5 Risks to Remember when Buying Business Insurance in Florida

Business Insurance Florida

There are many things that make Florida a great place to live. Sandy beaches, a growing economy, and Mild Winter Weather are at the top of the list why many people find their way to the Sunshine State. In addition, Florida is the third most populous state in the United States and it represents the fourth largest GDP of any state in the country. With all of these positives to the state of Florida comes an enormous amount of risk. Many of the risks the state of Florida faces are unique to the state and many are risks that many other regions of the country face. The fact the Florida faces many of these risks complicates the business community within the state. Here are four types of risk that are important to consider when deciding to buy Business Insurance Florida.

Hurricanes

Hurricane Season begins each year around the end of June or the beginning of July. It typically last well into September and early October. September is typically the strongest month. 2017 contained the most damage throughout the state of Florida when Category 4 Hurricane Irma struck the the Atlantic Coast. Because of the frequency and severity of hurricanes in the state of Florida, it is important for businesses to speak with their insurance agent about properly insuring their business against hurricanes.

Flooding

Flood Insurance is equally important to secure for businesses in Florida. An overwhelming majority of the state is located in an area with some level of risk for floods and most people or businesses are not adequately insured to protect against the damages from floods. Many policyholders near the coast think damages from flooding caused by a hurricane will be covered by their homeowners insurance or by hurricane insurance, but in most cases that is not true. This is why it is important to find an independent insurance agent with whom you have a lot of trust. An experienced independent agent can help you determine what exact risks you face, the level of those risks, if there are any gaps in coverage, and where you may be able to go without coverage. This advice can be invaluable when your area faces a natural disaster.

The Sharing Economy

Because of the impact of the tourism industry in the state of Florida, the sharing economy in the state is strong. Many people who are operating in the sharing economy either do not secure proper insurance or do not secure enough insurance.

Many people think their covered when they definitely are not. For people who work for the ride share companies of Lyft or Uber, their personal car insurance policies do not cover liability damages when they cause an accident while driving for a ridesharing business. Some car insurance policies will still pay for the damages to your car, but not the liability you face to third parties who are hurt by the accident a driver caused.

Florida also has many home owners who use homesharing platforms AirBNB or VRBO. The fact that the tourism industry is so strong within the state of Florida causes people to use these services more than in other parts of the country. Additional insurance is needed if a homeowner uses these services to make additional income off of their home.

Volatile Workers Compensation System

The Workers Compensation Market in Florida has been extremely volatile for a number of years. Rates in the market trended positive in 2018 when the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced 13.8 percent declines in the pure premium rate for businesses in 2019.  This decline will save the business community throughout the state more than $400 million dollars compared to 2018. These declines are in addition to declines in 2018 after steep increases in 2017.  The volatility in the market started in 2016 when the Supreme Court in the state ruled on two court cases, Castellanos v. Next Door Company and Westphal v. City of St. Petersburg.

The Castellanos Ruling invalidated a previous decision from a case in 2009 that limited an injured worker’s ability to recover a reasonable amount of money for attorney’s fees. After this ruling judges no longer had to stick to a fee schedule when awarding damages in workers compensation cases. Carriers anticipated this to drastically increase what they were required to pay in losses.

The Westphal Ruling dealt with the statutory limitation on temporary total disability benefits. This ruling increased the time period an injured worker can collect partial salary benefits from workers compensation claims.  The time period employees could collect these benefits increased from 104 weeks to 260 weeks. This additional 156 weeks causes carriers to prepare for these potential increases in payouts.

In the second half of 2017 saw the bankruptcy of Guarantee Insurance Company. Guarantee Insurance Company was the state provider for workers compensation in the state of Florida. “Guarantee had about 8,600 active policies in 31 states and the District of Columbia on Nov. 13, Moore said. Of those, 1,250 were in Florida”. This left more then a thousand businesses in the state of Florida scrambling to find coverage on short notice.

 

Hurricane Season is Upon us

15 Tips to get your Home and Office ready for Hurricane Season

Hurricane Season is upon us. August and September are typically the worst months for hurricanes in the United States, especially on the Atlantic Coast and Caribbean. 2017 was the worst year in a decade for Hurricane damage.  Here are 15 tips to prepare your family and small business for this Hurricane Season.

