Kathrens Insurance Blog
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 *IDENTITY THEFT IS WHEN SOMEONE USES
YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION FOR THE OWN GAIN* This can include: Your name Social Security number Bank account information Credit card numbers Medical Account numbers Identity thieves use this information to: Open new accounts Use your existing accounts Obtain medical services Establish credit Make purchases Apply for loans Seek employment Steal your tax refund Warning signs to watch for: Bills for things you did not purchase Collection call for unknown accounts Being denied a loan application Missing or stopped mail Reporting identity theft: FTC-Federal Trade Commission online at IdentityTheft.com or call 1-877-438-4338 Have fraud alerts and a credit freeze put on your account Fraud departments at your credit card companies, bank, and other places you have accounts. How does identity theft happen? Scammers can: Go through your trash for personal information like receipts and bank statements Install skimmers at ATMs, registers, and fuel pumps Use Wifi to get information while you're in public Phishing-gathering info from fake emails, texts and calls Gathering identifying info from social media posts and photos Protecting yourself: Don't answer calls, texts, emails, or messages from anyone you don't know Never share personal info Gather your mail every day, put a hold on it if you will be out of town Keep a close eye on your account statements Don't carry personal information like a SS card-keep that in a safe place Understand how ATM skimming works Learn when it's safe to use Wifi
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HOW TO AVOID SCAMS THAT TARGET SENIORS Every year, thieves target individuals to get access to their personal information and money, and they tend to zero in on older people. Victims of elder fraud lose billions annually, and sadly sometimes the people closest to them such as caregivers and even family members are the ones behind it.
Common senior scams include:
AI-Powered Scams use advanced technology like artificial intelligence to write emails pretending to be someone or a company. They use tools to analyze patterns from a target’s online footprint and create a message that sounds real. They may also generate realistic-sounding voices making it easier to trick individuals into giving out their personal information. Funeral Scams Obituaries are used by scammers to contact relatives and claim they are owed money by the deceased. Thieves go as far as to attend funerals to get information about family members before contacting you to pay the "debt." Be advised to always ask for written documentation from anyone requesting money or claiming you owe them something. Tech Support Scams you may be contacted by someone pretending to be a customer service rep warning you of viruses and malware. They then may want to "help you fix your device," creating an opportunity to gain access to your personal files. Government Imposter Scams Scam artists may call claiming they are from the IRS, Social Security or Medicare insisting you have unpaid debts and must pay them off in the form of gift cards. The IRS and SSA will never initiate contact through phone calls. Grandparent Scams In some instances, people pretend to be the grandchild of the person who answers the phone and claim they are in some type of trouble and need money, in the form of gift cards. The information used may be gathered from social media and obituaries. Internet Scams Sharing information online leaves you susceptible to being an online target, your personal information can be used to gain your trust therein getting you to share more information. Never click links asking you to share details about your identity or make a payment, just delete it. Investment Scams Before investing in anything, always be sure to consult a financial advisor. In some scamming cases, the perpetrator claims to be an investor, real estate agent, wealth manager etc. claim to have exciting new opportunities, that you will never see a return on. Check Fraud Thieves might steal a check from your mailbox or mail carrier. They could change the amount of the check and make it payable to someone else. Or they may take a digital picture of the check and alter it so they can make more deposits or develop other checks from the picture. Reverse Mortgage Scams Homeowners beware! Thieves may try to contact you claiming you can access some of the equity in your residence with a reverse mortgage. They may make offers to appraise your home for a cost or ask you to sign up with inaccurate loan documents. Be sure to contact a reputable lender or advisor near you if a reverse mortgage is something you are interested in. Caregiver Scams Unfortunately, even close relatives and caregivers can be culprits of stealing from you. While in your home they can gather information to access your account and take money from you. Always research and or vet health care aids and caregivers before you allow them in your space. Sweepstakes Scams You could potentially be contacted claiming you have won something, like the lottery or a contest. They can present you with a fake check, which looks real but leaves you with fees or taxes to pay. Always look into anyone trying to give you something for nothing. HOW TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE INSURED FOR SUMMER ACTIVITIES  Summer is a time for fun with friends and family, but with more activity and travel comes increased risk of accident and injury.
