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Contractors: Don’t Forget To Double-Check Your Insurance Coverage!

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If there’s one thing we can expect every spring, it’s that the warming weather will always bring a flurry of new work to contractor’s doors as homes and businesses alike look to repair, replace or even build any number of desired systems, structures and appliances.

While the spring season is good for a contractor’s bottom line, we urge contractors to pause before they rush to work on their latest incoming projects. Because contractor jobs by definition often carry unique and fairly dangerous risks, now is the time to ensure your business will continue to run smoothly by checking and confirming that your insurance comprehensively covers any likely worst-case scenarios you’d see in your line of work.

As with any type of insurance, different contractors insurance plans cover different levels of risk regarding possible accidents, injuries, or even property damage caused during your work. Contractors insurance usually falls into one of three major categories:

–General liability insurance: Typically included in most contractors insurance packages, general liability coverage protects against things like lawsuits and other financial liabilities.

–Commercial vehicle insurance: Does your work require use of a commercial vehicle? If so be sure to look into commercial vehicle insurance, whether you use a car, truck, van or even trailer, to make sure this important business asset isn’t neglected from a coverage standpoint.

–Business owners insurance: Business owners insurance is perfect for contractors who own business-related properties, such as garages or warehouses. These policies usually include general liability insurance with other business related coverages, including but not limited to loss of income, property, and commercial vehicle insurance.

 

Depending on the type of contract work you do, you may also want to include additional coverage options in your insurance policy. For example, some contractors find that comprehensive liability coverage works better than a general liability policy. Where you work on your contracting jobs – such as a construction sites, riverside projects, and so forth – can also impact your coverage needs.

Don’t think you have the time to evaluate all of this yourself? Not sure what coverage you actually need to succeed? Go ahead and make an appointment with one of our Fisher Widmann Flick Insurance Agency staff members to evaluate your contractors insurance policies. Whether you’re in Johnstown or any other area in central Pennsylvania, and whether you need an entirely new policy or to just update the one you already have, we’re here to help you make sure that your business is fully covered for a reasonable price. Our representatives in Blaire County, Cambria County, Somerset, Latrobe, or in any other nearby counties are all ready to work with you so that you can concentrate on staying safe on the job, rather than worrying about what would happen if things went wrong while working.

EMC’s Light Manufacturers Program Truly Protects What You Build

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These days, working in the manufacturing industry is no small feat. Not only do even the smallest of manufacturing businesses usually face a massive workload, but the manufacturing industry has a very unique set of challenges – as well as a unique set of risks – that business owners and staff must deal with and address on a daily basis.

These risks are why manufacturers, like any other business, need comprehensive insurance policies in place to protect against a worse case scenario work accident. The challenge, however, is that in many cases, what might be a comprehensive policy in another field could just be the beginning of what a manufacturer needs.

For example, like any business, manufacturers need property insurance that offers additional protection for the company’s building location, inventory, and valuable manufacturing equipment. However, manufactures must then take care when evaluating their liability insurance – which, while a staple of many business plans, often needs to be more comprehensive for a manufacturer; after all, manufactures need to ensure that they have protection in place to help them deal with problems such as product recalls, customer complaints and claims regarding serious injury and illness, or equipment breakdowns.

Our staff here at the Johnstown-based the Fisher Widmann Flick Insurance Agency (F.W.F Insurance Agency) understands that if you own a manufacturing business, then you truly do need a comprehensive, personalized policy – one that covers all of your needs, and not just the basics. We also understand that due to the demands and risks placed on the businesses in your industry, there is a need for manufacturers of all sizes to make sure that precautions are in place to minimize the risks their staff face every day.

That’s why for manufacturers, we can’t think of anyone better than EMC Insurance to protect your business. Where EMC excels is the ways it will go above and beyond for the businesses under their care; in fact, EMC offers both coverage and prevention strategies through their incredible commercial insurance programs.

