oddities |
6 Year Old Takes Wheel After Dad Passes Out
NORTH PLATTE, Neb. Police say a 6-year-old boy grabbed the wheel of their pickup after his dad passed out from low blood
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sugar and kept them from crashing until a North Platte police officer could bring the truck to a halt.
Tustin Mains was in the back seat with his 3-year-old brother when he noticed that his dad, Phillip Mains, slumped down on Sunday evening while they were driving home from a restaurant.
Tustin hopped up from the back seat to his father's lap so he could steer and see out the windshield.
His dad's foot had slipped off the accelerator, but even at idle the car was going an estimated 10-15 mph.
Tustin remained at the wheel for several blocks, even turning around when he got into a neighborhood he didn't recognize.
He was then spotted by North Platte officer Roger Freeze.
Freeze maneuvered his car near enough that he could stop, get out and run up to the pickup. The driver's side window was down, so Freeze reached in, grabbed the gearshift and rammed it into park.
North Platte Police Chief Martin Gutschenritter praised his officer and young Tustin.
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Twitter's Latest Star is a Microblogging Cat
NEW YORK - He's one of the most popular users on Twitter. More than 500,000 follow his growing celebrity, his every adventure and, well, his cat naps. |
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Meet Sockington. Twitter's latest star is a microblogging cat who regales more than half a million with his musings on meal time, personal hygiene and the view from the top of the stairs.
Sockington, or "Socks" for short, is the cat of Jason Scott, a 38-year-old computer historian and computer administrator from Waltham, Mass. Since late 2007, Scott has been tweeting from Sockington's perspective, and finding a "Socks Army" of followers. (Many of his followers are pets, too.)
"He's kind of functioning like a 'Garfield' comic," says Scott. "He's like the 21st century Garfield."
There's the risk that a tweeting cat will only further the impression that Twitter is a flash-in-the-pan success in a sea of online time-wasters. But in a way, Sockington is a parody of Twitter, where even a kitty cat's life - his daily trips to the litter box, his insignificant household travails - is beamed out to the world.
"Everybody wants this social media bubble. They want something where we're all chattering so much that we all get rich," says Scott. "And this cat makes everybody look like fools because he's got hundreds of thousands of followers. And he doesn't tend to follow anyone but other animals."
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| Renters at Risk? |
A new independent consumer survey has found that nearly two-thirds of those living in U.S. rental properties are currently risking severe financial loss by going without renters insurance.
"Our society pays such careful attention to securing auto insurance for our vehicles, yet we have millions of renters neglecting the need to insure the rest of their possessions," says Steve Brooks.
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Consider the value of your furniture, television, stereo, computer, jewelry, clothes, and other items. They likely add up to more in value than your automobile.
"And without renters insurance, what liability coverage do you have in the event someone is injured in your rental unit and sues you for damages?"
A frequent reason many renters give for not purchasing renters insurance is the expense. However, renters insurance policies cost as little as $10 per month.
"The risks for our personal possessions are many: theft, vandalism, fire or lightning, hurricane or tornado, explosions, damage from smoke, damage by broken glass, water-related damage from home utilities ... and the list goes on," notes Brooks.
The most common misconception among renters is that they are covered under their landlord's insurance in the event of fire or theft.
"The landlord's insurance covers the building and the infrastructure of that building, whether it is the elevators, the air conditioning, or the structure itself," Brooks explains. "That coverage does not extend into the homes of the individual residents and the possessions they maintain in their units."
That's where renters insurance comes in.
Renters insurance covers the items you have in your apartment, condo, or other rental home should those items be stolen, destroyed or damaged.
Renters insurance also includes some liability coverage should someone be injured in your home and you are held liable, or even in the event you accidentally burn down your apartment and the landlord's insurance company sues you for damages.
Many families with college students could unknowingly put themselves at risk when they send their kids off to school this fall. While homeowners coverage extends to students who live in campus dormitories, there is a gray area for students living in off-campus housing. Students renting off-campus units need to check with their insurance agent to make sure their parents' homeowners coverage extends to their possessions. If not, they would need to purchase a separate renters insurance policy.
