Al Hattie Insurance

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Cheers To All 2015's New Businesses! Let's Talk!

2015 looks to be another exciting and prosperous year across Saskatchewan. If you are a new business or maybe an existing business that would like a refresher or an update on their commercial insurance Al Hattie Insurance is here for you! Doing your research on what commercial insurance is best suited to your needs and understanding your coverages are a quick phone call away. Reach us during office hours to have any and all questions answered by one of our expertly trained and certified brokers toll free at 1-888-450-2700.

 

Commercial insurance can provide a wide array of coverages that in case of loss can be vital to your business and it's employee's. Tailored to suit your own needs, we can help you mold a flexible policy that will keep your business safe and sound. Most policies will ensure coverages against:

- Business interruption (loss of income, continuing expenses, and employee wages)

- Accounts receivable, builder's risk, contractor's equipment, and glass breakage

- Boiler, water heater and other machinery

- Liability claims: extension coverage can include personal and advertising injury liability, employer's liability, contingent employer's liability, tenant's legal liability, non-owned auto liability, non-owned aircraft liability

- Crime (employee dishonesty, theft of money or securities, burglary, robbery, forgery and counterfeit currency)

 

Let us wish all your business endeavours in 2015 great success, and please call us or stop in our office if you have any questions or concerns about your Commercial insurance policy!

Does your home qualify for SGI's Prestige Policy?

Your home is your family's headquarters, and it's best defense is the best insurance policy for your needs. SGI's latest insurance product is their Prestige home policy, which is aimed to provide supreme protection to Saskatchewan's rising home market. Does your home qualify for SGI's Prestige policy? You may be surprised.

Prestige home insurance is focused on providing a flexible and superior insurance coverage to tailor to each unique home situation in Saskatchewan's changing real estate market. Are you moving to a new subdivision? Are you concerned about matching siding, shingles, or flooring if a loss occurs? Have you made a substantial investment in your property's landscaping or outbuildings? Expensive hot tubs or home entertainment systems? Maybe you have a prized collection, have a home business, or store a large amount of expensive tools? You are who the Prestige home insurance is made for!

Do you know the current value of your home? Saskatchewan's housing prices have risen by an average 67% in the past four years. Your home may be worth significantly more than you realize! The Prestige policy is available to homes:

- that are worth over $350,000

- that have been built in the last 35 years (some older homes may still apply in specialty inclusions)

- you are the primary occupant and it is your principal location

- you have less than one claim on in the past three years

- that meet the Homeowners' Guarantee eligibility requirements (not under construction, not a log home, was not built with post and beam construction or non-traditional building materials)

- meet any two of the specialty inclusions! Call us to find out if your home qualifies.

 

So your home qualifies? What does Prestige offer you above and beyond what your current policy covers? In a nutshell, the benefits to SGI's Prestige home insurance are far beyond their previous plans, and are built to custom fit your unique and individual lifestyle. There are standard protections with all Prestige policies:

- Priority Claims Service

- Full Matching Roof/Siding/Flooring Replacement

- Home Systems Protection (Furnaces, Central Air, Deep Well Pumps + Pool Pumps, Electrical Power Panels + more)

- Homeowner's Guarantee Coverage

- Higher Limits on Property with Specific Amounts of Protection

- $3 Million Personal Liability Coverage

- Roof Snow Removal

- Single Amount of Protection (Providing 150% of the coverage of your home you  may allocate as you wish in case of a loss)

There are also customized lifestyle options that you may choose to add on to these standard coverages. The four options are:

- Lifestyle Option A: Home Business Owner

- Lifestyle Option B: Collectible & Treasures Protection

- Lifestyle Option C: Family & Security

- Lifestyle Option D: Recreational Protection

 

Give us a call (1-888-450-2700) or stop by our office if you would like to discuss what Prestige policy options may best suit your family's needs. The benefits and increased coverages available through SGI's Prestige policy are vast and go well beyond the major points that are highlighted here, and is offered at a very competitive pricing! Talk to us for a free quote on SGI's Prestige policy.

Full Policy Pamphlet PDF

Updates to Wawanesa Habitational Policies

Our job at Al Hattie Insurance is to make sure our clients have the best and most comprehensive understanding of their insurance. Whether it be a home, condo, auto, travel, commercial, or agro policy, it is important to stay up to date on changes to your company's policies and their wording. This blog is going to focus on Wawanesa's recently updated wordings to their habitational policies.

 

 

Companies often revise their policy wordings to stay current ad competitive. They also change to adapt to our changing needs and to ensure clarity. Wawanesa's habitational coverages haven't changed, but wordings, definitions and limits have.

'Coverage D - Additional Living Expenses' has been renamed to 'Coverage D - Loss of Use'. This is simply a cosmetic update as the three original areas of this coverage - Additional Living Expenses, Fair Rental Value and Prohibited Access - remain unchanged.

