Colorado Car Insurance: Teaching Teens to be Better Drivers

There is no question that most teens lack the experience to make them ideal drivers and decision makers behind the wheel, but that doesn’t mean that parents have no choice but to “take their lumps” when it comes to teen drivers and accidents. Parents actually have a lot of power to help make sure that their teens learn how to be better drivers.

Be a Good Example

The first step in ensuring that your teen is a good, safe driver is to always be an example to them whether they are riding in a car with you or you are driving alone. If they hear about your tickets and traffic court dates, they might assume that they can ignore traffic laws and simply ask for forgiveness after the damage is done, if they even get caught. So make sure your driving is as stellar as you want your child’s to be, at all times.

Safe Driver Discount

Most Colorado car insurance carriers offer good driver discounts for teens that stay accident free but it will also depend upon their driving record. It is important to avoid accidents, but you should also steer clear of speeding and reckless driving offenses, DUI or DWI convictions, and other infractions that can tarnish your record.

Read the Handbook Together

There are two ways a would-be driver can read the DMV handbook before taking the test; the would-be driver can read it like someone who wants to temporarily memorize it or as though they want to actually learn something. Many teens, blinded by the all-encompassing goal of getting a driver’s license, work diligently to memorize the handbook and then dump the info from their brain before the plastic cools on their newly minted license. When you work with your teen driver and study the manual together, you can be there to explain the concepts in the manual to them in a way they won’t forget, and you can ensure that the education they receive 

is a lifelong one.

Don’t Lose Patience

Driving with a teen is not a fun experience for most parents and it is a difficult time to actually teach. Often, teens get embarrassed and defensive when their driving behavior is corrected and this makes it difficult for them to actually take in what you are saying. Don’t lose patience and don’t take the offensive with your teen. Always remember that you were once in their seat, and try to communicate driving critiques in a manner you would have appreciated.

Watch Videos

There are many videos available online and at your local library that help people improve their driving ability. Watch these videos with your teen and talk about the different topics and situations that are found in the video. You can even bring these lessons out into the real world when you go driving with your teen.

Teaching your teen to be a better driver is something that takes a big commitment from both of you. If you work together, you can ensure that your teen walks away with knowledge he or she will apply and that will keep them safe when they’re on their own behind the wheel. 

Call us at 877-430-0092 for a comprehensive Colorado car insurance quote.

How is my Homeowners' Insurance Premium Calculated?

How insurance premiums are determined will vary from insurance company to insurance company, however, most companies will apply the following factors when deciding what to charge you for your home insurance.

Locality - Insurance companies will weigh how safe your neighborhood is, how near your house is to a fire station, and the chance for "act of God" claims.

Building materials - Is your home made of wood, stucco siding, brick, or stone?

How old is your house? - newly constructed houses can usually receive a lower rate

Coverage amount - the total coverage you have on your house, your house's belongings, and the liability cap are all figured in the amount of your policy.

Assessment of loss - what your homeowner's policy will cover in the occurrence of a claim, if it will pay the actual cash value or the cost to replace missing or destroyed contents.

Deductible - what is the dollar amount you are going to pay before your insurance takes over.  If you have a homeowner's loan, the max limit of your deductible will typically be greater than the amount set by your lender.

Call us at 877-430-0092 for a comprehensive Denver homeowners insurance quote.

Commercial Property Insurance Basics

If you own commercial property that you rent out to other business owners or use for your own business, then you need commercial property insurance. Commercial property insurance is used to cover real property, like buildings, factories, etc. It is not to be confused with business personal property which is used to cover the contents of a business like electronics, stock and furniture.

What does commercial property insurance cover?

This coverage covers the exterior and interior walls, roof and ceiling of your property. In addition, it covers additions, outbuildings, outdoor fixtures, and more. In some cases it covers machinery, appliances, and floor covering—generally only if these items are a built-in, permanent part of the property.

Commercial property insurance does not cover the contents of any of your buildings or the vehicles around it. In addition, it does not cover any additions that are currently under construction. These can be covered by builders risk coverage.

Lastly, this insurance does not cover injuries and losses of others on the premises. Commercial property insurance is intended to cover losses that affect the building itself, not liabilities that occur inside or outside of it.

Is commercial property insurance similar to other property insurance coverages?