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Celebrity Body Parts
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Celebrity Body Parts:
Million-Dollar Thighs and Smiles
So, would you cut off your legs for $1 million? We would guess not. On the other hand, it probably never occurred to you to buy an insurance policy for them either.
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Unless, of course, you're a celebrity.
The tradition of celebrities insuring talents and body parts is a long and storied one, reintroduced to public consciousness lately by the insuring of Jennifer Lopez's body (or booty) for $1 billion.
Although juicy tales of Lopez's body being priced in parts like a fine Holstein (legs -- $400 million, breasts -- $200 million, or so went the rumors) proved false, many other celebrities have provided us with a menu of limbs and other, um, attributes, neatly broken down by price per part.
The origins of celebrity insurance go back to the 1920s, when silent movie star Ben Turpin, famed for his crossed eyes, took out a $20,000 policy against them uncrossing.
Crooner Jimmy Durante followed suit years later, taking out a $50,000 policy on his moneymaker -- his infamous schnozzola.
Female stars, perhaps more conscious of their attributes, raised the stakes. Marlene Dietrich insured her voice for a cool $1 million, and Betty Grable insured her dynamite legs for the same amount -- thus coining the phrase "million-dollar legs." (By comparison, dancer Fred Astaire had his legs insured for a paltry $75,000 per.)
Other stars of the day took out unusual insurance, including Bette Davis' $28,000 policy against weight gain.
Celebrity insurance stayed strong in the '60s as Angie Dickinson insured her Sinatra-loved legs for a cool mil, and famed San Francisco topless dancer Carol Doda, in what would become another bizarre insurance practice, insured her breasts at Lloyd's of London (the standard bearer for this sort of thing) for $1.5 million.
The insuring of breasts and other sexual attributes has become standard among the A-list and B-list alike. Dolly Parton insured her infamous, theme-park-inspiring 42-inch breasts for $600,000, since who knows where her career would be without them.
And sometimes, gender is irrelevant. One of the oddest examples of celebrity insurance came when a 24-year-old Thai transvestite performer named Poh was told her breast implants could explode at high altitude if she flew to an appearance in Edinburgh. The implants were therefore insured for $500,000.
While the body parts themselves produce healthy profits for insurers, voices also generate business. Bruce Springsteen has a legendary policy on his for somewhere in the $6 million range, and Rod Stewart has insured his scrubbed-with-steel-wool pipes as well.
Other body parts also rate protection. Liberace, French pianist Richard Clayderman and Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards -- an unlikely trio -- all insured their hands.
But the most common celebrity insurance seems to be for legs. Betty Grable inspired a legion of celebrities to protect their golden gams. Entertainment Tonight's Mary Hart has her legs insured for $1 million dollars, as does actress Angie Everhart. Jamie Lee Curtis insured hers for $1 million while doing advertisements for a stocking company, and porn star Porshce Lynn has had her legs insured for the same amount.
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| Rumors of the Road - True or False? |
TRUE or FALSE?
I have an older model vehicle, so I don't need to have high insuance limits.
False.
The value of your car, has nothing to do
with how much damage you can cause if you are in an accident that is
your fault. You can injure someone in a $5,000 car as much as a
$125,000 car! Please carry auto liability limits to try and cover your
net worth (including future earnings).
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Our auto insurance will cover my son when he is delivering newspapers.
False.
True
Teenager drivers get in a lot of accidents, and car accidents are the
leading cause of death for teenagers! It is very important to keep and
even increase your liability limits when you add a young driver.
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I don't need renters insurance because I live in a nice building and I'm not worried about security.
False.
If you rent, you need your own insurance! The owner of your apartment building, or home does not have any coverage for you, or your possessions. A renters policy has many different coverage's (see the article above).
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Steve Brooks Insurance Services, Inc. is a full service, Independent Insurance Agency, offering California Automotive Insurance, California Homeowners Insurance, as well as Renter, Condo and Earthquake coverage. We have access to the products and services of over 20 A+ Rated Insurance Companies.
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sent by: STEVE BROOKS INSURANCE SERVICES, Inc.
340 N. WESTLAKE BLVD SUITE 210
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA 91362
Phone: (800) 915-3090 Fax: (805) 496-4822
info@brooksins.com
www.brooksins.com
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