Tag Archives: Maryland Insurance

Quick Flood Preparation Tips

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Everyone in the United States lives in a potential flood zone – but only about 2 percent of Americans have flood insurance. Following are helpful flood preparation tips to encourage your insureds to add this necessary coverage

• Review your current homeowners and/or business insurance policy and become familiar with what is and is not covered. Remember – damage due to flooding is typically not included in your policy.

• Call your independent insurance agent to purchase flood insurance for your home and business – and its contents.

• Make a flood plan and establish evacuation routes with your family. Ask someone out of state to be a “family contact” in case you get separated from loved ones.

• Before a flood or natural disaster occurs, get ahead of the game by itemizing and taking pictures of your possessions.

• To avoid water damage during a flood, keep valuable items and family heirlooms on the upper floors – or on high shelves in your closets – of your home or business.

• For more information about how to prepare for a flood, visit www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/pages/preparation_recovery/before_a_flood.jsp.

 

Funds Transfer Fraud and Computer Fraud

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-A company’s payroll supervisor logged on to the payroll account and noticed three payments totaling $704,632 had been wired from their account. The supervisor immediately reported the transactions as unauthorized. The bank shut down the account and was able to recover all but $238,781. The FBI and Homeland Security investigated and determined that someone had gained access to the vice president of finance’s username and password via computer programs that had been surreptitiously downloaded onto the vice president’s computer.

-A company’s bank allegedly sent it a letter advising of a new security program. The company then received an email that appeared to be from their bank. The company’s employee opened the email, which allowed a Trojan horse computer virus to get in. It was able to read key strokes from the insured’s computer, thereby enabling the perpetrator to obtain banking and password information and initiate a fraudulent electronic wire transfer from the insured’s account. This ended up causing a loss to the company of $683,000.

Computer Fraud

-A company’s website was hacked into by an employee of one of its customers who changed her employer’s bank routing code on the web site to her own. When the company paid her empoyer for services rendered, the money went directly into her account instead.

-After he’s fired, a former employee used his supervisor’s password to enter the insured’s unlocked building and used the supervisor’s computer. He initiated transactions using his bank routing code to receive fake reimbursements purportedly made to the company’s customers.

 An Experienced Market Leader

-Since 1853, we’ve provided effective insurance solutions to a wide range of industries.

-A.M. Best has assigned Travelers a financial strength rating of A+

-With over 50 offices, we possess national strength and local presence.

-Our dedicated claim group offers extensive industry and product knowledge.

 Get the Protection you need, today and tomorrow

Choose Travelers for your electronic funds transfer fraud and computer fraud coverages and you’ll have access to risk mitigation articles, security guidelines and discounted McAfee software security. To learn more about this comprehensive program, talk with your independent insurance agent or visit Travelersbond.com

Don’t Overlook Wedding Insurance for Your Big Day

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Wedding insurance is a little known type of insurance coverage that can be priceless should anything at all go wrong on a wedding day. For the couple themselves, this insurance can help to protect their financial investment and future should anything unexpected happen on their wedding day. And for parents of the wedding couple, wedding insurance can both protect their financial investment and help to insure that the wedding day is perfect.

For most people, a wedding day is the single most expensive day of an entire lifetime of expenses. When planning a wedding, there are outrageous expenses at every turn, from booking the venues to contracting service providers. Enormous amounts of money can be spent quickly to make everything perfect for a couple on their special day, and though hopefully everything will go exactly as planned, there are so many emergencies that can pop up. The smartest thing that anyone who is planning a wedding can do is purchase wedding insurance to cover all the expenses that will be paid for.

Wedding event insurance is perhaps the more popular of the two types of coverage generally offered. This covers the entire event from planning through wedding day, and insures against extreme situations. It covers illness, disaster, or military deployment that can lead to postponement. It also covers all the deposits paid to vendors in the event that they go out of business, are unable to serve a wedding, or simply do not show up.

There are generally two types of wedding insurance that are offered, and most providers offer them both individually and as a package in order to offer the insured the right coverage for their event. Wedding liability insurance is the first type of wedding insurance that is generally offered. This insurance offers coverage for the wedding couple, or their parents, should they be held responsible for property damages or personal injuries either at the wedding or as a result of the wedding. This type of coverage usually also covers alcohol related incidents that can occur at or after the wedding. This coverage is important, as many venues now require renters to have it.

How Important is Contractors Insurance?

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Contractors insurance is essential to have to protect your business and your personal assets. If you are acting as an independent contractor, this is even more important because chances are you are operating as a sole proprietor and therefore your personal belongings are at risk in a legal dispute.

Insurance is available for all trades, including roofers, electricians, mechanical contractors, HVAC professionals, plumbers and other contractors. When you enter someone else’s premises or property, you can be held liable for any damage that occurs. This can be accidental damage, damage due to faulty equipment or damage due to negligence.

Carrying contractors insurance is a good way to obtain work. Many individuals and businesses will refuse to hire a contractor who does not carry their own insurance. Use your insurance coverage as a selling point when seeking new business. Accidents happen even under the best of circumstances. To work without adequate insurance is just asking for troublesome lawsuits. The cost is very reasonable and would be tax deductible as a business expense.

Visit www.rhhinsurance.com today to receive details regarding contractors insurance that you need. Their insurance professionals can explain what coverage you should have and why you need it. They will look at your particular area of expertise and have the experience to pinpoint the coverage you should have immediately. A checklist of coverages needed for your type of contracting work will be created to ensure that you do have all the coverage you should have in order to conduct business successfully.

