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All those things can make it hard to think clearly and respond properly. And if there are injuries, the stress can be amplified. But that’s when a clear head and quick action are really crucial. Here are some tips for getting through an accident with a minimum of hassle and headaches.

1. After an accident, getting help for the injured is always the first priority.
2. Regardless of the circumstances, report the accident to the police.
3. Record the name, address and phone number of the other driver. Write down the make and license number of all vehicles involved. You’ll want to get as much information as you can about the other driver’s insurance agent, policy and insurance company.
4. Don’t forget to collect the names, addresses and phone numbers of passengers and witnesses. Since many cases end up with the parties blaming each other, third-party witnesses can be important. Don’t hesitate to approach anyone who may have seen the crash.
5. Be careful of what you say. Don’t talk about fault; even casual remarks can be used in court.
6. Examine the damage carefully. Take photos if possible, particularly if the accident occurred on private property, such as a parking lot.
7. Without being overly suspicious, observe the other driver’s actions. If the other driver later claims to have a serious injury, what you notice could be important.
8. Stay calm.
9. Notify our office immediately at 805-781-6336. If the accident occurs after hours, please refer to the my policy section of our website for 24-hour claims hotlines for our insurance companies.

Remember, these incidents are the reason you have insurance in the first place. We know that no car wreck is ever minor if you’re involved. We’re here so that you can relax a little, knowing that Engle & Associates are on your side doing everything possible to ease your stress and give you peace of mind.

Water is essential for many things in life, yet it is one of the most frequent causes of damage in homes. Consider how many rooms in your home are connected to an inside water source or are susceptible to water coming in from outdoors, and you will quickly realize how vital water damage prevention should be.

When water goes where it shouldn’t, even a small leak can become a major problem. Some damage from water is covered by your homeowners policy, some is not. Either way, most damage from water is preventable.

Quick action helps in water emergencies.

It has happened. There is water everywhere — in your walls, under your carpets and soaking into your belongings. Whether caused by a burst pipe, a broken water heater or a flood, there are things you can do immediately to salvage belongings and limit damage or loss.

1. Stop the water. If the water is coming from inside your home, such as a burst pipe or water heater malfunction, shut off the main water valve immediately. (Make sure everyone in your home knows where the shutoff valve is located.)
2. Turn off the utilities* – if the situation calls for it. In a serious water event, turning off the power or natural gas might be necessary to ensure your and others personal safety.
   *In the case of a minor water situation there may not be a need to shut off the utilities, and doing so may leave your home without power until the utilities can be turned back on again.
3. Prevent electrocution. Do not use any electrical appliances if the carpet or flooring surfaces are wet. Use a wet vacuum to remove water, but check the manufacturer’s instructions before starting.
4. Use fans to circulate air and encourage drying. This is especially important in the first 24-48 hours after an indoor flood.
5. Get water out quickly (and safely). Fast action on your part can prevent further damage, help you save more of your belongings and minimize the time and expense of repairs. Clean up as much water as possible by mopping or blotting with towels.
6. Get property to a dry location. As much as possible, move belongings to a dry area. Put furniture on blocks or slide a square of aluminum foil under furniture legs to prevent the wood stain from bleeding into carpeting.
7. Remove area rugs from the floor. The dyes in carpets can stain flooring, carpeting or wood floors.
8. Do not lift tacked down carpet without professional help. It could cause carpet to shrink.
9. Launder any clothes or other washables that have been soaked as soon as possible.
10. Wipe excess water from furniture. Open drawers and cabinet doors for faster drying. Spread out books to speed drying and prevent further damage.
11. Watch for debris and pests. If water is flowing in your house there may be dislodged materials such as nails, or pests such as snakes or vermin.
12. Report claims as soon as possible. The sooner you report damage, the sooner we can help you get your home and life back to normal.
13. Keep track of the time spent cleaning and save receipts for the costs of any rental equipment or payments to professional services. Take photos of any damaged items you may have to discard before an insurance adjuster sees them, and make an inventory list of any damaged goods.

Want to make sure you’re covered?  Get a Home Insurance Quote Today!  CA Home Insurance is  very affordable and a great investment for any homeowner that is looking for protection against unforeseen tragedies.

Tragically, most fires are preventable. The leading cause of fires in the home is faulty heating equipment. A couple of simple measures can ensure that your home heating system is safe. For example, changing your air filter regularly will ensure that your furnace isn’t overtaxed. And don’t leave piles of newspaper or other combustibles within two feet of your furnace.

While home heating systems are the No. 1 cause of fires in the home, cigarettes are the No. 1 factor in home fire fatalities. If you do smoke, be sensible. Don’t smoke in bed. Use a large metal or glass ashtray. Put that cigarette out with water before you drop it in the trash.

