News | Howland & Sargent Insurance

Code Upgrade

May 24, 2013 — Leave a Comment

While people were still being pulled from the wreckage of collapsed buildings caused by the tornado which hammered Oklahoma in May 2013, a discussion commenced about whether the public schools in Oklahoma should be required to have underground shelters. The estimated cost of such shelters was approximated at $1,000,000. Who is going to pay $1,000,000? The insurance companies? The town or county that owns the school? The taxpayers?

Insurance is intended to put you back in the position you were in prior to the loss. If you did not have a tornado shelter before the loss, a standard property insurance policy will not pay for something you did not have. Closer to home, if you have a kitchen fire in your house which is significant enough to warrant a complete gutting of the kitchen. Your contractor pulls a building permit. The building inspector comes and notes that you have aluminum wiring in an unaffected portion of the house. The current code forbids aluminum wiring: you will not get a certificate of occupancy until the undamaged aluminum wiring has been torn out and replaced. Your insurance company says:” we pay up to 10% of the policy limit for code upgrade coverage”. Would 10% be enough to make your house entirely code compliant?

We want to talk with you about this issue and make sure that you are properly covered. If your house was built in the last 10 years or if you have updated your house in the last 10 years, then your house is much closer to code compliance than a 60-year-old house. If the building codes have changed in your town recently or if they have not changed in 3 decades, it will affect how much code upgrade coverage you should have.

Call us, that’s why we are here. To discuss these things before something happens and to make sure that you have the proper type and limit of coverage.

Social media could become legal nightmare!

April 19, 2013 — Leave a Comment

Social media could become legal nightmare!

A junior high school aged boy posts a picture of a female classmate in a provocative pose. 2 hours later, the photo has 450 “likes” and half again as many “comments”. The “friend requests” of the boy are rolling in like a tsunami. This kind of popularity has a cost: moral and legal. Let’s focus on the legal, but 1^st some interesting facts:

the average age a child is given a smart phone: 9 years old
69% of teenagers communicate with strangers online
52% of high school students have bullied online
52% of high schools students have been bullied by others online to

Social media has become so ingrained in our society but the insurance industry is still evaluating if and how to cover homeowners for the liability it creates. If you are the parent of that junior high school aged boy and called your homeowners insurance agent stating that you are being sued by the parents of the young lady, and asking if your homeowners insurance covers you, your agent would probably respond “that depends”. Not the answer you were hoping to hear. There are several facets to this potential claim. Most homeowners liability policies cover liability that results in physical injury or property damage because of your negligence. Defamation of character or emotional distress is not physical injury but injury (in a legal sense) still. Personal injury liability, an optional coverage on most homeowners insurance policies, provides coverage for libel, slander, defamation of character, and wrongful eviction. If you have personal injury liability on your homeowners policy, there is a possibility that this claim would be covered. However; homeowners insurance does not cover injury resulting from intentional acts of household members over a certain age. You can see how it would be against public policy if you struck your neighbor or lit his house on fire and your homeowners insurance covered you for that. The age of competency (when your insurance company will not pay for liability arising out of your intentional acts) varies by insurance company. So what is the parent of adolescent children to do?

Here’s the bottom line:

Make sure your homeowners insurance has personally injury liability coverage. Call your agent/company to confirm this. Also, get an umbrella policy although those “intentional act exclusions” are usually tighter than the homeowners policy wording.
Set rules with your children regarding use and content of social media. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
Check for parental tools such as SocialScout, which helps parents monitor their children’s social networking.

As the insurance industry evolves to contemplate these new liability claims which social media can bring, we will keep you posted on that evolution and how it could benefit you.

The ABC’s of reducing your car insurance premiums

April 1, 2013 — Leave a Comment

The ABC’s of reducing your car insurance premiums:

Although insurance can seem part actuarial science and part obscure religion, there are things which are within your control that will directly lower your premiums and increase how attractive you are, as a risk, to the insurance companies:

Get your credit score in order! One of the largest components thrown into the “rating stew pot” which the insurance companies use to price their products is your credits score. I have a friend who is a mortgage broker and she coaches her prospective customers in increasing their credit score in order to qualify for a mortgage. It can be done and it is within your control.
Don’t get into accidents: translation: Do not multi task when driving! Don’t text while driving! Don’t talk on the phone while driving or do other distracting activities. If you’re tired, pull over. If you’re tailgating, back off and in this day when everyone multitasks while they drive; drive defensively!
Treat your car insurance policy like catastrophe coverage rather than a maintenance policy. If your windshield is pitted from driving on the New England highway in the winter, do not call your company and tell them your windshield is broken and needs replacement. A record of every claim you file is kept on a database and available to most insurance companies.
Get high liability limits and high deductibles. The cost for having too low a limit of liability insurance is financially crippling but a $1,000 deductible should be affordable and it will subconsciously make you a better, more vigilant driver.