Contractors insurance is very helpful and frequently required as a prudent measure to protect the business you are contracting out to. Most business professionals required that subcontractors and contractors carry their own business liabilty insurance. This type of insurance assures protection to clients also, against non-performance and other problems that commonly occur when using contractors.

MD Hand Held Cell Phone Ban Law effective October 2010

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This new law prohibits all Maryland drivers from using a Cell Phone with a Hands Free Device while operating a motor vehicle. In addition, the new law prohibit’s “a holder of a learner’s instructional permit or provisional driver’s license who is 18 years of age or older from driving a motor vehicle while using a handheld telephone”. The fine for the first offense is $$40 and subsequent offenses would be $100. The new law is a secondary offense, meaning that a driver must first be committing a primary offense such as speeding or reckless driving before they could be ticketed for a Cell Phone offense.

Maryland Weighs Prohibition on Insurers’ Use of Credit Scores

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Maryland lawmakers are weighing whether to prohibit insurers from using credit scores to underwrite auto policies- a move insurers say is a bad idea.
The economic matters committee of the House of Delegates recently held an initial hearing on the measure, which would further clamp down on insurers’ use of credit information in a state where it’s already tightly controlled…more…
How do you weigh in on whether Maryland lawmakers should prohibit insurance carriers from using credit scores to underwrite auto policies?

Are You Ready For The Spring Flooding Season?

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Springtime brings warmer weather, but also brings conditions such as fast melting snow combined with severe storms and heavy rainfall that increase flood risk. Just a steady rainfall can cause rivers, lakes or other bodies of water to overflow their banks, threatening the communities near them. In fact, you don’t even have to be near the water to be at risk! A water-main break can result in a flooding of the surrounding area causing water damage to homes and businesses.

Don’t wait for a water main break in your neighborhood or for local flooding to occur to discover that you are not covered for flood losses.  Remember, it takes 30 days AFTER the purchase for a flood policy to take effect.  Make that call to us today before you find yourself standing in water! (410) 504-1002

CNA Loss Control Seminar

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ROSSMANN-HURT-HOFFMAN, INC. IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE CNA LOSS CONTROL SEMINAR

“Building a Solid Foundation”: Managing Law Practice Risk

DATE: May 25, 2011 (WEDNESDAY)
TIME: 9:30 AM. – 1:00 PM.
PLACE: M&T BANK STADIUM – INNER HARBOR – BALTIMORE, MD
ROOM: NORTH CLUB LOUNGE (2ND FLOOR)

The program will be conducted by Alvin Frederick, Esquire (Eccleston & Wolf) and Glenn Grossman, Bar Counsel (Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland) as well as their special guest, the Honorable Glenn T. Harrell, Jr., Judge of the Court of Appeals of Maryland. The general topic will be “How to Avoid Lawyers Malpractice Claims”. Judge Harrell will share his thoughts on the most significant decisions of our appellate courts during the prior year. While we WELCOME your participation every year, it is only necessary to attend our seminar once every three years to receive your premium credit.

A complete breakfast buffet will be served.

Space is limited and early registration is strongly recommended

For cost, registration form and more information, please contact Rossmann-Hurt-Hoffman, Inc. at (410) 465-4300

Restaurant Insurance | Maryland Insurance

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One of the most important, and most unseen, aspects of operating a restaurant is having good insurance. Many times, insurance may be only an afterthought, but it is vital to the long term success of a restaurant.

Restaurant insurance will help to protect the owners from damages and losses associated with unforeseen events. Not only is it important to mitigate monetary damages, but it can also be required both by state law and by some financing agencies in order to operate and secure financing.

Like most insurance types, there are a variety of different options available. Property insurance is crucial to a business because it will cover the costs of rebuilding should a fire or other incident occur. Being secure that the building will survive most events can help to reassure investors. Unfortunately, most property insurance does not cover weather related damages which are covered mainly by a different policy option.

General liability is insurance against events that may happen to patrons inside of the restaurant. This includes cases such as food poisoning or slip and falls. Having general liability can save a business from a bad series of events that could end in an expensive settlement.

Workers compensation is another type of insurance that may be required. This insurance will cover the costs of medical and other bills should an employee of the restaurant be injured while on the job. Without this insurance, then those bills would have to be paid out of pocket.

There are a number of different options that can be included in a restaurant insurance policy. There are insurance policies for nearly every situation. There are even policies that can cover the failure of the business, liquor liability for the actions of intoxicated customers, and automobile liability if your restaurant uses delivery vehicles.

Whatever the need, there are restaurant insurance policies available to help protect the business. They can help to make sure that the business runs smoothly over the years and help to increase profits even when unexpected events occur.

ATTENTION DRIVERS!!!

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New Maryland traffic ticket process begins January 1, 2011. On January 1, 2011, a new law goes into effect, and drivers who get a payable traffic ticket in Maryland will no longer be given an automatic trial date to appear in court.

Here’s how the new Maryland traffic ticket process works: Drivers have three choices when they get a payable traffic ticket, and they must comply within 30 days or risk having their driver’s license suspended by the Motor Vehicle Administration.

The three choices:

1. Pay the traffic ticket fine.
2. Ask for a waiver hearing instead of a trial. Waiver hearings are for drivers who don’t dispute the ticket, but want to have a judge hear an explanation before being sentenced.
3. Ask for a court date for a trial.