One of the main changes can be found in the Special Limits of Insurance. Here are a list of the limits that have changed:

- Money, "cash cards", bullion - $1,000

- Personal Property of a Student away at school - $25,000

- Personal Property of a dependent in a care home - $25,000

- Fur garments and garments trimmed with fur - $6,000

- Numismatic, coin or banknote collections - $1,000

- *** Collectibles, including sports cards,m memorabilia and comic books - $250/item, $5,000 total

 

Water

Regarding water and water damage there are a few things to note. Flood is excluded from Water Damage coverage. However, flooding originating from a Domestic Water Container is covered. These are defined as "a device or apparatus for containing, heating, chilling or dispensing water for personal use." Examples include swimming pools, water coolers, hot water tanks and washing machines. Ice damming is not a part of the Sewer Backup/Water Damage Extension form and is covered as a Specified Peril on all policies. Coverage for freezing water pipes while policyholder was away from the premises for more than four consecutive days will be provided if any of the following precautions have been taken:

- Arrangements were made for a competent person to enter the dwelling and/or private structures each day to ensure heating was maintained

- The water supply to the dwelling and/or private structures had been shut off and all pipes and domestic water containers were drained

- The heating system was connected to an alarm that is observed 24 hours a day by a central monitoring service

 

Condo

Condominium owners will find a new section titled "Additional Coverages - Condominium Unit Owners". This section was created to make it easier for condo owners to find coverage specific to their situation. Coverages include:

- Condominium Loss Assessment

- Condominium Additional Coverage

- Condominium Unit Owner Improvements

- Condominium Deductible Assessment

Separating these coverages allows condo owners to purchase specific additional limits of insurance to fit their needs. All Condominium Unit Owners policies will be automatically renewed with $25,000 Condominium Deductible Assessment Coverage. Policyholders will now have the option to raise their limit to $50,000, which may be beneficial for those whose Condominium Corporation's carry high deductibles.

 

Other

Other coverages have had changes as well. Pollution incidents are now restricted to the escape of a pollutant arising from an insured peril under Section I - Property Coverage. Pollutant has been defined as "any solid, liquid, gaseous or thermal irritant or containment, including but not limited to fuel oil, vapour, soot, chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, waste and smoke from agricultural smudging or industrial operations."

Wawanesa has also adopted the Insurance Bureau of Canada's (IBC) Liability wording to ensure it is comparable to others in the industry. Wordings of a commercial nature referenced previously have been removed. They have also excluded liability for claims arising from the use or misuse of social media or the internet (cyber liability).

Finally there has been a significant reduction in the paper included with the renewal policy, as the additional printed forms - such as Statutory Conditions, Limited Sewer Backup Endorsement and Innocent Co-Insured - are now included in the new wording booklet. Electronic booklets can be found at wawanesa.com.

Two Campaigns From SGI To Make Our Roadways Safer

Our family at Al Hattie Insurance and SGI are committed to safety on the roads this holidays season. SGI is involved in two initiatives that are focused on reducing accidents and injury on Saskatchewan roadways. Both Operation Red Nose and the new Photo Speed Enforcement locations are designed for this and automobile drivers in Saskatchewan should help spread the word about both.

 

Operation Red Nose:

From Nov. 28 to Dec. 31, 2014, anyone who has been drinking and feels they are not able to drive home can call Operation Red Nose for a ride. Check operationrednose.com for the schedule in your area. A team of 3 volunteers - coordinated through the local Lions Clubs in the Battlefords, Prince Albert and Saskatoon, and the Queen City Kinsmen in Regina - will pick you up and drive you, in your own vehicle, to the destination of your choice. One volunteer drives your vehicle, a 2nd volunteer navigates and a 3rd volunteer follows in an escort vehicle to pick up the 2 volunteers once they drop you off.

While the service is free, donations are accepted and are then distributed to local youth and amateur sports initiatives in the participating city.

Impaired driving is among the leading cause of fatal collisions in Saskatchewan. If your city does not yet participate in Operation Red Nose, there are still many other options for getting home safely: take a cab, use public transit, stay the night, choose a designated driver, call a sober friend or family member, or contact another designated driving service. We also encourage other cities in Saskatchewan to take part in this initiative next year.

For Operation Red Nose service call:

The Battlefords - 306-446-2827 or 306-480-9876
Prince Albert - 306-763-6673
Saskatoon - 306-371-6693
Regina - 306-949-2400

 

Installation Work Underway At Photo Speed Enforcement Locations

Last week cameras and signs were being installed at photo speed enforcement locations around the province.

Cameras will be set up:

- Highway 12 at Martensville

- Saskatoon: Circle Drive and selected school zones

- Highway 1 east between the Pilot Butte turnoff and White City

- Regina: Ring Road and selected school zones

- Moose Jaw: school zones

"We will notify the public once the cameras are operational at these locations," said Andrew Cartmell, President and CEO of SGI. " We want people to know when the cameras are live. Our goal with this pilot is zero tickets and zero crashes."

There will be a two-month warning period where drivers caught speeding will be mailed a warning instead of a ticket. Yellow informational signs will let drivers know they are approaching a photo-speed-enforced zone. Black-and-white regulatory signs will also be posted within the zone.

For more information about the two-year photo speed enforcement pilot, visit SGI's website at www.sgi.sk.ca.

A Guide To Understanding Your Travel Insurance

At Al Hattie Insurance, we do our best to ensure our customers are informed about their insurance. If you're traveling outside of the country, it is very important to take a minute to discuss with us the coverages, eligibility, exclusions and limitations that are specific to your travel insurance policy. Different travel insurance companies will have different wordings and nuances, so if you have had travel insurance before and are changing companies it is also important to discuss the differences between policies with one of our brokers. Having an understanding of your travel insurance will give you confidence and piece of mind for your time away from home. This THIA guide below is a perfect start to understanding your travel insurance. If you would like more information on the specific companies we offer, please do not hesitate to give us a call (1-888-450-2700) or stop by our office.