The No. 2 cause of fire-related deaths is arson. Intentionally set fires claim the lives of more people each year than all natural disasters – including floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes – combined. Most arson fires are fueled with combustible material found nearby. A little diligence around the house, along with a watchful eye for strangers, can make a world of difference.

In fact, a little diligence is the key to home safety in general. It may go without saying, but smoke detectors that work, fire extinguishers that are well-charged and easily accessible, and a ladder for the upper floors can save money and lives.

Want to make sure you’re covered?  Get a Home Insurance Quote Today!  CA Home Insurance is  very affordable and a great investment for any homeowner that is looking for protection against unforeseen tragedies.

Burglars don’t advertise their unique line of work. They don’t wear a uniform or act suspicious. Remember this when you invite new acquaintances into your home or have a large social function. 21% of burglaries are committed by juveniles, frequently those living in the area.

The first step in helping prevent household burglary is simply to lock your doors and windows. This simple step alone greatly reduces the odds of being burglarized.

The burglar is always looking for the easiest job – don’t help him. Make it as difficult as possible for a thief to enter your home. Lock your doors and make your home look occupied when you’re not at home. By doing so, a burglar will most likely look for an easier break-in somewhere else.

Burglary, one of the most costly crimes in terms of actual dollar losses, is also one of the easiest crimes to combat. A moment of carelessness – not bothering to lock windows and doors – is an invitation to the criminal. The burglar is likely to go where there is an inviting open garage door or other easy way to enter. By taking normal precautions, you can save your share of the millions of dollars those open doors and windows cost crime victims every year.

Common Sense Precautions

• Lock all doors and windows, especially when leaving the house (even for short periods)
• Don’t leave keys under the mats, doorsills or on an outside nail
• If you leave your car keys with someone, don’t give them the full key ring containing the house keys
• Do not carry an identification tag on your key ring
• Never leave notes outside your home advertising your absence
• Always lock and close your garage door, even if you plan to be gone only for a few minutes
• Lock all outside doors at all times, even when you are on the premises
• Keep tool shed and other out-buildings locked
• Adjust the volume on your telephone so the ring cannot be heard outside — smart burglars may be listening when you aren’t home
• Make your home look occupied when you are away for the evening by leaving on some exterior and interior lights
• Keep jewelry in a safe deposit box at your bank
• Prune shrubbery around doors and windows so a burglar cannot work undetected
• Remove objects from your yard or near the house that might conceal a burglar
• Check door moldings for tight fit
• Never keep large sums of cash or easy-to-sell valuables in your house
• For those few valuables you feel you must keep at home, find hard-to-reach or hard-to-find places to conceal them
• A dog is an excellent anti-burglar investment — a barking dog, whether large or small, may persuade a burglar to move on

When You’re at Home

• Do not open your home to strangers. Demand identification before you admit anyone you do not recognize. Don’t accept a uniform as identification, and verify identity by phone before you admit a repair or delivery person.
• Post guidelines for your baby-sitters and children at home alone. If a non-family member or unexpected visitor knocks at the door, the child or baby-sitter can say through the door that the parents are “busy and cannot come to the door.” If the person persists, the police should be called and told that there “is a person at the door who will not leave.”
• If you have an answering machine on your phone, your recorded message should say you are busy, not that you are gone from the premises.
• When you admit a repair or delivery person, do not leave them alone, even for a few minutes.
• Never volunteer information over the phone. Instruct children and baby-sitters never to admit to being home alone. Have them tell callers that mother or father is asleep or busy, but the call will be returned if they leave a number. It is recommended to answer the phone as a burglar may be calling to determine if the house is occupied.
• When attending a funeral of a family member, have a neighbor house-sit. Burglars read the newspapers for advance notices, especially funerals, anniversaries and weddings.

When You’re on Vacation

• Discontinue mail deliveries, and have a trusted neighbor pick up newspapers and advertising circulars. In some areas, suspension of deliveries is a tip-off to your absence. Ask your local police for advice.
• Store ladders, bicycles, and lawn and garden equipment in a locked garage or out-building. A few large pieces of furniture may be left on the patio or deck so it appears you are at home.
• Ask a trusted neighbor or relative to keep an eye on your house.
• Notify your local law enforcement agency that you plan to be away as some agencies will schedule periodic checks of your home.
• Arrange for someone to mow the lawn or shovel the snow.
• Use automatic timers to turn on lights and radio or television at an appropriate time.