Hurricane Preapredness is more important now than ever.

Plan ahead in order to be Prepared for Hurricane Season

If you wait until a hurricane forms out in the Atlantic to start thinking about what to do in the event of a natural disaster, it may be difficult to adequately prepare your family much less a small business. Preparing in advance for the day your area experiences a natural disaster is the best way to have your family and business prepared.

Create a Formal Plan

Creating a formal plan, putting it in writing, and communicating that plan to your family, friends, neighbors, and employees is the best way to deal with a natural disaster. Incorporating the key employees and advisors is a great way to get the most complete formal plan developed.

Protect Your Staff, First during Hurricane Season

If you and your staff are at work when a natural disaster strikes, it is always important to take care of the health and well-being of your staff, first and foremost. This is more a case for areas of the country that experience earthquakes or tornadoes. These natural disasters have much less warning, but hurricanes typically give the ability to know they are coming for a few days at the least. The strength and severity of the hurricane may be a surprise, but not the fact that they are on the way.  No matter what the circumstances around a hurricane, when your community is faced with one, it is important to help your staff in any way possible.

Keep Communication Open with staff

On top of thinking about your staff first when a disaster strikes, it is equally important to design and implement an effective communication plan for your staff. Have as many forms of communication open as possible. Some staff may prefer to communicate via email or text, others may want a phone call. No matter what time of communication plan you decide on for your organization, practice it ahead of time. This will help the situation run smoothly when disaster actually strikes.

Create a Contact List

In a day and age when most people depend upon their mobile device for a majority of the information they need at any given moment. When a natural disaster strikes, cell phone reception is not always reliable. If this does occur after a hurricane, having a contact list in a safe place will come in handy when you are trying to get ahold of your family, friends, neighbors, and employees.

Hurricane Matthew Damage

Paperwork/Collection of Information

Buying a safe is advisable in the event of a natural disaster. It is important to safely store documents like birth certificates, social security cards, passports, the deed to your house, the title to your cars, the articles of incorporation etc. It is equally important to store a list of phone numbers to organizations like the local hospital, the local police, a printed list of your employees contact info, your insurance company, etc. Do not depend upon these numbers being stored in your phone. Many times when a natural disaster strikes, there is a period of time when cell service is bad or does not work at all.

Take Before and After Photos

Taking before and after photos are especially important for your home and office.  It is important to document your key equipment and the property that your business owns. It might not be a bad idea to put these photos on file with your insurance agent and carrier. The more information you record photographically, the easier the claims process will be with your insurance company.

Designate a Safe Zone within your Home and Office

Designating a meeting location within your house or office and just outside of it is crucial to keeping track of your family and staff in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. If the place to meet is inside the building, make sure it is centralized and away from windows as much as possible.

Stockpile Emergency Supplies just for Hurricane Season

Emergency supplies may be critical in the hours and days immediately following a hurricane. These supplies should include batteries, bottled water, non-perishable food, a first aid kit, entertainment, deck of cards, maybe even a harmonica. There are infinite things that can and should be included in an emergency supply kit. Planning ahead is always the best way to create this kit and checking on it periodically will help to make sure everything is in operating order.

Purchase Backup Power

A back-up generator and solar chargers are beneficial when a disaster strikes. There will more than likely be a period of time when your family and business have to go without power. Having a back up plan for power will make your family and employees much more comfortable while dealing with the results of the natural disaster.

Conduct Ongoing Maintenance of all necessary Power Equipment

Checking on the backup power to make sure it is in proper working order is highly advisable for your home and office. Also, it is wise to store the proper fuel the backup generator. If you decide to use solar as a source for backup power, the device should be tested about once a quarter.

Have a Plan for Windows and Doors during Hurricane Season

Windows and doors are important to take care of in the event of a hurricane. Even if the storm is a tropical storm or category I storm there is more than likely going to be a lot of flying debris as a result of the storm. In some way you should board up all windows and doors of any facility you own or rent. This activity takes minimal effort on your part and can save a lot of damage if done properly.

Keep Trees Trimmed

One thing many people forget in relation to hurricane season is to have the trees, shrubs, and landscaping up to date. Even in the case of the storm not being as strong as forecasted, there will still be extremely high winds. Those winds can do enormous damage to your property when they interact with overgrown tree limbs. Soem time during the month of July or August is a good time to have all the limbs on your property trimmed adequately.

