Insurance Brokers and Consultants

is the replacement cost of property damaged or destroyed at the time of loss, with deduction for depreciation. Actual cash value cannot exceed the applicable limit of liability shown in the declarations of the policy, nor the amount it would cost to repair or replace such property with material of like kind and quality within a reasonable amount of time after a loss.

This coverage pays for damages done in the course of oral or written advertisement that disparages, libels or slanders a person's or organization's goods, products or services. Coverage for these offenses is provided under advertising injury coverage only if they occur during the course of advertising the named insured's own goods, products or services.

This endorsement is an agreement made by the insurance company wherein it waives the coinsurance clause on the specified property. As long as this endorsement is in effect, there would be no coinsurance penalty at the time of a claim.

Total annual income from rental units at the insured location.  For co-op and condos, this is the total annual maintenance fees only.

Optional auto insurance which pays for damage to your car caused by collision with another car or object, or by rolling the car over. Frequently required if you have a car loan.

Optional auto insurance which pays for damage to your auto caused by things other than collision or rolling the car over, such as fire, theft, vandalism, flood or hail. Frequently required if you have a car loan.

Provides important mechanical breakdown coverage generally not available under any other insurance policy. A Boiler and Machinery policy can protect an insured against the effects of catastrophic property loss, such as steam boiler explosion or an expensive breakdown of machinery and equipment.

Indemnifies for loss of or damage to a building under construction. Insurance is normally written for a specified amount on the building and applies only in the course of construction. Coverage customarily includes fire and extended coverage and vandalism and malicious mischief. Builders risk coverage can be extended to a "special" form as well. The builders risk policy also may include coverage for items in transit to the construction site (up to a certain percentage of value) and items stored at the site.

Coverage for the building includes the building and structures, completed additions to covered buildings, outdoor fixtures, permanently installed fixtures, machinery and equipment. The building material used to maintain and service the insured's premises is also insured. Business Personal Property owned by the insured and used in the insured's business is covered for direct loss or damage. The coverage includes furniture and fixtures, stock, and several other similar business property items when not specifically excluded from coverage. The policy is also designed to protect the insured against loss or damage to the personal property of others while in the insured's care, custody or control.

Provides coverage for the undamaged portion of the building that is required by Building Ordinance to be demolished due to a partial loss.  Demolition Cost covers the cost to demolish and clear the site of undamaged parts of the property.  Increased Cost of Construction covers the increased cost to repair or rebuild the property caused by enforcement of Building Ordinance.

The replacement cost value of a building only (excluding land).  This is not the Market Value.

The cash amount payable to a life insurance policy owner in the event of termination or cancellation of the policy before its maturity or the insured event.

The term peril is used when discussing losses. A peril is a cause of loss. Basic property insurance policies are written to cover the perils of fire, lightning, explosion, windstorm, hail, smoke, aircraft or vehicle damage, riot or civil commotion, vandalism, sprinkler leakage, sinkhole collapse, and volcanic action. Other property insurance policies, often referred to as the broad form policy, add coverages for water damage, weight of snow, ice or sleet, breakage of glass and coverage for falling objects. The broadest coverage is the special form, which is best known as the all risk form. All risk covers all causes of loss, except those specifically excluded from coverage. It is possible for a commercial property policy to have more than one cause of loss form.

Most building and business personal property polices have a coinsurance clause which requires the insured to carry insurance equal to at least a specified percentage of the actual cash value of the property. If a loss occurs, and it is determined that the amount of insurance carried is less than the amount required, a penalty could be placed on the insured.

Covers any lawsuits for bodily injury or property damage against the named insured with respect to the covered property.

The property covered on the contractors equipment floater might range from simple hand tools to very large cranes. Virtually any type of mobile equipment or tool can be insured. The equipment covered can be used in a wide variety of operations such as, home improvements to strip mining. It might be used to build roads, buildings, pipelines, or many other types of structures. The coverage provided is for direct physical loss to the equipment. Rental reimbursement coverage can be added by endorsement to cover the cost of renting substitute equipment if covered property is out of service by a covered cause of loss.