Added Protection

Doors

• Install a high-quality peephole viewer with a wide angle 180-degree lens, and do your talking through the closed door.
• Install solid wood or metal door exteriors, including the door from the garage into the house. Hollow core doors are easy to smash and enter. The finest lock is worthless if the door around it is flimsy. Even solid doors with thin inset wood panels can be entered easily.
• Reinforce or rebuild door jambs.
• Equip your doors with deadbolt or double-cylinder locks. “Dead” denotes the bolt is mechanically held in place instead of spring-loaded. Conventional spring-latch locks are easily opened, and can be opened with a credit card inserted between the door and frame. If unfamiliar with locks, confer with a locksmith on selecting the best lock or locks for your particular situation.
• Change your door locks if you move into a house or apartment that has been previously occupied. Do the same thing if your keys are lost or stolen.
• Don’t rely on the time-honored chain. They are easy to break or tear out of the wall.
• If you have Colonial or Dutch doors with small glass panes, a sheet of Plexiglas can be fastened over the inside of the door covering all panes.
• Check your outside doors for exposed hinges with removable pins. These allow the burglar to knock out the pins and remove the door.
• Block sliding glass doors with a dowel or broomstick in the door track. Even if the lock is jimmied, the door will be hard to open.
• If your sliding door can be lifted out of the track from the outside, insert screws along the upper track of the door, leaving room to slide the door, but not to lift it out.
• Consider purchasing one of the economical locking devices on the market designed specifically for sliding glass doors.

Windows

• Install locks on your windows. Consider the special locks for specific window types, such as sliding, double-hung wood and casement.
• Install heavy screens on your windows.
• If burglars can’t get in quietly by prying or jimmying a lock, they are reluctant to break glass because of the noise involved. Most burglars prefer to break one small pane, if necessary, to reach a lock, but will avoid breaking large windows. If they do break glass for entry, burglars look for an easy exit through a door, especially if they are stealing large items. If you have double-cylinder deadbolt locks installed on your doors, the locks cannot be opened to exit without a key.

Home Security Systems
If you live in a high-crime area, own a valuable collection or have been previously burglarized, here are additional preventative measures to safeguard your home.

• Security systems of all designs, complexity, installation method and cost are available. The easiest installations require no wiring. A battery-operated unit is hung by a strap over the doorknob or by the window, or a pressure-sensitive mat is placed under the rug in front of the door or under a window. Some alarms are merely plugged into an electrical socket. Installations that necessitate wiring should be purchased with your electrical skills in mind. The range includes alarm systems for the average do-it-yourselfer, the skilled do-it-yourselfer, and the professional installer.
• The prime function of a home alarm is noise. Usually the burglar leaves the premises as soon as the alarm sounds. The burglar doesn’t know if the alarm will sound for a minute or two, or run indefinitely. Some alarms are connected to the police station, although false alarms due to improper use have lessened their credibility.
• For advice on the best alarm for your particular situation, you should consult with a security system firm, hardware store manager, police department or your insurance agent. In general, you should have a burglar alarm system if your house is isolated from view, if your home contains valuable items, if you live in a high-crime area, or if you live alone or fear the danger of forced entry and physical attack.
• Costs also vary greatly. Point-of-entry alarm systems (the alarm sounds when the door or window is opened) can be purchased for under $10. Numerous point-of-entry devices are available in the price range of $15 to $60. For $250 and up, you can select a system, wired or wireless, that equips all doors and windows with sensors. Other systems rely on electric eyes, ultrasonic sound waves and radar.

If You Are Robbed or Burglarized

• If there is a burglar in the house and you are at home, leave the house and call the police from a neighbor’s phone. If you cannot leave the house, go to a safe room, lock the door and call the police.
• Do not seek out the burglar – avoid a confrontation if you can. Don’t take an action that could result in injury to you or in legal complications.
• If you come home and think you’re being robbed, don’t go into the house. Go to a neighbor and call the police. Watch the exits of your house to see if anyone leaves, and write down or remember descriptions of the person or persons and car.
• If you have been robbed or burglarized, do not touch or rearrange anything inside the house until the police arrive.
• If you find checks, a passbook or credit cards missing, notify the necessary authorities immediately.
• Collect the complete household inventory you have stored away from the premises; this will aid in reporting your losses to the police and your insurance company.

Want to make sure you’re covered?  Get a Home Insurance Quote Today!  CA Home Insurance is  very affordable and a great investment for any homeowner that is looking for protection against unforeseen tragedies.

1. What happens if I fail to make the required payments?

2. What if I become disabled?
Provisions or riders that provide additional benefits can often be added to a policy. One such rider is a waiver of premium for disability. With this rider, if you become totally disabled for a specified period of time, you do not have to pay premiums for the duration of the disability.

3. Are other riders available? (* availability and specifics of these riders vary by carrier and state.)

• “Accidental death benefit”, provides for an additional benefit in case of death as a result of an accident.
• “Accelerated benefits”, also known as “living benefits.” This rider allows you, under certain circumstances, to receive the proceeds of your life insurance policy before you die. Such circumstances include terminal or catastrophic illness, the need for long-term care or confinement to a nursing home.
• “Child rider”, provides insurance for all your children, usually from $1,000 to $20,000 of death benefit.

