Bechtold Insurance Agency

The attached library of articles come from a number of sources.  Some come from Industry or National magazines, andothers from the Local Paper outlining issues of interest.   Note:  The Articles herein are offered for information purposes only.

ARTICLES

 * Local Contractor Accused of Fraud (Daily Herald 02/12/10)

  * Save Fees from Insurers (WSJ 02/07/10)

  * Home Insurance Ratings (Consumer Report 09/09)  

Five Things that KILL Home Insurance:  Here's conditions that could make it hard to buy coverage for your home.

1.  Natural Disasters: homeowners learn the hard way that standard insurance policies don't cover natural disasters such as Floods and Earthquakes. 

2.  Dog Bites: account for one-third of all homeowners liability claims costing insurers $387 million in 2008.

3. Knob and Tube Wiring : Main method of electrical wiring from the 1880's through the 1950's.  Today's appliances are more powerful and place a signaficant strain on the older wiring.

4. Past Claims or Dropped Policy:

Carriers hold new clients to a tougher standard with the help of a shared database of claims.  Dropped policy and past claims make it difficult to obtain any coverage.  It is estimated that only 30% of all customers file any sort of claim. 

5.  Pride of Ownership: A well kept home not only adds to the resale value but also reduces the liability potential.  Broken gutters, moss covered roof, peeling paint, broken equipment in the yard can reflect a raising liability issue and make it hard to keep insurancde rates down.