A personal umbrella policy is there to protect you against excess liability judgments for loss, injury, or even death caused by negligent acts. It provides liability coverage over and above the insurance policies you currently have for your home, auto boat, motorcycle, etc..

The following events did happen and could happen to you:

• While playing with BB guns, a boy was shot by another boy at their friend’s home.  PLAINTIFF VERDICT, COMPENSATORY AWARD: $500,000

• A 12-year-old boy suffered lacerations to his lower legs and thigh when he walked by a neighbor’s house and was bitten by her two dogs.PLAINTIFF VERDICT, COMPENSATORY AWARD: $500,000

• A man improperly installed a pool diving board at his former home that later resulted in a serious injury to the home’s new owner. OUT-OF-COURT SETTLEMENT: $2,500,000

• A driver was rear-ended by an uninsured motorist, which forced the driver’s car into another vehicle and caused injuries to the occupant of the front vehicle. OUT-OF-COURT SETTLEMENT: $1,250,000

Source: The cases with jury verdicts were taken from Jury Verdicts Research, an LRP Publication Company, Horsham, Pennsylvania.

Why do I need more insurance?

Your current home and auto insurance will protect you against a minor misfortune—but it probably would not give you the needed protection against a catastrophic loss.

Besides providing increased liability limits, a personal umbrella insurance policy gives you additional benefits:

You are covered for defense costs and attorneys’ fees associated with claims against you that are covered by your personal umbrella policy but not by your primary policies. These expenses are paid in addition to your policy limit.

Coverage for a loss that takes place anywhere in the world.

You may be protected against claims that may not be covered by your underlying policies for homeowner’s, auto liability and/or watercraft liability.

For more information on personal umbrella insurance, contact Lallis & Higgins Insurance.

You've worked hard to buy your first home. Be sure to choose a policy that will protect your investment.

There’s so much to consider that many first-time buyers don’t think about home insurance — which will be important when it comes to closing on the house.

Factor the ongoing cost of home insurance into your home-buying budget, because it will probably show up in your monthly mortgage payment along with payments on your loan principal and interest and your property taxes. That means you should go into your search knowing the basics about insuring your house and what can drive up the cost of coverage.

Once you choose the house and negotiate an offer, it will be time to find an insurer. There are a few issues to take into consideration before settling on a provider — all policies are not created equal. Using these tips can help you save money and ensure that you have quality coverage to protect your largest investment.

Shop around

The price of home insurance varies widely from carrier to carrier. That’s because each provider has a different algorithm for determining customer premiums. This is one reason why it’s a good idea to comparison shop through an insurance agent. You could end up saving yourself hundreds of dollars simply by getting a few different quotes.

Don’t skimp on coverage

While you want to save money on home insurance, it’s important not to skimp on coverage. Standard home insurance policies typically offer protection from a variety of potential risks, ranging from liability to damage from weather-related perils. However, you may want to adjust or add coverage depending on your needs.

One matter you should pay close attention to is your amount of dwelling coverage — the part of your policy that protects the structure of your home. You should have enough dwelling coverage to rebuild completely in case the house is destroyed by a covered peril. That amount, however, is often different from the purchase price. Your insurance agent will be able to provide you with the estimated amount of dwelling coverage that’s right for you that is calculated with a specific replacement cost evaluator.

Bundle your policies

Buying home and auto insurance from the same provider – most sell both – can save you as much as 20% on your annual premium. Do you have multiple vehicles? Or even a boat? You can often bundle all of these items with one carrier.

Evaluate risks as you look

When you’re evaluating potential homes, consider the risk each proposes. Is the house in a high-risk flood plain? Standard home insurance doesn’t cover flooding. For this protection, homeowners must purchase a separate policy from the National Flood Insurance Program. Just a few inches of flood water can cause tens of thousands of dollars in damage.

Does one of the homes you’re considering have a swimming pool or trampoline on the property? Either factor can increase the amount you’ll pay for home insurance.

Remember, even veteran home buyers can get tripped up by the process. But take your time, ask plenty of questions and be sure to use an insurance agent.

For more information on home insurance, contact Lallis & Higgins Insurance.

Zillow.com

Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Lallis and Derek Higgins.

Founding Partner Anthony is a graduate of Emerson College, and Quincy High School. Anthony began his insurance career in 1999 and has held positions in service, underwriting, marketing, and sales prior to opening Lallis and Higgins Insurance.

Lallis enjoys volunteering in community sports and academic programs. Anthony is the 2017 Massachusetts Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Man of the Year, and has raised over $50,000 to help assist those battling blood Cancers. He also raised $10,000 for the Quincy Fire Department in the past, and sponsors Quincy/ North Quincy High School football along with many local charities in the Boston, and South Shore areas.

