Home insurance: out of the file drawer and into your life
If you’re like most people, home insurance is an ongoing expense that’s part of your life, but one you’d rather not think about. You took out a policy when you bought a home and put it in a file drawer with the hope that you’d never need it—and that, if you did, it would have the coverage you needed.
That was then.
Today, insurance is—or ought to be—a dynamic part of your active life that helps protect the people and things that matter most. Instead of a one-time document, think of it as a living, breathing, evolving way to help keep you and your family safe. Behind every great insurance policy are top insurance agents and risk managers who understand your physical assets and can advise you on how to avoid typical losses. Often that includes home inspections and recommendations, but it shouldn’t stop there. Good risk managers should take the time to understand you and your world—including how it changes over time—and give you solid advice to help avoid the unexpected. They know that no two families are alike, and so they tailor the insurance experience to you and your changing life.
The waterfall effect, avoided
One of the most important things a risk manager can do to help protect a home is help you think through what might happen, particularly when what might happen is uninsurable.
For example, a burst pipe can easily flood your home in minutes—causing tens of thousands of dollars in damage and making your home unlivable while repairs are made. While your insurance policy may cover the costs of those repairs, along with the expense of living away from home, there will undoubtedly be significant disruptions to your life as a result of such an event.
Risk managers who are focused on prevention see this scenario from a different perspective. Their first focus is on avoiding incidents like these in the first place. In this instance, they might recommend a simple device that can prevent all this inconvenience and stress: an automatic water flow monitor. It installs in just a few minutes and, if you have an unplanned water flow such as from a broken pipe, it shuts off the water automatically.
At Berkley One, it’s something we often recommend because it’s an easy precaution that can make a tremendous difference. When your insurance team is focused on prevention, we can easily identify these concerns and provide resources, so your life can be always moving forward.
When prevention is simple, it’s timeless
Will you and your insurance risk manager be texting every day? Probably not. But getting in touch should be easy when you need to do it. And the interaction should be meaningful—with your risk manager listening, learning, sharing ideas and recommendations and connecting you with qualified resources to address a potential risk.
Clients tell us the simple, practical, everyday solutions we provide are the most valuable—things like making sure the garage door properly closes before driving away, or double checking that you haven’t left any candles burning before heading off to sleep. When you have a great risk manager, insurance stops being just a document in a drawer and becomes an active partnership with people who have your back.
You can count on Berkley One’s team of risk management professionals to provide tips, recommendations and advice on how best to help prevent losses. We’re here to help create an envelope of safety around you, your family, your home and your life—so you can carry on with your adventure uninterrupted.
We believe Benjamin Franklin was right back in 1736, when, speaking on fire prevention, he said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” That’s our approach to helping you manage all kinds of risks, because it’s our passion to help protect your joy.
Dan Cuccia is Vice President, Risk Management at Berkley One.