We are especially fond of their Light Manufacturers Program, which was specifically designed to help businesses that work with metal goods, wood products, furniture and fixtures, plastic or rubber products, textiles, and electronic equipment and accessories. EMC offers a multitude of benefits to manufacturers in this comprehensive insurance program, including:

-Property coverage for your building and personal property

-Auto coverage for your commercial vehicles

-Liability coverage to protect your business from things like product or operations liabilities

-Umbrella coverage, offering extra financial help in the face of a catastrophic issue

-Worker’s comp to assist with medical expenses and wage compensation, as well as employment practices liability coverage in the case of employment discrimination or wrongful termination charges

-A series of additional coverage bonuses that can help address any expenses associated with brands, labels, deferred payments or contractual penalties, as well as offer additional protections against things like financial damage as a result of a manufacturing error or data security compromise

-Free “less control services” that address concerns such as slip-and-fall prevention, injury management services, and safety training procedures 

With a thorough list of coverage like that, it’s safe to say that EMC ensures that when you have coverage, you’re truly covered. So if you’re involved in the business of making products, then please contact us now to set up a meeting with one of our local representatives in central Pennsylvania and ensure that you’re protecting what you’re building.

Whether you’re located in Blaire County, Cambria County, Somerset, Latrobe, or in any other nearby counties, we can help you get in touch with EMC Insurance’s independent agents and can make sure that you get great coverage, extensive loss control resources, expert claims knowledge and local service through your independent insurance agent.

No One Home? Insurance For Vacant Buildings And Lots Is A Must

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If you own a vacant home or empty plot of land, you probably have big plans for that property; you’ve also probably put up ‘No Trespassing’ signs for the time being. The next question to ask yourself, then, is: have I properly insured my property to protect myself, as well as my big plans for that space?

These days, having insurance coverage for any unoccupied space you own is a necessity. At first, it may seem that an empty plot of land or building would not need insurance if it were not in use, but this is not the case; in fact, because these areas are unoccupied, empty buildings or lots carry their own risks and liabilities.

Image a scenario where locals might see an empty lot as a shortcut on their way to work, or teenagers might see a deserted building as a cool place to hang out. Should anyone fall or hurt him- or herself on your vacant property during their fun, based on current case law, you could be sued for damages, no matter how many ‘No Trespassing’ signs you’ve posted around the area.

The only way to truly protect yourself from a potential liability suit is to make sure your vacant lot has vacant land insurance, or that your empty property has vacant property insurance. Both types of polices are usually very affordable, and both are designed to protect your best interests.

Vacant land insurance was designed specifically to protect you financially up to a certain liability limit in the event of an accident on your property, and can be used should someone hurt himself or herself while passing through or playing in the deserted space. Vacant property insurance, on the other hand, is designed to protect an actual structure, and so will often cover damages to a building caused by both natural and manmade disasters, including fire, storms, civil commotions, vandalism, and so forth.

The need for these types of insurance is not limited to individuals or landlords, either; others who may need to insure their empty space include:

-Homeowners who are moving but still own their old house
-Real Estate Investors who are overseeing properties that have lacked tenants for over 60 days
-Banks, mortgage companies, or contractors who are holding completed or repossessed properties or lots that have not sold yet

The good news is, insuring your vacant property or building may not be that difficult! In some cases, it’s an easy as extending a homeowners policy, purchasing an umbrella policy, or simply buying vacant property insurance for a couple of months. And with the right insurance agent, getting this done can be incredibly simple.

We highly encourage anyone who owns a vacant building or lot to talk to a member of our Fisher Widmann Flick Insurance Agency staff; we can find out what the most cost effective solution to your insurance needs really is. Don’t let your property pose a risk any longer; whether you live in the Johnstown area or even in Blaire County, Cambria County, Somerset, Latrobe, and any other nearby counties, if you contact us today, our local staff members will meet with you as soon as possible to evaluate your specific needs and make sure that you’re protected.

FWF Will Help Volunteer Firefighters Get The Benefits They Deserve

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At the Fisher Widmann Flick Insurance Agency, we understand the challenges that Pennsylvania locals face when obtaining insurance; a little change in a local policy or state law can make a big difference in the insurance recommendations we make for individuals, businesses, and municipalities alike.