Here’s how to make sure you're properly covered for some common summer scenarios so you can make the most of these highly anticipated sunny months! *Road trips: Piling into the car with friends can be a cost-effective way to travel. But before you drive, it’s wise to check your auto insurance. When you're driving somewhere unfamiliar, the likelihood of an accident goes way up, the state’s minimum required auto insurance may not provide enough coverage if you cause an accident on your trip. You’ll be responsible for crash-related costs, such as medical expenses and repairs. We recommend choosing more liability car insurance than the minimum required by law. The extra coverage doesn’t cost much and can help protect you from the impact of a personal injury lawsuit. You may also want comprehensive and collision coverage. This coverage is optional, but without it you may have to pay out of pocket to repair your car if it's damaged. Liability insurance only covers damage you cause to others and their property. *Renting a car: When renting a car, be aware that your current auto policy can affect your rental car insurance. Your auto insurance typically extends to a rental car, but only for equivalent coverage. So, if you don’t have collision coverage on your personal vehicle, you could be on the hook for the cost of repairs if you wreck that brand-new rental car. If you’d prefer not to add collision and comprehensive to your current auto policy, you can instead purchase a loss-damage waiver at the rental car facility. This waiver means you don’t have to pay for damages if your rental car is wrecked or stolen. Your credit card may also provide rental car coverage, and buying a stand-alone rental car policy is another option. Before you rent a car, check your current auto insurance coverage and your credit card’s benefits. Consider buying supplemental coverage if your current auto policy has low limits or is liability-only. *Pool parties: Pools can be dangerous, especially for young children. If someone drowns or is injured on your property, you could be personally liable if you don’t have enough liability coverage through your homeowner's insurance. We recommend at least $500,000 in homeowners liability insurance for the average homeowner, and pool owners may want more. We usually suggest at least $1 million in liability insurance for pool owners. It doesn’t add much to the cost, and in the event of an injury lawsuit, “that extra few dollars a month could be the difference between taking care of a terrible situation or losing everything that you've worked for your whole life." *ATVs and dirt bikes: Small motorized vehicles such as ATVs or dirt bikes may not be covered under your auto, homeowners or renters' insurance. Any coverage that does extend to these vehicles will likely end at your property line. There are a lot of inexpensive ‘toys’ that people choose not to insure because it's not required by law. It’s a huge risk point, there are a ton of lawsuits and injuries on ATVs. The best move is to buy a separate policy for your small, motorized vehicles. *Boating: Small boats, like kayaks and canoes, may be minimally protected by homeowners' insurance, while motorized boats with more than 25 horsepower are typically not covered. We recommend buying a separate insurance policy for your boat. Make sure it’s covered at least for liability, even if it's not required by law. There are optional coverages as well, similar to car insurance. Some people will insure a boat for liability and then in the summer, when they're actually using it, add comprehensive and collision coverage.” *Consider an umbrella policy: Standard insurance policies — whether for your home, auto, boat, ATV or anything else — typically offer no more than $500,000 in liability coverage. That's usually the most you can get, but a lot of people need more than that. If you need additional liability coverage we recommend umbrella insurance, which will kick in if you’re sued for damages that are more than your standard insurance policy covers. A $1 million umbrella policy typically costs about $300 a year. There is always the potential for a lawsuit! An umbrella policy is going to provide substantial benefit in protecting your assets and future earnings! What is Umbrella Insurance? Imagine that you’re just a few years away from a well-deserved retirement. You’ve got a sizable retirement account, plus a house and car that are fully paid off. Altogether, your assets amount to a little over a million dollars. In short, life is pretty good. Then, one day, you get into a car crash. Fortunately, you’re not badly hurt, and the damage to your car is well within the limits of your auto insurance coverage. Unfortunately, the other car involved in the crash is full of executives from a large company – and their injuries, and the damage to the car, are much more serious. A court rules that you are responsible for the accident and must pay for the damage to the other car, the executives’ medical bills, and their lost wages for the time they were unable to work after the accident. Altogether, you owe about a million dollars in damages. Your auto insurance policy only covers the first $250,000 of that, so you’re on the hook for the remaining $750,000. This could be a complete disaster for you – unless you have an umbrella insurance policy. This kind of insurance takes over when your other policies run up against their coverage limits. In this case, an umbrella policy would cover the extra $750,000 in damages and even pay your legal bills – saving you from having your assets wiped out and your retirement snatched away by a single unfortunate accident. How Umbrella Insurance Works Most types of insurance provide one specific kind of coverage. For instance, your auto insurance policy protects you in case of a car accident, while your homeowner’s policy covers your house, and the belongings in it, against theft or damage. By contrast, umbrella insurance is a single policy that covers most aspects of your financial life – just like an umbrella covers every part of your body in a rainstorm. So, any time you run over the liability limits on one of your other insurance policies, your umbrella policy is there to take care of the extra costs.   Welcome to our new insurance agency blog!
This is our very first post. We're not quite sure what we're going to write about here, but the plan is to create helpful content for customers and prospective clients about information that is relevant to you. We hope you'll come to view this as a top resource for keeping your family and your finances safe. Here are a few of the topics we may be writing about:
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