During the search for commercial insurance policies, you might feel like calling it quits–or running for cover–or going with the cheapest option you find, rather than sorting through the details of each policy. But finding the right policy for your business in Green Valley, AZ doesn’t have to be a pain in the neck. These tips will help.

1. Know what type of coverage you need.

If your company has commercial vehicles dedicated to making deliveries, servicing clients, or other business-related activities, you’ll need to purchase commercial auto insurance to cover them and any employees who drive them; you may also need (or choose) to purchase employee health insurance, professional liability insurance, product insurance, or home-based business insurance.

For a more in-depth overview of those options, the U.S. Small Business Association is a fantastic resource.

2. Find an insurance agent who’s willing to work with you.

As an independent insurance agent, we work with multiple insurance companies, so we’ll be able to compare quotes to help you find the best rate for your business. Regardless of which company you choose, make sure to find someone you trust who answers your questions honestly, knows exactly what is and isn’t covered on the policy in question, and asks questions about your business’s situation so they can suggest an appropriate policy for you.

3. Compare insurance quotes.

This might go without saying, but it’s well worth your while to get a few different quotes before deciding on a policy. When comparing quotes, read through the fine print, too–just because one policy’s premiums are significantly lower doesn’t mean they offer the best deal. Often, lower premiums mean higher deductibles–or less coverage. Do your homework (and consult a qualified agent) to make sure you’re not unpleasantly surprised later on.

No one ever wants to imagine that a devastating illness or injury could prevent them from working for any extended time, but according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC,) the reality as the Social Security Administration statistics show, one out-of-four 20 year-old today may become disabled before they reach retirement. U.S. Census bureau figures show that only 31 percent of Americans working in private industry have long term disability income insurance.

Why Have Long-Term Disability Income Insurance?

The Consumer Federation of America explains that long term disability insurance is just that – insurance to help you cover your essential living costs for the time you’re unable to work. Having a safety net that protects your salary by giving you cash to pay your necessary expenses like:

• rent or a mortgage

• food

• utilities

• car payments

Knowing that your disability income insurance will pay for these and other necessities can be a huge relief for anyone who suffers from a disabling injury or illness.

That security can pay for modifications to your home, if they are needed, help with daily activities like bathing and dressing, or cover expenses not paid by your health insurance policy. Without this extremely important financial buffer, you could easily use up all your savings, not to mention, face financial ruin. No one should discount the possibility that someday, they may need long term disability income insurance protection.

Figuring Out How Much Coverage You Need

As your independent agent serving the Green Valley, Sahuarita, and Tucson, AZ areas, we want to help you find the best long term disability insurance policy for your needs. Most long-term disability income insurance plans start paying benefits six months after you become disabled, and continue to pay you for anywhere from several years, or all the way to retirement.

We need to look at exactly how much money you’d need to cover your necessary bills and incidental expenses. We will add up all your monthly expenses and compare that with your income and any disability insurance you’d get from your employer. Then we add in money you have from savings and investments. We don’t want to overlook the possibility that your disability could add more expenses if you have to pay for medical costs not covered by insurance and other things.

Don’t take risks on your financial security and your family’s well-being. Contact us to talk about your options for long term disability income insurance. We’re here to help you compare prices and policies, and to make sure you find the best option for your needs.

Long term insurance is designed to meet the needs of Sahuarita and Tucson residents who want to provide for care beyond what their traditional insurance or Medicare policy will cover. Typical coverage for a long term care policy will include nursing home care and in-home assistance.

The main purpose of this type of coverage is to help you get the care you need if you are disabled or when you are elderly and no longer able to fully care for yourself. Many people do choose to apply their long term care policy towards nursing home care, and in most cases this is permissible. In general, a long term care policy will allow for a certain amount of money per day to be put towards the care chosen, whether it is nursing home cost or in-home care.

The size and type of the long term policy that you choose will have a great deal to do with whether or not the policy will be sufficient to cover the entire cost of the nursing home care. In general, you should expect the long term insurance to be a complement to other insurance types, rather than a stand-alone policy. You can select coverage that can include help with baths, dressing, and eating as well as help with mobility or more serious medical needs.

When you choose your policy, you should determine an approximate amount that you will need to have each day for your nursing home care and get a policy based upon getting that amount. Each policy will have a set maximum (anything from days to years) of time that it will continue to pay these long term benefits so be sure you are aware of the limit on your policy.

Long term care insurance policies can be completely different from one policy to another, so it is important to talk this over with your insurance provider and make sure that nursing home care will be covered by the policy that you select.

Don’t get caught without long term care coverage for your nursing home stay! Our insurance agents are ready to give you free comparative quotes right now, so don’t hesitate to contact us via phone or the website.

Short answer – yes. But…there are better ways than simply adding that payroll to your policy.