Know the Location of all Power Boxes and Water Shut Off Valves before Hurricane Season

Before a storm is in the forecast, it is important to find the location of your properties water shut-off valve, power box, and surge protector. These are not parts of your property you have to deal with very frequently. For that reason, it is important to to periodically visit this part of your facility and make sure it is in proper working order. It is especially important to do this in the Summer Months prior to hurricane season.

Clean the Gutters before Hurricane Season

In addition to tree limbs and shrubs around your property, it is equally important to clean out the gutters on all properties prior to the late summer and early fall hurricane season. These gutters will be dealing with a large amount of water moving through them during the fall. If they are not cleaned it may result in further damage to the property.

Hurricane Season is Upon Us!

Is your home and office prepared for Hurricane Season?

Hurricane season is upon us in the United States. As of June 12th, Hurricane Bud is already the second named storm of the season. Bud is expected to make landfall near the Baja Peninsula of Mexico this coming Thursday through the weekend. Hurricane Aletta, the first named storm of 2018, grew to a category four storm and consisted of sustained winds in excess of 140 miles per hour. This is occurring little more than eight months after Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Maria, category four and category five storms respectively, made landfall over Houston and Puerto Rico. Forcing many to go without power for weeks and months.

These Hurricanes should be a cautionary tale that if you live in an area that has a risk of hurricanes now is the time to plan for how you will deal with these storms when they come your way.  In most places, it is a matter of when and not if you are going to deal with a hurricane. Here are seven ways to prepare your home and small business for hurricane season.

Flooded Las Olas Blvd and Palm trees blowing in the winds, catastrophic hurricane Irma.

Create a communication plan

Communication is difficult in the technological age. It is even more difficult when a natural disaster occurs. For this reason, it is extremely important to have a plan in place for how your are going to get a message to the few people who are most important.  On a day to day basis, we may not realize how much we depend upon our mobile devices, but the second those devices are taken away we all realize how important they are to our ever connected world. Having a plan in place for when they do not work and practicing it from time to time will help your family and small business prepare for a hurricane or other natural disaster.

Restock your emergency preparedness kit

First and foremost, your house and your business should have an emergency preparedness kit. What it has in it may depend upon where you live and what special needs the people who need to use it may have. If someone in your family or at your business are diabetic, there should be some supplies related to these health issues. If you have a young child or an elderly member of your family, you need to prepare for their special needs. Regardless of the circumstances your business and family face, there should be a place where you have some supplies for when a hurricane occurs.

Check insurance coverage

Most Hurricane insurance policies have a time period before they kick in. Most are at least 30 days in length, meaning if you are purchasing coverage now you may be late for a hurricane occurring in late June or early July. If you already have coverage in place it is a good idea to dust off that policy and see what may or may not be covered. Partnering with an experienced independent insurance can help you determine what coverage you have and if there is additional coverage you may benefit from.

Consider flood insurance

In many cases flood insurance is necessary in addition to hurricane coverage. Each policy has limitations to what is and what is not covered. In most cases, flooding that occurs after a hurricane has occurred is not covered unless you have a separate flood insurance policy. Most small businesses can eliminate this gap in coverage by purchasing a business owner’s package. In a state where natural disasters are common, this should be a standard part of most comprehensive packages.

Make copies of important documents

There are many documents that are extremely important after a natural disaster occurs. These documents may include passports, birth certificate, social security card, the title to your car or house, bank account records, copies of your insurance policies, and the phone numbers related to any of these documents.

Back up your electronics

If you own a small business, it is crucially important for you to back up all data that may be important. Depending upon the industry you operate in this may be a small amount of data or it may be an enormous amount. No matter how large or small, it is essential to have a place where this data is safe. Backing up your electronics at your home is equally important. There are more than likely numerous important bits of information saved on all of the devices in your house. Not to mention the many many pictures we share to all of our devices. Without a plan in place, these will all be lost after a natural disaster.

Review Your Supply Chain

If you have ever lived through a natural disaster like a hurricane you more than likely know that the world keeps on moving no matter how bad the situation is in your area. If you own or operate a small business that does business regionally or nationally, it is important to have a plan in place for how to keep the business churning throughout a natural disaster. Customers are still going to expect on time delivery of the goods and services you have contracted in advance. Thinking about these situations in advance can be the difference between a hurricane being a small slow down in business and a situation that your business never recovers from.

