Snow has arrived for many parts of the country, and that means it's time to brush up on tips for safe winter driving, especially in snow.

The roads can get slick and visibility can dwindle, so always take it easy, drive calmly and stay safe. Whether you've driven in snow often, a short while, or never, it's always a good idea to brush up on the basics to help you stay safe during this time of year.

As the temperature drops, pipes exposed to the cold are prone to freeze. This is especially true for pipes located in unheated areas like basements, crawl spaces, attics, and garages. Pipes that run along poorly insulated exterior walls can also be affected by the extremes in temperature.

The continued freezing and thawing of these pipes can cause the material to become weak and break. When this happens, water fills the room, causing significant damage. A crack measuring as little as three millimeters can send as much as 250 gallons of water a day into the house or building.
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Because your home or building is a valuable asset, it’s critical to take preventive steps to avoid major inconveniences, high repair costs, and higher insurance costs.

There are about 10 million adults over the age of 50 in the United States who provide care for their aging parents. During the past 15 years, the number of adult children providing primary financial or personal care for their parents has increased more than three times. About 25 percent of all adult children in the country today are the primary care providers for their parents. The same number is almost equal to the number of non-working adult children who help their parents.

Expecting a baby is one of the most joyous experiences in life.  As you prepare your nursery, don't forget to review your insurance to make sure your coverage reflects the change in your growing family.  Below are a few pointers. 
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Not every trip needs to be insured; however, if the cost, risk of illness, or potential for interruption has you feeling cautious, then trip insurance may be a wise investment. Asking yourself the following questions may help you decide:

• Are you traveling abroad or more than 100 miles away from home?
• Are you hyper-aware of the cost of your travel arrangements?
• Are you concerned an injury or illness of you or a loved one may affect your trip?
• Are you traveling during a heightened risk of severe weather, like the winter holidays or hurricane season?
• Does your trip include pre-paid home rentals, car rentals, or event tickets?

When considering a plan, take inventory of the components of your trip. Pre-paid vacation home rentals, car rentals, and event tickets are unique items to insure, yet they can be costly if forfeited due to an unexpected circumstance. If these costs are added to the total pre-paid price of the trip, a comprehensive travel insurance plan could protect you if your trip should be canceled or interrupted.

Did you know that one third of all households would feel adverse financial impacts within one month if a primary wage earner died?
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Life insurance isn’t a fun thing to think about, and it may seem like an unnecessary expense. But if you have people who depend on you for financial support, then life insurance is really about protecting them in case something happens to you – your designated beneficiary would collect a financial benefit upon your death. Life insurance can be confusing, so here’s a rundown of the basics.

​If someone is using your personal or your company's financial information to make purchases, get benefits, file taxes, or commit fraud, that's identity theft.

We were recently contacted by a client who was the victim of a scam in the area where someone is buying cell phones using a businesses’ EIN (Employer Identification Number). The insured does have Identity Theft Expense Reimbursement coverage; however, no expenses were incurred. 

While insurance is still necessary and important, it's just one part of protecting yourself and your business. ​One of the best things you can do is to take steps to protect yourself before identity theft occurs. The website Fraud.org offers many tips on how to do this, including:

• Review your credit report for suspicious activity.
• Avoid giving out personal information.
• Don't use the same password and change your online passwords frequently.
• File your taxes as soon as possible. (One form of theft is to file for tax returns before you do.)

If you are a victim, take the following steps to report the fraud:

1. Report the fraud to the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490
2. File a complaint with the FTC at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov
3. Make a report with your local police department 
4. Contact one of the three major credit reporting bureaus and ask them to place a “fraud alert” on your credit report. (Contact one, and the report should automatically be placed with the other two.)
5. You could also consider requesting a “security freeze” on your credit report from each of the three credit reporting agencies. This would probably only be necessary if you’re afraid of someone opening lines of credit with your identity.

For additional information, the Federal Trade Commission put together the document, "Identity Theft - A Recovery Plan," to guide victims of identity theft through each step of the process.

Prevent Blindness has declared August as Children’s Eye Health and Safety Awareness month. The goal of this month is to inspire and encourage parents to make their children’s vision health a bigger priority. 
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​It's a nightmare scenario for any new car buyer. You drive it off the lot and a few days later another driver runs a red light, smashing into your car and severely damaging most of the front end and irreparably damaging the frame - essentially totaling the vehicle.
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If you are one of the Americans who have purchased a motorcycle in the last 10 years, you're clearly far from alone: Ownership has risen steadily in the past decade, and over 13 million people across the U.S. are now riding motorbikes. And of that total, nearly 20% of all riders are women.
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