Founding Partner Derek Higgins attended Western New England University, and graduated from Waltham High School. He began his insurance career in 2009 following a successful business development career in the moving and storage industry in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

As a four-year college baseball player, Derek enjoys playing sports, and stays active in local youth sports leagues – he’s always looking for different ways to give back in the community. Higgins has been a member of Business Networking International since 2009, and has served on the leadership team for the past 5 years.

They met while working in sales roles for a direct insurance carrier based out of Boston. In 2014, they decided that they were ready to go out on their own, so they formed Lallis and Higgins Insurance.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?

Opening a new agency was not an easy task. Insurance agents need to show a record of past business accomplishments in order to get appointed to represent insurance companies. Fortunately for us we had a sound business plan, and a successful track record over the past years selling insurance in Massachusetts.

We were able to get appointed to the insurance companies that would best represent our agency, and our clients. We had zero clients when we opened the doors in October of 2014, and now we have served well over 2,000 clients.

The biggest challenge for us has been staffing. We are fortunate enough to be growing at a fast pace, and we always want to make sure we are available for our clients, so hiring enough staff has been a top priority for us.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Lallis & Higgins Insurance – what should we know? Our agency enjoys helping Massachusetts residents with home, auto, business, and life insurance. We do a great job at matching each client up with the policy that best meets his/her specific needs. Our agency is able to offer competitive rates to small business through our network or carriers, we also offer many options to homeowner on Main Street to those that live on the coast, and auto insurance to drivers of all types. We pride ourselves on treating each client individual – what may work for one, most times does not work for the others.

We realized early in our career that insurance is about building relationships with clients, neighbors and communities. We love to support our client’s endeavors and organizations. We also participate in local charities, and community services throughout the year. Anthony was named 2017 Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Man of the year for his efforts in raising over $50,0000 for LLS’s services.

Our agency recently received the Regional Gold recognition naming us the top insurance agency in our region, and the number one insurance agency in Weymouth by Wicked Local Readers’ Choice awards.

We understand polices still need to be reviewed each year to make sure everything is accurate and up-to-date as life and life needs changes, so our agency always looks for the best for our clients. Whether it’s suggesting a new coverage that came out, or proactively shopping a renewal that had a premium increase. We understand that our agency is lucky our clients picked us, and we want to make sure we always have their best interest in mind, and support them.

Contact Info:

Address: 440 Washington Street Suite 3
Weymouth, MA 02188
Website: www.lallisandhiggins.com
Phone: 781-277-0673
Instagram: lallis_and_higgins_insurance
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lallisandhiggins/

Source: bostonvoyager.com

As the temperatures rise, you may be thinking about taking your boat out for a spin. But, a channel marker disappeared sometime over the winter and you've run aground. "What do you mean I only had a six month policy?" Uh-oh.

Some seasonal vehicle and "toy" insurance policies are only six months, some owners only implement six month policies to start with, others may cancel their coverage at the end of the season. In the off-season, many owners wonder if they can save a few dollars by temporarily cancelling insurance on their bikes, boats, RVs, and jet skis.

Should you drop insurance on seasonal vehicles that are in winter storage? It may be tempting, but it's not the soundest practice. Here are some reasons why.

You Should Keep Yourself Protected

Be certain that your seasonal toys will stay in storage for the entire season. In Massachusetts, some of the nicest weather happens in October and even in the beginning of November. You can still ride a motorcycle or use your RV in these late fall and early winter months. If you cancel your insurance, you'd have to fight the impulse to take your bike out for a ride or cruise the RV to Virginia over a long weekend. If you did, you'd be out there without an insurance policy to protect you against an accident or other unfortunate event.

But, even in winter seasonal vehicles still face risks when they're "safe" in storage. Theft, fire, vandalism, and storm damage are all possible. If you cancel your insurance, and something happens to your bike, RV, boat, or jet ski you'd be left to foot the bill for damages or repair costs out of pocket.

You May Not Save by Cancelling Your Policy

You may not save money by cancelling insurance during the winter months. Some insurance companies take into account the typical riding/boating/touring season when they price a policy, even when spread over 12 months. So, you may not receive a refund for canceling winter coverage.

How You Might Save, There are some options

According to the Insurance Information Institute (III), you may be able to purchase a "lay-up" policy, which temporarily suspends everything but the comprehensive coverage on your seasonal vehicle insurance. Comprehensive coverage protects you against an event that has nothing to do with a collision, like theft, vandalism, or other incident that can happen while in storage. Even if you don't have one of these lay-up policies, you might be able to make a similar, temporary reduction of coverages on your own policy. (Be sure to reinstate all your coverages before the season starts again next spring).