 

 

Can Natural Disasters hurt your small business?

Here are 5 Natural Disasters that can wreak havoc on your Small Business.

 

With the presence of hurricane season upon us and the two examples we have in Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, now is a good time to have a conversation with your insurance agent about just what risks your small business faces when it comes to natural disasters. The risks are going to be different depending upon where your business operates, but now is as good of a time as ever to determine what risks you face and what coverages you may or may not need. Here are 5 types of disasters every business should prepare itself for.

Key West is one area that frequently gets hit by hurricanes. Small businesses in this area have a knack for dealing with natural disasters.

Hurricanes

Obviously, if you live in the Midwest, you may not need coverage to protect your business from a hurricane.  But the effects of a hurricane can travel very far inland, depending upon the strength of the storm. The states of Tennessee and Kentucky do not have a coast line, but they are feeling the effects of Hurricane Harvey at this very moment.  If you live in a coastal community, it is important to find out what exactly your hurricane policy does and does not cover. You may need an additional flood policy to deal with storm surge and flooding that comes after the tornado.  A short conversation with your agent should help you determine what all policies you need.

Tornadoes

Tornadoes are a type of natural disaster that can reach far and wide. They are not isolated just to the Midwest. Tornadoes can impact a small area of one small town or they can damage many areas through a state or region. Predicting them is difficult and the only true way to protect your business is to have the proper insurance coverage in place. Tornadoes are another type of disaster that also have a need for flood insurance.

Forest Fires are one type of Natural Disaster. Fires

Fires can come in the form of forest fires or local fires due to man-made causes. Certain areas in the Western United States are more prone to fires because of the dry nature of the climate in this part of the country. Forest fires can damage wet areas too as was seen last fall when many areas in Tennessee and North Carolina were ravaged by forest fires near Gatlinburg, TN and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Earthquakes

Earthquakes are areas that are little more predictable to know if you need the coverage or not. Areas that are on or near a fault line are more likely to need this coverage. Some faults are more likely than others and carry more risks. Also, with the growing popularity of fracking technology to dig for oil in some areas of the country, earthquakes are now appearing much more frequently and in areas that are not near a fault line. If this type of technology is being used in your area, it is something you should speak with your insurance agent about in order to properly protect your business.

Fllods are another type of natural disaster that can have a negative impact on small businesses. Floods

Floods are another type of natural disaster that should be prepared for. In most communities, if you live in or near a flood zone you are required to carry coverage.  These are not the only businesses who would be wise to purchase this coverage. The damage from floods can be far-reaching and in many cases it can cause a business to close its doors permanently.

Natural Disaster Preparedness

How can you prepare your business for the next natural disaster that may come your way?

The devastation that can be caused by a natural Natural Disaster is all of the news media recently. After seeing the impact Hurricane Harvey has had on the communities of Southeastern Texas and now seeing the panic setting in throughout the state of Florida now might be a good time to plan for if a natural disaster were to strike your community. This is a good time to prepare for both what you would do to protect your family and friends, but also how to properly protect your business in the event of a natural disaster. Here are 5 tips for preparing your business in the event of a natural disaster.

Hurricane Harvey shows the need to prepare your business for a natural disaster.

Call your insurance agent

Now is a great time to give your insurance agent a call and find out what exactly are the risks your business faces in relation to natural disasters and if you are protected from them. Now is a time when many other people are probably thinking the same thing, so have a bit of patience with your agent at this time. Schedule a good 20 to 30 minutes to have a long and honest conversation with them about your business. Spending a few extra minutes discussing your risks now can mean the difference between your business being closed for a few weeks and your business having to close its doors permanently because damage from the natural disaster was not covered by your insurance policies.

Create a Disaster Kit

Now is a good time to determine what you and your employees will need in the event you have to spend an extended amount of time at on your property without electricity. You should also have a plan in place for how you plan to secure all valuable items within the business like the internal server or important customer documents. There are many ways to do this, but the time to decide how you will secure these valuables is not in the few days before disaster strikes.

Hurricane Irma has shown Florida the need to prepare for natural disasters.

