Stay Cool
Wear Appropriate Clothing: Choose lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing.
Stay Cool Indoors: Stay in an air-conditioned place as much as possible. If your home does not have air conditioning, go to the shopping mall or public library—even a few hours spent in air conditioning can help your body stay cooler when you go back into the heat. Call your local health department to see if there are any heat-relief shelters in your area.
- Keep in mind: Electric fans may provide comfort, but when the temperature is in the high 90s, they will not prevent heat-related illness. Taking a cool shower or bath or moving to an air-conditioned place is a much better way to cool off. Use your stove and oven less to maintain a cooler temperature in your home.
Schedule Outdoor Activities Carefully: Try to limit your outdoor activity to when it’s coolest, like morning and evening hours. Rest often in shady areas so that your body has a chance to recover.
Pace Yourself: Cut down on exercise during the heat. If you’re not accustomed to working or exercising in a hot environment, start slowly and pick up the pace gradually. If exertion in the heat makes your heart pound and leaves you gasping for breath, STOP all activity. Get into a cool area or into the shade, and rest, especially if you become lightheaded, confused, weak, or faint.
Wear Sunscreen: Sunburn affects your body’s ability to cool down and can make you dehydrated. If you must go outdoors, protect yourself from the sun by wearing a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, and by putting on sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher 30 minutes prior to going out. Continue to reapply it according to the package directions.
- Tip: Look for sunscreens that say “broad spectrum” or “UVA/UVB protection” on their labels- these products work best.
Do Not Leave Children in Cars: Cars can quickly heat up to dangerous temperatures, even with a window cracked open. While anyone left in a parked car is at risk, children are especially at risk of getting a heat stroke or dying. When traveling with children, remember to do the following:
- Never leave infants, children or pets in a parked car, even if the windows are cracked open.
- To remind yourself that a child is in the car, keep a stuffed animal in the car seat. When the child is buckled in, place the stuffed animal in the front with the driver.
- When leaving your car, check to be sure everyone is out of the car. Do not overlook any children who have fallen asleep in the car.
Avoid Hot and Heavy Meals: They add heat to your body!
Stay Hydrated
- Warning: If your doctor limits the amount you drink or has you on water pills, ask how much you should drink while the weather is hot.
- Stay away from very sugary or alcoholic drinks—these actually cause you to lose more body fluid. Also avoid very cold drinks, because they can cause stomach cramps.
Replace Salt and Minerals: Heavy sweating removes salt and minerals from the body that need to be replaced. A sports drink can replace the salt and minerals you lose in sweat.
- If you are on a low-salt diet, have diabetes, high blood pressure, or other chronic conditions, talk with your doctor before drinking a sports beverage or taking salt tablets.
Keep Your Pets Hydrated: Provide plenty of fresh water for your pets, and leave the water in a shady area.
Stay Informed
Know the Signs: Learn the signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses and how to treat them.
Use a Buddy System: When working in the heat, monitor the condition of your co-workers and have someone do the same for you. Heat-induced illness can cause a person to become confused or lose consciousness. If you are 65 years of age or older, have a friend or relative call to check on you twice a day during a heat wave. If you know someone in this age group, check on them at least twice a day.
Monitor Those at High Risk: Although anyone at any time can suffer from heat-related illness, some people are at greater risk than others:
- Infants and young children
- People 65 years of age or older
- People who are overweight
- People who overexert during work or exercise
- People who are physically ill, especially with heart disease or high blood pressure, or who take certain medications, such as for depression, insomnia, or poor circulation
Visit adults at risk at least twice a day and closely watch them for signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Infants and young children, of course, need much more frequent watching
What is loss of use coverage?
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceWhat is Loss of Use insurance coverage?
Loss of use pays to maintain your standard of living while your residence is being repaired or rebuilt in the event of a covered claim. In most cases, loss of use covers the excess of what you normally spend for certain things. For instance, let’s say your home is being repaired for water damage. You’re unable to cook, so you’ve been dining at the hotel restaurant. You normally spend $300 a week in groceries, but your tab at the restaurant was $600. Your loss of use coverage would take care of the difference—$300. Typically, there is no deductible on loss of use coverage.
Examples of loss of use/additional living expenses:
Coverage limits for loss of use:
On a homeowners policy
Loss of use is often restricted to 10%—20% of your dwelling coverage, which is the amount on your policy to repair/rebuild your home. For example, if you have $200,000 for dwelling coverage, then you would be covered up to $20,000—$40,000 on a loss of use claim.
On a condominium policy
Limits for loss of use on condo insurance work similarly to a homeowners policy. Some condo insurers will combine your dwelling coverage and personal property coverages. For example, if you have a $60,000 limit for your dwelling and a $30,000 limit for personal property, then you’ll get 20% ($18,000) of the combined $90,000.
On a renters policy
Depending on your insurance company, it can be a flat amount (between $3,000 and $5,000) or a percentage of your personal property coverage.
Loss of use coverage on a rental property
Landlords are eligible for reimbursement of lost rental income through their loss of use coverage on a rental property. As always, this applies to covered loss only, up to the policy’s limits. A covered loss just means something your insurance company pays for or “covers.”
Lawnmower Safety
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceLawnmower Safety
Tips for Preventing Heat-Related Illness
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceStay Cool
Wear Appropriate Clothing: Choose lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing.
Stay Cool Indoors: Stay in an air-conditioned place as much as possible. If your home does not have air conditioning, go to the shopping mall or public library—even a few hours spent in air conditioning can help your body stay cooler when you go back into the heat. Call your local health department to see if there are any heat-relief shelters in your area.
Schedule Outdoor Activities Carefully: Try to limit your outdoor activity to when it’s coolest, like morning and evening hours. Rest often in shady areas so that your body has a chance to recover.