Another option might be to raise your deductible off-season to lower your premium. However, be sure you are willing and able to pay the higher deductible if damage does occur while in storage.

Check with Lallis & Higgins Insurance to determine if seasonal coverage options are available.

Home insurance customers most value having an insurance agent or broker who completely understands their individual needs and helps them assess and manage their risk. The highest-ranked insurers deliver on both of these metrics. Basically, your insurance agent makes a difference.

Overall customer satisfaction and interaction has the highest importance to home owners, followed by policy offerings. Interaction satisfaction is highest when customers interact with an agent or broker in person.

Providing face-to-face consultation, from insurance policy review to helping customers understand price adjustments initiated by the insurance agent, is crucial. Home owners who have face-to-face contact with their insurance agents are more likely to understand their coverage, its value and the reason for a price adjustment.

Policy offerings are increasingly important, especially for home owners on the water or in flood zones. Insurance brokers often have more and better options because they have access to different types of policies and can shop around for the homeowner to provide the best coverage.

Home owners want and need the confidence that they’re properly insured. They also need to understand the variety of insurance coverage options and they need to know that the policy meets their needs.

If you want a high level of service and a comprehensive understanding of your insurance policy, contact Lallis & Higgins Insurance. In fact, we were recently voted #1 Insurance agent in Weymouth and in the regions, which comprises Weymouth, Quincy, Scituate, Hingham, Abington, and Braintree, MA.

Excerpts - Insurance Journal

Too often business owners feel like paying for business insurance is a waste of money, money that is going out into the ether, never to be seen again. For this reason, business owners want to keep that monthly bill as low as possible, so they are often not insured properly. Unfortunately, when you are dealing with a loss is a bad time to find out you have the wrong or not enough business insurance coverage.

Commercial business insurance is extremely important to the health and security of your business, regardless of the type of business you own. No business owner should treat business insurance as an expense, because in the case of a you’re your business insurance can be your “best asset”. You can be sure that your insurance policy is tailored to your specific needs, potential risks, and your budget. A business insurance broker can offer advice as to the style and level of insurance coverage that you need to protect your business.

Whatever your commercial insurance needs, Lallis and Higgins Insurance can design an insurance policy. Our business insurance services include, but are not limited to the following:

• Auto Insurance
• Small Business Owners Policy
• Business Interruption
• General Liability
• Professional Liability
• Property
• Umbrella Insurance
• Workers Compensation
• Restaurants, bars, hotel and night clubs
• Contractors
• Home based business

For information on business insurance or for a review of your policy, contact Lallis and Higgins Insurance.

Summers mean backyard grilling – safely!

Just like hamburgers and hot dogs, a sizzling grill is a symbol of summer and grilling isn’t just about great food. Backyard barbecues often create treasured memories with friends and family.

Keep in mind, however, that when you grill, you’re literally playing with fire. Thousands of residents each year learn this the hard way, suffering damage to their homes or even serious injuries in grilling accidents.

There’s good news, though: You can prevent grilling accidents by taking some simple precautions. The tips below can help ensure you cook only your burgers — and not your house — the next time you fire up the grill.

TIPS FOR ALL GRILLS

Your grill, whether gas or charcoal, should be on a level surface outdoors, away from anything that could be ignited by flames (bushes, fences, etc.).
NEVER use a grill indoors. Odorless carbon monoxide fumes could kill you.
Keep your grill clean and well-maintained. Check parts regularly to determine if replacements are needed.
Never leave a hot grill unattended or let children play near it.

CHARCOAL GRILL TIPS

From Kingsford.com
Do not add lighter fluid directly to hot coals. The flame could travel up the stream of fluid and burn you.
Never use gasoline or kerosene to light a charcoal fire.
Use flame-retardant mitts and long-handled barbecue tongs, as coals can reach up to 1,000 degrees.
To dispose of coals, allow the ashes to cool for at least 48 hours before disposal in a non-combustible container. If you cannot wait 48 hours, carefully place coals individually in a can of sand or bucket of water.

GAS GRILL TIPS

From the National Fire Protection Association
Check your grill’s hoses for leaks before using it for the first time each year. Apply a light soap and water solution to the hose. A propane leak will release bubbles. If you have a leak, and it will not stop after the grill and gas is turned off, call the fire department. If the leak stops when the grill and gas are turned off, have your grill serviced by a professional.
If you smell gas while cooking, immediately get away from the grill and call the fire department. Do not move the grill.
Do not keep a filled propane tank in a hot car or trunk. When getting containers refilled, make that your last stop before going home.
Store propane tanks in an upright position, and never indoors.