Develop a communication plan and practice it

Most successful business leaders know that communication is key. The leaders of your business need to have a plan in place for how they will communicate with your employees during a natural disaster. Safety is always a first and foremost priority, but you need to have a plan in place for how you plan to let them know when you plan to come back to work after a disaster. randomly practicing this communication plan is a great way to ensure it is effective when disaster strikes. Also, there may be ways you or other employees can help each other through the disaster. Facilitating this help can create loyalty among your staff that is invaluable to your business.

Create a Business Continuity Plan

Having a plan for how your business will continue to operate in the event of a natural disaster is crucial to the success of dealing with a disaster.  For example, if your business operates online orders may continue to come in.  You need to have a plan in place for how you will deal with the delays that will come with these orders. This is especially important if you are a nationwide or international business. People on the other side of the country or the other side of the globe may be going on with their day to day operations. You need to have a plan in place for how you will accommodate these customers in the event of a natural disaster.

Hurricane Irma in Florida has shown the need for businesses to prepare for a natural disaster.

Keep your insurance info and other vital docs safe

It is very important to keep your insurance information available. This should include contact names, phone numbers and email addresses of those you will need to communicate with.  You should make sure more than one person knows where to access this information in the event of an emergency.  This can expedite the claim process in the event that you need to file a claim.  Protecting vital business records is also crucial.

Technology to help Hurricane Harvey Victims

How technology is helping flood victims recover from Hurricane Harvey.

Hurricane Harvey has dumped the most water on Texas of any Hurricane in modern US History. According to Matthew Cappuci, a current student at both Harvard and MIT, ‘If you took the Empire State Building, more than a hundred stories tall, you could fill that entire volume 33,000 times with the water that fell on Houston and the surrounding areas’.  This massive amount of water has and will take an enormous effort to recover from. Technology will play a tremendous role in the rebuilding efforts. Here are four ways technology is helping Hurricane Harvey Victims.

Communication Challenges for First-Responders.Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts

During the first few days of relief efforts, in response to the Hurricane, First Responders were having to get creative in order to communicate with each other and victims needing help.  In the hours and days after the hurricane, many 911 call centers and radio centers were out of commission. The disrupted networks also left more than 250,000 people without phone, TV or internet access.  As a result of this disruption in telecommunications, the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) set up more than two dozen mobile communication office vehicles throughout the damaged areas. These areas had satellite-connected trucks helping FEMA employees and first responders with voice, video and data networks.

Social media as a way for Hurricane Victims to communicate with police and first responders.

In the early stages of the relief efforts, many victims were finding it difficult to get through to 911.  Dajauh Zhane Henix was separated from her daughter during rescue efforts and posted a message to Facebook that was shared more than 32,000 times. With the help of search and rescue and the power of social media, Mrs. Henix was reunited with her daughter. This is just one of many examples of the power of social media to reach many people quickly in a moment of need. Unfortunately, this power can be used in negative ways when videos or pictures go viral with inaccurate information.

Facebook is even matching up to $1 Million in donations made through the site.

Text to Donate to Hurricane Harvey Relief efforts.First Responder coming to the rescue after Hurricane Harvey.

This is not such a new technology, but mobile devices now make it easier than ever to donate to relief efforts.

The Red Cross has usedtext messages asa way to donate inmany disaster relief efforts.  For Hurricane Harvey they are asking people to Text: “HARVEY” to “90999” to automatically donate $10.

If you would rather donate to a local charity, you can Text: HARVEY2017 to 91999 to support the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund.

Drones are helping the insurance industry process claims.

Hurricane Harvey Weather MapWhen disaster strikes, the speed at which insurance companies process claims can be slowed dramatically. This process is important because the more quickly this process gets done, the more quickly the victims can get back to everyday life. Drones are helping insurance carriers process claims at a much faster rate than in the past. This is because an insurance carrier can now use a drone to view the damage of an area several times as big as in the past in a matter of hours. In the past the carrier would have had to have someone physically inspect the property.  They may have had to wait several days if not weeks for flood waters to recede enough to get in to the impacted areas. Now this can be done with a drone over an area inspecting ten or more covered properties at one time.  This can all be done either from a remote location or even at a location near the disaster area. Drones can allow the carrier to have a visual representation of the impacted area in a matter of a few hours instead of it taking days if not weeks only five or ten years ago.