IS YOUR PROPERTY ADEQUATELY PROTECTED?

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1 IS YOUR PROPERTY ADEQUATELY PROTECTED?

2 MASSY UNITED INSURANCE IS THE INSURANCE PROVIDER THAT CARES. WE WANT TO BE SURE YOU ARE NOT DISADVANTAGED BY NOT HAVING ENOUGH INSURANCE SHOULD TRAGEDY STRIKE. Don t wait until you experience a loss to wonder what those technical insurance clauses mean or even if your insurance was adequate. Call or come into any Massy United Insurance location today and let our team of trained professionals provide you with sound advice about your insurance coverage. 1

3 WE WANT TO MAKE IT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND THE KEY TERMS IN YOUR INSURANCE POLICY. HERE ARE A FEW INSURANCE TERMS YOU SHOULD KNOW. 2

4 SUM INSURED Your sum insured is the value (i.e. the sum) of insurance you have under your policy. If your sum insured is $10,000, it means that you re insured for a value of up to $10,000. DEDUCTIBLE A deductible is the amount of money each policyholder is responsible for in the event of any loss or damage which is covered in your insurance policy. Once the dollar value of your loss exceeds the value of your deductible, your insurance policy kicks in and you re covered up to the value of your coverage. These deductible amounts are generally small dollar values when compared to the amount for which you are covered. We undertake to quickly process your claim and the settlement will generally be made minus the small deductible. For certain perils, your deductible is calculated as a percentage. For example, a deductible of 2% of the sum insured is applied in the case of hurricanes, cyclones, tornadoes or windstorms and/or flooding or overflowing of the sea caused by any of these perils. A 2% deductible is also applicable for damage caused by earthquake or volcanic eruption and/or flooding or overflowing of the sea caused by any of these perils. 3

5 REINSTATEMENT Reinstatement is the cost of replacing or rebuilding a property which has been lost or destroyed. If your home is destroyed by an insured peril such as fire and you seek to rebuild, you will be given the funds of equal value to what it costs to replace your home, as long as you have insured it for 100% of its replacement cost. However, if you are replacing a 3-bedroom bungalow, for example, you won t receive funds to build a 6-bedroom mansion. You can even use the compensation received for a property which has been lost or destroyed, to rebuild elsewhere. Isn t that great? It is very important for you as a property owner to continually update your policy, to be sure that your insurance coverage is consistent with your reinstatement/replacement value. If, under your insurance policy, your home or business is insured at a substantially lower value than the cost it would take to rebuild it (i.e. your reinstatement cost), or you decide not to rebuild, your settlement will revert to indemnity (or settlement based on wear and tear or depreciation). In other words, it would be as if you had not in the first instance insured the property for replacement, but instead, it was insured for what it is currently worth (indemnity) and thus, the settlement would be on that basis. 4

6 INDEMNITY Indemnity or to be indemnified is the process of putting you back in the exact position you were in prior to a loss. An indemnification therefore, is a protection, security or compensation for the damage or loss sustained which, in respect of a household insurance policy, takes into consideration wear and tear or depreciation. On this basis of insurance, your sum insured therefore should represent no less than that amount that reflects the current value of the assets you own. What it also means is that any settlement is limited to the sum insured you have chosen and no more. While you can t claim for more than what your property is worth, you can be confident that at Massy United Insurance, we do our best to ensure compensation for insured items is fair and as close to what you have lost as possible; subject to the adequacy of your sum insured. 5

7 UNDERINSURANCE (The condition of average) It is important you insure your property at a value that accurately reflects its true value. If you insure your property for less than what it is worth and your property gets damaged or destroyed, your compensation may not be equivalent to the value of the property. For example, if the cost of rebuilding a home is $300,000.00, but you have insured your home for only $150, (half of the real value of rebuilding), the property is underinsured by 50%. Consequently, the amount claimed by the policyholder is reduced by 50% and you will be deemed to be your own insurer for the remaining 50%. EXAMPLE: Rebuilding cost of the Home $300, Policy Sum Insured $150, Amount Claimed $30, Amount Paid $15, (less any deductible, stamp duty or other charge) We understand that it can be pretty difficult for you to arrive at an accurate dollar value for which your property should be insured. In order to ensure that your property is adequately insured, we recommend that you obtain a professional valuation. 6

8 WE VE GOT YOU PROTECTED So now that we ve covered some basic insurance terms, remember it s about your ability to rebuild your home should a natural disaster hit. It s about having enough coverage to be able to reopen your business if something goes wrong. If you ve made structural improvements to your home or business, or if you have contents such as stereo equipment, televisions, computers, servers, furniture or other items on your property which would be expensive to replace after a disaster, it is important that you update your insured values. We want to help you make sure you ve got the best, highest quality insurance coverage for your specific needs. Give us a call or us with queries about your policy. 7

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10 Call or visit us today at any of our six convenient locations! BRIDGETOWN THE DOME MALL SHERATON MALL WEST COAST MALL MASSY STORES SUPERCENTRE - WARRENS MASSY STORES SUPERMARKET - SKY MALL massyunitedinsurance.com facebook.com/massyunitedinsurance.com