From all of us at Lallis & Higgins Insurance, happy grilling, and stay safe this summer!

Get special event insurance, then sit back and enjoy your big day!

It's your day, and you shouldn't have to put any limits on your fun. And the last thing you want to worry about are damages and injuries.

That's why you might want to Event Insurance. This protects you, your guests and your venue from accidents, unexpected damages and some cancellation costs.

What is event insurance and why do I need it?

Event insurance is a type of special event insurance (also called one-day insurance) that covers injuries and venue damages. Plus, you can add coverage for cancellations, rings, cakes, dresses, etc. The average wedding now costs $31,000, making it a significant investment.

What does event insurance cover?

You can build your own special event insurance policy, and here are the coverages offered:

Event cancellation

Insures your deposits, cake, flowers, rental cars and more if you have to cancel or postpone your event because of unforeseen circumstances.

Special coverage

Insures wedding rings, dress, tuxedos, gifts, photographs and more.

Wedding liability insurance

Comes standard and covers damages to the venue or injuries to guests. This is the type of insurance that venues often require.

Guaranteed to meet your venue's insurance requirements!

Event Insurance is available for all types of events, including rehearsal dinners, birthday and anniversary parties, showers, dinner events, sporting events, weddings, and more.

For more information, contact Lallis & Higgins Insurance.

Customers of the Massachusetts Fair Plan often ask: "Do I have any other insurance options?" Often, the answer is yes.

However, it is important to understand how people end up buying their insurance there in the first place.

"Fair Plan" is short for Fair Access to Insurance Rates. It came to be after the riots of the urban riots of the 1960’s because, as a result, these neighborhoods became difficult to insure. Most states have their own version of this kind of insurance, all with different models. The Massachusetts Property Underwriting Insurance Association (MPIUA) is the official name of "the Massachusetts Fair Plan".

Insurance agencies in Massachusetts use the Fair Plan for insurance buyers who have a profile that is difficult to insure. The most common example is coastal homes; in fact many companies choose to avoid these properties. Often times the Mass Fair Plan is the only option for coastal homes if an insurance agency only has access to a limited amount of companies to quote your homeowner insurance with.

Fortunately for Lallis & Higgins Insurance clients, we represent many insurance companies – some of which will help homeowners that live right on the shore line. We are located in Weymouth, a South Shore town that is right on the water, so it only made sense for us to align with carriers that can help our neighbors. We have many options other than the Mass Fair Plan to help insure homes that sit on the beaches in cities and towns like Quincy, Weymouth, Cohasset, Scituate, Hingham and more.

Some homeowners choose the Fair Plan over other insurance alternatives, most often for price. But buying only on price can be shortsighted. Homeowners must consider the coverage offered through the policy, and how well the Fair Plan could handle a major coastal catastrophe, such as a hurricane. On the South Shore and all the way down the coast of Massachusetts there is a high concentration of homes on the coast. The ability of the Fair plan to handle the demand is a concern. We prefer to work with carriers with a broad reach across numerous states. This way they can bring in assets to assist in a disaster quickly and efficiently. Insurance should be about getting claims paid quickly and fairly.

If you're insured by the Fair Plan because you had a claims with your previous carrier, we can look into other options. Contact Lallis & Higgins for a review of your policy and let us find you a better insurance solution.

The weather is about to warm up. That means you will be playing outside more with your summer toys, like boats, RV's and motorcycles. Now is the time to be sure your summer toys are properly insured for "smooth sailing" while you play.

It is very important that you have the proper insurance when you enjoy your summer recreation.

You always want to be sure you have the proper coverage because these summer vehicles and boats are expensive. But, on top of that if you accidentally injure someone or damage their property you want to be sure that you have the proper coverage for that as well. You need to be insured for any potential.

Many people ask if you can just wrap insurance for a jet ski or motorcycle insurance into an existing homeowners policy. Well, you can but is that really the right coverage? If your boat doesn't have a motor on it, you may be able to add it to your home policy, but if it does have a motor, it will usually be excluded.

For a boat with a motor you need boat insurance. This covers the hull, motor, and trailer and you are protected if someone gets hurt. Same goes for RV insurance and motorcycles. There are special types of insurance policies that are tailored for those types of items. You often get extra coverage like trip interruption insurance, spare parts coverage, and roadside assistance and other things like this that you may need during the summer.

RVs and classic cars have different types of policies. Because a classic vehicle can gain value you want to make sure you insure it at an agreed value in most cases. Classic car insurance policies tend to be much less money than your standard everyday car insurance policy because your classic car is treated differently by you used less.

For more information on insurance for seasonal vehicles and toys, contact Lallis & Higgins Insurance.