Call us for more tips and to give you an idea of how to save money on your homeowner’s insurance policy.

“I have not had any claims yet why do my premiums keep going up”?

February 14, 2013 — Leave a Comment

“I have not had any claims yet why do my premiums keep going up”?

We get asked that question frequently…and it is a very valid question. Everyone’s circumstances are unique but here is some information that might make some sense of it (from one point of view):

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released its 2012 questionable claims (QC) referral reason analysis. Over the period from 2010 to 2012, there was a 26.7 percent increase in QCs referred to NICB, going from 91,797 in 2010 to 116,268 in 2012—a new record. In 2011, the total was 100,450. What is a questionable claim you might ask ? “Those claims that NICB member insurance companies refer to NICB for closer review and investigation based on one or more indicators of possible fraud”.

Let me give you some examples of actual claims:

I had a party at my house after my child’s christening and my wife’s jewelry suspiciously disappeared.
I had pervasive hail damage done to my car.
My car was hit while parked.
I lost my $8000 Rolex watch

And what states does this occur the most in? California, Florida, Texas, New York, Maryland.

One of the things that is both a blessing and a curse with insurance is that the contributions of many people pay for the needs (claim) of the few. Unless the insurance companies can prove fraud, they are paying these increased claims and that affects how much you pay in premium.

Good News for Connecticut residents!

February 14, 2013 — Leave a Comment

Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced that his request for a presidential emergency declaration in the wake of Friday’s historic winter storm has been approved.

This means funding for 75 percent of the cost of emergency protective measures incurred by municipalities, state agencies, and eligible non profits for a 48 hour period. In addition, this emergency declaration provides for direct federal assistance, including possible snow removal equipment and personnel, power generation, and other commodities.

Governor Malloy also stressed the following:

Due to road conditions and limited parking availability, residents should begin making plans to carpool to work Monday morning, particularly with state employees.

Clean snow off the roofs of buildings, especially if they are flat tops. Also, make sure drainage areas are clear. With precipitation predicted for Monday, this is an especially important issue to address today.

Truckers are urged to delay travel until the evening hours, if at all possible, so that crews can continue road clearance efforts.

Calling 2-1-1 should be used to find locations of shelters and warming stations only. 2-1-1 does not have information on when streets will be plowed. Please do not call 2-1-1 for plowing information.

Residents should please remember that our state and city public works personnel are working very hard to get our roads clear. This was a historic storm, and the recovery effort is going to take some time.

Happy holidays from Howland and Sargent!

December 20, 2012 — Leave a Comment

We just wanted to pause and wish you all a very Merry Christmas with family and friends. We also hope that 2013 brings good things to you. In years past we have given out calendars, letter openers, and sent out Christmas cards. This year I felt with so much need in the world, it would be better to put the money that we normally would have spent on Christmas cards to better use. We are delighted to say that because of the business our insureds have given us, we were able to donate $4000 to charity. The charities we chose are: the Salvation Army, the Springfield mission, World Vision, water.org, Heifer International and a local food bank and soup kitchen. Thank you for inspiring us with your generosity and enabling us to do this with your business. God bless! Chris Howland

Is Sump Pump Failure covered under your homeowners insurance policy?

September 27, 2012 — Leave a Comment

The standard ISO Homeowners policy excludes this coverage, but an endorsement to add this is always available. So what actually is sump pump failure? Picture this….you and your family are sitting in your newly converted family room in the basement. You’re watching a movie and eating popcorn when all of a sudden thunder rumbles and shakes the ground and causes a power outage. While the family is sitting around with candles, you notice water on the floor which is coming from up through the sump hole. The sump pump isn’t working because the power is out and now the floor is getting soaked. The rug, furniture, and walls are getting soaked. If you do not have water back-up and sump discharge or overflow attached on your homeowners policy, you are out of luck. Your insurance agent should review these coverage with you explaining in detail how and why you need this coverage. That’s why it’s important for agents to call insured’s annually for their review and recommend the appropriate coverages like this and others. A simple conversation between an agent and an insured can create a benefit by turning a possible bad situation into a positive one.