Independent contractors in Tucson, Sahuarita, or Green Valley, AZ may or may not be required to carry their own workers compensation policies. If they have their own coverage, simply ask for a "Certificate of Insurance" for proof of coverage, and keep that record with your workers compensation papers to provide your insurance company a copy at premium audit time.

If you do not have proof of coverage from your independent contractors, your firm will be charged a premium based on the contract price and payments. This premium can be significant, and it is easily avoided.

Suppose your independent contractors do not have their own policies? Get one for them, independent of your coverage. Why?

1. Losses generated by their actions will count against your experience rating if your company policy covers them. This action raises your premiums for three of the next four years.
2. You do not control their payroll accounting. Poor records may increase premium charges.
3. The act of hiring outside contractors implies thier operations are unusual to your standard operations, or at least not anticipated by your operations. Admit you do not have loss control expertise and get some help from their insurance company.
4. Let them administer their own employee benefits. Why take on added costs for their overhead, unless it’s contemplated in the negotiations for services.

A typical situation is contract haulers. Independent haulers can be one-man companies who do not have workers compensation coverage, nor do they have any requirements to obtain coverage. They also hire day labor to help unload trucks on a regular basis. If they have workers compensation, the day laborers are covered under the truckers policy. Untrained workers lifting heavy boxes is a recipe for large claims. Avoid this risk be insisting on certificates of insurance.

Call our Insurance Center at Green Valley Agency for help with this common issue. And remember: a safe work place is the best employee benefit.

Workers compensation provides medical, health and lost-time compensation for employees who suffer work related injuries or illnesses.

Sounds straight forward enough, right?

Suppose you’re a healthcare worker in one of our great Tucson hospitals, and you accidently contract hepititus from a needle stick. Your covered by workers compensation. Now, suppose you go home to Sahuarita and pass the illness to your spouse. The spouse gains coverage through employers’ liability. This claim type is Consequential Bodily Injury.

In some states, Loss of Care and Services claims can be made. Spouses claim "loss of consortium" or family members claim a loss for caregiving by the injured parent. Employers’ liability responds to these claims

Under all these described circumstances, employers’ liability pays for the employer’s legal expenses too.

Employers’ liability covers aspects of workers compensation which can be third party claims, a fancy term for someone other than the employer or employee, such as a family member who becomes injured or ill as a result of the employee’s exposures on the job.

Employers’ liability covers some other unusual circumstances. For example, an employee is injured by his employer’s product. Perhaps a heating system manufacturer uses his own product in his office. A maintenance staff member gets an electrical burn because a cut-off malfunctions. The policy pays as though it were workers’ compensation first, and then the employer’s liability coverage handles the incident like it was a third-party products liability claim. This type of claim is known as a Dual-Capacity claim.

As all-inclusive as the workers compensation policy tries to be, unusaual circumstance justify the need for employers’ liability. Since general liability policies usually exclude employee injuries or illnesses, work comp needed to fill this gap in coverage.

Call the 1 ^st Insurance Center of Green Valley Agency to explain in further detail about workers compensation and employers liability policies. And remember: a safe work place is the best employee benefit.

Owning a business in Arizona may require workers compensation insurance, but that does not mean you must purchase the coverage as soon as you get the company started. Depending on the company and your goals, the appropriate timing to purchase the policy may vary.

Before Hiring Employees

If you are planning to hire an employee, then you may need to start considering coverage and comparing your options. Even though it is not required to purchase workers compensation in Arizona until after you have hired an employee, having the coverage and getting ready to hire employees can help prevent any complications when it comes to coverage and getting started.

As a general rule, you will need the insurance as soon as you hire a single employee within the state.

After Hiring Workers

There are times when you may not be sure if you need to hire a worker. As a result, you may not feel comfortable buying coverage that you have not determined is necessary for your business.

In this situation, you will want to obtain coverage as soon as you hire a single employee. The state laws require that you maintain coverage as long as you have one employee. There are a few exceptions, such as working partners or domestic servants, but you should expect to purchase the policy if you have hired any employees. Even one worker requires some coverage that is appropriate based on the risks associated with your business.

It is important to protect your employees, even if you have only hired a single individual. The appropriate coverage and the timing can depend on the situation, but you will usually need the coverage before your new employee starts working. Contact us to speak to an agent to learn more.

As a general rule, most people don’t like to think about life insurance. That means that when an employer steps up and offers to provide life insurance, most people think "Okay, problem solved." As with many things in life, it is not really that simple. In most cases, employer sponsored life insurance is not enough.

The biggest inherent flaw with the idea of getting life insurance from your employer is that you probably won’t be with your employer for the rest of your life. In most cases, when your employment ends, your employer sponsored life insurance ends, too. This is especially problematic since life insurance tends to get more expensive as you get older, so the later in life you lose your job,the more expensive it will be to replace the insurance. If you lose your job too late in life, health issues may make you uninsurable to some agents, leaving you to search all over Green Valley, AZ and beyond for coverage.