The portion of the loss that the policyholder agrees to pay out of pocket, before the insurance company pays the amount they are obligated to cover. For example, if the covered claim is $1000 and your deductible is $250, you pay $250 and your company will pay $750. Deductibles help to keep insurance rates reasonable. Raising the amount of the deductible lowers the cost of insurance.

Reduction in the value of property due to age and use.

Each occurrence is considered to be an accident, which could include continuous or repeated exposure to the same harmful conditions. An occurrence can also be a sudden event, or a result of a long term series of events.

Attachment or addendum to an insurance policy; an endorsement changes the contract's original terms.

The amount stated in the life insurance policy as the death benefit.

The fire damage limit provides coverage for fire damage caused by negligence on the part of the insured to premises rented to the named insured. If a fire occurs because of negligence of the insured and causes damage to property not rented to the insured, coverage would be provided under the occurrence limit.

The General Aggregate Limit is the most money the insurer will pay under a certain coverage for all claims occurring during the policy term.

Covers bodily injury or property damage arising out of the use of non-owned or hired auto in the business of the named insured.

The person whose insurable interest is protected under an insurance policy

Termination of a policy due to nonpayment of premiums.

Insurance that provides compensation for a harm or wrong to a third party for which an insured is legally obligated to pay.

The most the insurer will pay for loss or damage in any one occurrence is the limit of insurance stated in the policy declarations

A claim either paid or payable due to the insurer's policy obligations.

Medical payments coverage pays medical expenses resulting from bodily injury caused by an accident on premises owned or rented by the insured, or locations next to such property, or when caused by the insured's operations. These payments are made without regard to the liability of the insured.

Medical and funeral expense coverage for bodily injuries sustained from or while occupying an insured vehicle, regardless of the insured's negligence.

The cause of loss or damage.

Personal Injury means injury other than bodily injury. Coverage is provided for injury resulting from offenses such as false arrest, malicious prosecution, detention or imprisonment, the wrongful entry into, wrongful eviction from and other acts of invasion, or rights of private occupancy of a room. Coverage for libel and slander is also provided in the policy.

Protects against the loss of, or damage to property other than real property (real estate) caused by specific perils.

The written forms that make up the insurance contract between an insured and insurer. A policy includes the terms and conditions of the coverage, the perils insured or excluded, etc.

The maximum amount an insured may collect or for which an insured is protected, under the terms of the policy.

Coverage is provided for damages arising out of ownership or occupancy of the insured premises when not maintained in a reasonable manner. This also covers damages arising out of operations performed by the insured business.

The price for insurance coverage as described in the insurance policy for a specific period of time.

Products coverage is provided for damages arising out of products manufactured, sold, handled or distributed by the insured. Completed Operations covers damages occurring after operations have been completed or abandoned, or after an item is installed or built and released for its intended purpose.

A sworn statement that usually must be furnished by the insured to an insurer before any loss under a policy may be paid.

Property can be valued in several different ways. Insurance companies commonly use two approaches to determine value, which also determines how a loss will be paid; the replacement cost method and the actual cash value method. Insurers consider replacement cost of a property item to be the cost to replace it with new property of like kind. Actual cash value is replacement cost, minus the accumulated depreciation for age and condition.

Required Underlying Limits is a requirement of the insurer. It requires the insured to have certain types and amounts of primary insurance before the umbrella policy can be written.

The self insured retention is the amount of the loss an insured must pay before the umbrella policy would be required to respond. The self insured retention would only apply when a loss is excluded from coverage under the primary policy, but not excluded under the umbrella policy.

Life insurance under which the benefit is payable only if the insured dies during a specified period. If the insured survives beyond that period, coverage ceases. The type of policy does not build up any cash or non-forfeiture values.

The highest amount an insurance company will pay on certain items of personal property. For instance, some policies have a $5000 limit for computers.

Coverage that pays for covered damage for bodily injury that an uninsured motorist is legally liable but unable to pay.