What You Need to Know Before You Volunteer.

April 7, 2011 — Leave a Comment

As active community volunteers ourselves, our agency has often been asked, “Am I covered for liability as a volunteer?” According to PIA Magazine, Yes. You are covered under the Volunteer Protection Act. On Sept. 16, 1997, the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 became effective. Concerned that volunteers have been deterred from offering their services to nonprofit organizations because of liability concerns, Congress went to work to enact a law that would limit volunteer liability. This federal law is good news for all those who volunteer, or have always wanted to volunteer. The Volunteer Protection Act provides liability protection for harm a volunteer may cause as long as:
1) the volunteer was acting within the scope of his or her volunteer responsibilities;
2) the volunteer was properly licensed, certified or authorized for the activity which caused the harm (if required or appropriate);
3) the harm was not caused by the willful or criminal misconduct, gross
4) negligence or conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of the person harmed; and
5) the harm was not caused by the volunteer while operating a motor vehicle, vessel, aircraft or other vehicle for which the state mandates the operator or owner to be licensed or to maintain insurance
The Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 is a big step in the right direction to providing volunteers with immunity; however, because there are still some limitations and qualifications on immunity, check with our agency to be sure you have the appropriate insurance coverage.

Dryer Sheets Pose Toxic Dangers

February 23, 2011 — Leave a Comment

Every day, people use clothes dryers without thinking about the potential dangers they pose. One of the biggest dangers is lint, but not in the way you would think. Lint that accumulates after drying clothes can be flammable creating a potential for fires, but it can also be toxic. Lint contains quite a long list of chemicals that come from fabric softeners & dryer sheets, clothing, and environmental factors found in clothing. The main concern here is the chemicals from dryer sheets and softeners. These sheets are covered with a waxy material that may smell nice and get your clothes soft, but when the sheets are broken down by the heat of the dryer, they release harmful chemicals and these chemicals get trapped in lint and is released in the air. The same holds true for the liquid softeners you put into your rinse cycle. The chemicals absorb into your clothing and are released during the drying process.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and industry-generated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) “ the following is a list of chemicals in fabric softener products, most in untested combinations.

• Benzyl acetate: Linked to pancreatic cancer.
• Benzyl Alcohol: Upper respiratory tract irritant.
• Ethanol: On the EPA’s Hazardous Waste list and can cause central nervous system disorders.
• Limonene: Known carcinogen.
• A-Terpineol: Can cause respiratory problems, including fatal edema, and central nervous system damage.
• Ethyl Acetate: A narcotic on the EPA’s Hazardous Waste list.
• Camphor: Causes central nervous system disorders.
• Chloroform: Neurotoxic, anesthetic and carcinogenic.
• Linalool: A narcotic that causes central nervous system disorders.
• Pentane: A chemical known to be harmful if inhaled. “

The solution? If you like using dryer sheets try brands like Method, Seventh Generation, Mrs. Meyers, Caldrea, or Whole Foods. Trader Joe’s sells Lavender pouches to dry with your clothes (you can also make your own). A natural way to soften fabric and reduce static is to add vinegar to the wash (but never mix vinegar and bleach!) Why Use Vinegar Instead of Fabric Softener

Independent Agent vs. Captive Agent

February 1, 2011 — Leave a Comment

By definition, captive agents work exclusively for one insurance carrier. They only have a relationship to that one company. Independent agents like Howland & Sargent Insurance represent multiple insurance companies and work on behalf of the client to find them the policy that best fits their needs. So the questions remains….what type of insurance agent should you use? Independent or Captive? The answer comes down to a few basic facts. Independent agents have a wide variety of companies to choose from that offer the best coverage with competitive rates. If you are dissatisfield with the company for one reason or another, you independent agent can find you the company that works best for you without any hassles. Or perhaps, your current insurance company has dropped you because of the certain breed of dog you own…..an indedpendent agent will more than likely have a company that will take you on. What if your current captive company like State Farm or Allstate suddenly hits you with a rate increase? They cannot quote you with any other company since they work exclusively for that one company. Being a local independent agency like Howland & Sargent allows the agents to provide personal service and attention to each individual customer since each customer’s needs are all different. To watch a video go to
and click on the video “Declare your Independence”.

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