Employers also often tend to give relatively minimal life insurance, rarely enough to cover your real needs. When you consider that your family is essentially needing to replace your income for many years, the popular employer’s life insurance standard of one year’s salary is not going to be enough to last your loved ones for very long, and certainly will not provide them much peace of mind about their future.

Life insurance is a personal thing, so it’s important to evaluate your own personal situation to determine how much you need. Odds are, you will need more insurance than you employer provides and you will need more dependable long-term coverage. To help evaluate your situation, you should call us today. As an independent agent based in Green Valley, we can answer your insurance questions and help you to make sure that you have the right coverage for you, whether you live in Sahuarita, Tucson or elsewhere in Arizona..

People often assume that if they are not submitting a claim to their insurance company, they do not have to notify them about a minor accident. Unfortunately, that is not what should be done. Insurance companies should be notified regardless of whether a claim is going to be filed or not.

There are a number of reasons that an insurance company should be notified when a minor accident occurs, regardless of whether a claim is going to be filed. The main reason is because of the other party involved with the accident.

Just because you are not filing a claim with your insurance company, does not mean the other party involved with the accident will not try to recover damages from your insurance provider. Notifying them of a minor accident allows your insurance company to prepare in the event the other party should contact them.

Another reason to notify the insurance company after a minor accident is because it could be grounds for a non-renewal. If a minor fender bender or accident occurred, you did not report to the insurance company and they find out later, they can use that to not renew a current insurance policy.

Many people do not wish to notify their insurance company of a minor accident because they are afraid of a potential increase in premiums. It should be noted that not all premiums will be raised as a result of an accident or even if a claim is filed. There are a number of factors that play into premium increases, including previous driving record, number of claims submitted, and who is at fault for the accident.

Worried about potential rate increases on minor accident insurance policies? Contact one of our independent insurance agents that operate out of Sahuarita and Tucson, AZ to explore various auto insurance policies from different companies to determine which offer you the best rates and coverage for your current driving needs.

If you own property in Green Valley, Arizona, it is important to make sure that your insurance coverage will protect you from natural disasters. Droughts, lightning, and thunderstorms are among the disasters that can destroy your property and set you back financially if you don’t have the right type of coverage.

How Natural Disasters Affect Your Policy

Whether you are purchasing insurance for your car or home, purchasing the minimum will likely leave you without protection in the case of a natural disaster. Green Valley is known for its monsoons, and it doesn’t take a record-breaking year of rainfall to flood your home or destroy your vehicle. With risks like this in the area, you need to be proactive to receive protection. Most insurance companies only include coverage for these events with a comprehensive plan or a special rider to your policy.

The term "acts of God" is also a point of confusion for covered policyholders. An act of God is an extreme disaster, such as lightning or an earthquake, that leads to excessive damage to your property. Because these events are hard to predict, insurance companies typically exclude coverage for these types of natural disasters in your policy.

How an Independent Agent Can Help

Insurance Center of Green Valley can help you find the right level of coverage to protect your property during a major disaster. We are trained to determine what constitutes as an act of God and what types of disasters will be included in your policy. We can also help you determine the type of disasters that especially impact Arizona residents.

Severe weather events can strike at any time, so don’t be caught without insurance that provides you with adequate protection from natural disasters. Contact us today to compare quotes from leading insurance companies to receive the best coverage.

If you operate a business of any size in Green Valley, Arizona, it is a good idea to carry insurance that protects your employees agaist on-the-job injuries. Whether you have one employee or one hundred employees, it only takes one accident to create liability for your business and set you back financially. So it’s important to keep your insurance up-to-date with liability or workers’ compensation coverage for your employees.

How to Protect Your Employees on the Job

The type of insurance that you need to protect your employees will depend on the type of business that you have. For a small home-based business, liability insurance might be sufficient for protecting you against liability and covering the medical costs of injured employees. Liability coverage can be added to almost any commercial insurance plan.

If your business involved a hazardous occupation or hires several employees, the law might require you to carry workers’ compensation insurance. In cases where you need workers’ compensation insurance, the levels of coverage that you need will be outlined by state laws, which Insurance Center of Green Valley will help you navigate.

How an Independent Agent Can Help

When you own a business, it is always important to cut costs wherever you can. This is especially true when you are selecting a commercial insurance policy. Insurance Center of Green Valley carries commercial insurance from several policies so that you can compare quotes instantly and find the best rates on insurance for your organization.

An independent agent also can help you determine whether your employees are fully covered in the case of a workplace accident. Contact us today to provide full protection for your business and to make sure that your business is fully compliant with the law.