One example of a local law that has affected our insurance recommendations is Pennsylvania Act 46, a law with good intentions that has sadly had a negative affect on our state’s volunteer fire departments and firefighters alike.

Act 46 is also known as the “Firefighters Cancer Presumption Law”; inspired by the long-term health risks 9-11 servers were facing, the law is meant to do a good service: provide benefits for firefighters who developed cancer in the line of duty.

Unfortunately, as more and more workers compensation claims are coming in, insurance companies, concerned over growing costs, are beginning to revisit their rates, which can result in municipality and local budget cuts due to an increased cost of their insurance packages; some insurance companies have even considered worker compensation for firefighters (especially volunteers) altogether. While this is not the case for every insurance company, it has happened enough to cause concern amongst the Pennsylvania firefighting community.

Any worker deserves to have workers comp insurance protecting them in case of an accident, but for firefighters, workers comp is more than that: it’s an essential protection that could provide income, medical benefits and rehabilitative services should that firefighter be injured on the job. For volunteer firefighters, who give their services for no regular pay, this benefit is all the more important.

We at the FWF want to make sure that no one as courageous and generous as a volunteer firefighter serves their community without the proper protection they deserve. We encourage anyone facing a loss of workers comp as a result of this act to contact us so that we can help you get back what you have earned and what you truly deserve: solid protection.

Our staff across the state are working to replace any coverage lost under Act 46; please contact us or one of our local representatives if your workers comp coverage has been canceled. Wherever you may be located – Blaire County, Cambria County, Somerset, Latrobe, and beyond – we’re there, and we’re ready to help you. Whether we need to work our connections at 15 other major insurance organizations to find your group a new plan with a new company, or work with the State Workers Compensation Fund, we can obtain new coverage that ensures your local volunteer firefighters continue to help their community with every benefit they deserve protecting them in return for their service.

Don’t Settle For Average: Get All Of The Coverage Your Municipality Needs

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If you work within or under a municipality, county or city’s governing body, then you understand better than most just how much responsibility your organization carries on its shoulders every day.

Sometimes it’s easy for the general public to forget that the people working within these groups are in charge of ensuring an entire city’s basic services run smoothly – everything from sanitation, water and street maintenance to schools and food inspections, as well as transportation, safety and health department operations.

These governing bodies and their employees deal with unique challenges every day as part of their jobs. To further complicate matters, not only do municipalities tackle local issues as part of their job: they also deal with sad economic realities behind the scenes, often juggling to operate on budget while still keeping solid insurance plans in place to protect their communities and their employees.

We understand that today’s economy has created many challenges for our public service workers. That’s we believe that instead of relying on certain preordained and often pricey insurance plans, municipalities each need to look into customized insurance plans that protect and address what matters most to them.

That’s where we come in; the Fisher Widmann Flick Insurance Agency is here to help ensure that all of central Pennsylvania’s counties are adequately covered and insured at an affordable cost.

Maybe you need to build a better health benefits plan for your employees, which covers everything from personal health support to treatment decision support. Maybe you need insurance that can help in cases of general liability, auto liability and physical damage, public entity management liability or law enforcement liability. Maybe you need protection against property damage. Or maybe there’s an issue unique to your area that you want to address and be prepared for.

Whatever your situation may be, we are here to help.

Whether you’re located in Blaire County, Cambria County, Somerset, Latrobe, or in any other nearby counties, we’re ready to work with you so that you can continue going about your daily operations without worrying about whether your insurance is good enough when it matters. Our representatives can use their connections to 15 other major insurance companies to thoroughly analyze your municipality and evaluate any current or future risks you may have to deal with – and then, we can create affordable and flexible insurance coverage plans just for you.

If you are a municipality looking for a competitive insurance proposal, contact us now to set up a meeting with one of our local representatives in central Pennsylvania. We’ll build the best plan at the best rate just for you – it’s what we do best!

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