Yes. Commercial property insurance has deductibles and limits just like any other type of property insurance coverage. In addition, your policy may have certain exclusions that you should pay close attention to. Reading your policy once you receive it will help you better understand what is and isn’t covered.

Are additional coverages obtainable?

Yes. You can also choose to have coverage added to your policy for the following:

Pollutant cleanup and removal: If you have pollutants present in the land or water of your business due to an insurable incident, this coverage may pay for their extraction.

Debris removal: If an insurable incident cause’s debris to be deposited on your commercial property, this additional coverage will pay for its removal, provided it exceeds the deductible.

Outdoor property: This covers outdoor items like fencing, plants, signs and satellite dishes in the event of an insurable incident.

Commercial property insurance is a vital protection for any real business property owner to carry. It helps protect the bulk of your investment from the losses that fires, storms, vandalism and other insurable incidents can create and protects your savings from being accessed to pay for repairs that make your business property usable again.

Make sure you have the best options for your Colorado Business Insurance needs with Premier Group Insurance today!

Possible Liabilities Issues for Business Owners

There are numerous things to do and deliberate when deciding whether or not to go into business for yourself. One very crucial item to consider is the capacity to be sued because of your efforts or inactions as a business owner. We have outlined some everyday potential liability exposures business-owners’ encounter:

• Premises Liability - the possibility of visitors being injured or harmed while at a business location.
• Operations Liability - the possibility of injury occurring because of the work accomplished by the business.
• Products Liability - the possibility of products being manufactured by a business to cause harm or injury
• Injury to employees - laws exist that dictate the liability a business owner can have when an employee is injured while employed.
• Professional liability - Professionals, for example doctors and lawyers, can have further legal duties placed on them because of their professional reputation.
• Management Liability - the possibility of directors and officers of a business being accountable because of their duties to those they attend to.

Let our agency help you determine what dangers your business can encounter and the specific insurance coverage you need so you can breathe easy knowing you are properly covered at a cost that meets your financial means.

Learn about options for your own Colorado Business Insurance from Premier Group Insurance today!

Colorado Car Insurance

Calif., Colorado Consider Banning ‘Crash Taxes’

Legislators in both California and Colorado have proposed new laws that would prohibit communities from charging a fee when police and fire personnel respond to motor vehicle accidents.

The city of Sacramento recently adopted just such a “fire recovery charge” on out of town automobile drivers. Sacramento’s “crash tax” imposes a fee on out-of-town drivers who get into auto accidents in order to fund the fire department’s response services. The fee would be imposed on non-resident drivers if insurers find them at fault in the accident. But business owners who live outside the city but have property inside the city are exempt from the tax.

By Patricia-Anne Tom - Insurance Journal

Make sure you ask a Premier Group Insurance Agent about changes to your Colorado Car Insurance today!

Inventory Your Personal Property

If your home and personal property is destroyed by a fire, flood, hurricane or other disaster, it may be more difficult than you realize to remember all the items you had in your home before the event. And without an itemized list of the items you lost, you cannot get the recovery you deserve from the insurance company.
One way to avoid this is to create a personal property inventory. You can hire someone to do this for you, but it isn’t difficult to do it yourself.

1. Go room by room. Don’t just sit and try to think about each of the items in your rooms. Instead, go into one room and focus on that space completely while you are in it. Do not start another room until you finish the one that you are in.
2. List every item in the room. As you look around the room, write a comprehensive list of every item in the room as you look at it. This is really the only way to ensure that you make note of every possession you own.

Learn more about how to effectively create a home inventory list. 

Call us Toll Free at 1-877-430-0092 for a comprehensive Denver homeowners insurance quote.

Comparing Homeowners Insurance Quotes

It is easy to get tunnel vision when looking for homeowners insurance quotes. Sometimes, in the midst of many quotes and hours spent looking for policies, shoppers can resort to simply narrowing their selection down to price and choosing the cheapest quote rather than considering the actual value of the policies they are considering buying compared to all the other policies they have looked at. But doing so isn’t the best way to make sure you are getting the best and most affordable policy to actually fit the individual needs of your home and your family. Instead you must evaluate all aspects of the policy, from coverage to deductibles, and the cost in order to get the best deal. Here is a list of items you should review before you commit.

Call us at 877-430-0092 for a comprehensive Denver homeowners insurance quote.