4. When will the policy be in effect?
If you decide to purchase the policy, find out when the insurance becomes effective. This could be different from the date the company issues the policy.

5. How do accelerated death benefits work?
It allows policyholders to receive all or part of the policy’s proceeds prior to death under certain circumstances, including the need for long-term care and confinement to a nursing home. Because payments may affect tax status and Medicare eligibility, and will be deducted from the overall benefits paid later to beneficiaries, policyholders should thoroughly investigate options in advance.

6. By using medical tests are insurers trying to eliminate any applicant likely to develop a serious health condition?
Medical tests can provide accurate and current information about an applicant’s health, thus enabling insurers to charge premiums that reflect the level of risk an applicant represents. Because some health conditions are easily managed through proper medication, therapy or lifestyle changes, medical information sometimes makes it possible for insurers to cover applicants who might not otherwise be insurable. More serious or incurable conditions present an enormous risk that an insurer simply cannot assume.

7. What should I consider in naming life insurance beneficiaries?

• Always name a “contingent,” or secondary, beneficiary, just in case you outlive your first beneficiary.
• Select a specific beneficiary, rather than having the proceeds of your life insurance paid to your estate. One of the great advantages of life insurance is that it can be paid to your family immediately. If it is payable to your estate, however, it will have to go through probate with the rest of your assets.
• Be very clear in wording beneficiary designations. Naming specific children may exclude those born later. If your child dies before you, do you want the proceeds to go to that child’s children? Changing the beneficiary designation is easy, but you have to remember to do it.

8. Does it make sense to replace a life insurance policy?
Think twice before you do, because in many situations it may not be to your advantage. Before dropping any in-force policy, make sure your “new” policy is paid for and in effect and first consider:

• If your health status has changed over the years, you may no longer be insurable at preferred or standard rates.
• Even if both policies pay “dividends,” it may be years before the new policy’s dividends equal those of your present one.
• If you replace one cash-value policy with another, the cash value of the new policy may be relatively small for several years and may never be as large as that of the original one. There may also be a period wherein a surrender charge is applicable on the first policy.
• You should ask for a detailed listing of cost breakdowns of both policies, including premiums, cash surrender value and death benefits. Compare these as well as the features offered by both policies.
• If you decide to surrender or reduce the value of the life insurance policy you now own and replace it with other insurance, be sure your new policy is in force before you cancel the old one.

9. As a single person, do I need insurance?
The answer almost always is yes. You may want to consider these options:

• Disability income insurance – especially important for self-supporting singles without sizable assets, this can replace a good part of the income you would lose if you were unable to work because of accident or illness. If you don’t have long-term disability coverage at work, it would be wise to consider an individual policy designed to replace at least 60 percent of your income.
• Health insurance – if you don’t have on-the-job coverage, an individual policy is your first line of defense against ever-escalating medical and hospital costs. You can keep premium costs down by electing a large deductible, thereby “self-insuring” as much as you can afford.
• Life insurance – even if you have no dependents now, you may later. If you buy now when you are younger and healthier, you can “lock in” lowest-cost coverage, including guaranteed insurability.

Permanent insurance provides lifelong protection and is known by a variety of names. These policies are designed and priced for you to keep over a long period of time. If you don’t intend to keep the policy for the long term, it could be the wrong type of insurance for you.

Most permanent policies including whole, ordinary, universal, adjustable and variable life have a feature known as “cash value” or “cash surrender value.” This feature, which is not found in most term insurance policies, provides you with some options:

• You can cancel or “surrender” the policy — in total or in part — and receive the cash surrender value as a lump sum of money. If you surrender your policy in the early years, there may be little or no cash value.
• If you need to stop paying premiums, you can often use the cash surrender value to continue your current insurance protection for a specific period of time or to provide a lesser amount of protection to cover you for as long as you live if there is sufficient cash value.
• Usually, you may borrow from the policy, using the cash value in your life insurance as collateral. Unlike loans from most financial institutions, the loan is not dependent on credit checks or other restrictions. You ultimately must repay any loan with interest or your beneficiaries will receive a reduced death benefit.
• The interest crediting rate and therefore cash values of many life insurance policies may be affected by your carrier’s future experience, including mortality rates, expenses and investment earnings.
• Keep in mind that with all types of permanent policies, the cash value of a policy is different from the policy face amount. Cash surrender value is the amount of available cash when you surrender a policy before its maturity or your death. The face amount is the money that will be paid at death or at policy maturity.

If you would like a quote on CA Life Insurance, please fill in one of our online insurance quotes, or call our office at 805-544-8929.