Pace Yourself: Cut down on exercise during the heat. If you’re not accustomed to working or exercising in a hot environment, start slowly and pick up the pace gradually. If exertion in the heat makes your heart pound and leaves you gasping for breath, STOP all activity. Get into a cool area or into the shade, and rest, especially if you become lightheaded, confused, weak, or faint.
Wear Sunscreen: Sunburn affects your body’s ability to cool down and can make you dehydrated. If you must go outdoors, protect yourself from the sun by wearing a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, and by putting on sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher 30 minutes prior to going out. Continue to reapply it according to the package directions.
Do Not Leave Children in Cars: Cars can quickly heat up to dangerous temperatures, even with a window cracked open. While anyone left in a parked car is at risk, children are especially at risk of getting a heat stroke or dying. When traveling with children, remember to do the following:
Avoid Hot and Heavy Meals: They add heat to your body!
Stay Hydrated
Replace Salt and Minerals: Heavy sweating removes salt and minerals from the body that need to be replaced. A sports drink can replace the salt and minerals you lose in sweat.
Keep Your Pets Hydrated: Provide plenty of fresh water for your pets, and leave the water in a shady area.
Stay Informed
Know the Signs: Learn the signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses and how to treat them.
Use a Buddy System: When working in the heat, monitor the condition of your co-workers and have someone do the same for you. Heat-induced illness can cause a person to become confused or lose consciousness. If you are 65 years of age or older, have a friend or relative call to check on you twice a day during a heat wave. If you know someone in this age group, check on them at least twice a day.
Monitor Those at High Risk: Although anyone at any time can suffer from heat-related illness, some people are at greater risk than others:
Visit adults at risk at least twice a day and closely watch them for signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Infants and young children, of course, need much more frequent watching
Swimming Pool Safety Tips
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceEach town will have its own definition of what constitutes a “pool”, often based on its size and the depth of the water. If the pool you are planning to buy meets the definition, then you must comply with local safety standards and building codes. This may include installing a fence of a certain size, locks, decks and pool safety equipment.
Let your insurance company know that you have a pool, since it will increase your liability risk. Pools are considered an “attractive nuisance” and it may be advisable to purchase additional liability insurance. Pool owners may want to consider increasing their liability limit amount to at least $300,000 or $500,000. You may also want to talk to your agent or company representative about purchasing an umbrella liability policy. For an additional premium of about $200 to $300 a year, you can get $1 million of liability protection over and above what you have on your home. If the pool itself is expensive, you should also have enough insurance protection to replace it in the event it is destroyed by a storm or other disaster. And, don’t forget to include the chairs, tables or other furniture around the pool deck.
Jet Ski Safety
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceKitchen Safety
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceYou already know kitchen safety is important — but you might not know how frequently kitchen mishaps happen. Did you know that cooking fires are the leading cause of home fires in the U.S.?
Prevent kitchen fires.
Beware of burns.
Banish bacteria that can make your family sick.
Store cleaners, soaps and sprays where children and pets can’t get to them.
If you keep them down low, lock them up or use a safety latch. Detergent pods are especially dangerous for kids, who can mistake them for food. If you have kids under age 6, use traditional detergent.
Benefits of Adding an Insurance Rider
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceThere are a number of benefits to adding a rider to your homeowners insurance policy.
Increased coverage: Most home insurance policies contain “sublimits.” A sublimit is essentially a limit within a limit. For example, you may have a $100,000 limit in personal property coverage for your belongings. But your limit on jewelry may be $2,500. That means if your piece is worth $7,000 and you don’t add a rider for it, your insurance company won’t pay out more than $2,500 on a claim involving that item.
Low or no deductibles: Your personal property coverage may have a high deductible. Riders, though, often have low deductibles or none at all. Let’s say you have a musical instrument worth $3,000, and it’s stolen. If your property deductible is $2,000, then you’ll only receive $1,000 on an insurance claim. But, if you added a rider for that instrument and the rider deductible is $50, then your insurance payout would be $2,950.
Accidental loss coverage: Many basic insurance policies won’t protect you against loss by “mysterious disappearance.” That means if you accidentally lost your wedding ring at the gym, you may not be covered. However, had you scheduled the ring, you would be covered even in the “mysterious disappearance” scenario.
What does diminished value mean on my car insurance?
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceDepending on its age and condition, a car that has been in a major accident generally has less resale value than the same vehicle in pre-crash condition. Even if the car repairs meet the highest quality standards, potential buyers are unwilling to pay as much for a car they know has been previously damaged.
This difference between what the pre-accident car was worth and the market value of the post-repair car is known as diminished value.
Note that diminished value doesn’t apply to all cars that have been damaged and repaired. Older model cars may actually be worth more after an accident because new parts have been substituted for many of the old parts.
Will my insurance company pay for diminished value?
A diminished value loss may or may not be covered, depending on a number of factors, including who was to blame for the accident, coverages provides by your policy and state regulations.
If the accident is your fault
Except in a very few states, the language in the collision section of the standard auto insurance policy clearly excludes coverage for diminished value when the policyholder is at fault in a crash.
That means that if your car policy includes optional collision coverage and you ram your car into a lamppost, your insurer will pay for repairs to the car, minus the deductible. However, in most cases, the company would not compensate you for diminished value.
If the accident was clearly caused by another driver
In all states except Michigan, if an accident is the fault of another driver, you would receive compensation for diminished value. This is because legally the third party has an obligation to make the victim of the accident “whole” again; in this case, to restore the victim’s car to its pre-accident fair market value.
In other words, the at-fault driver’s insurer is responsible for repairing your car and for paying you the difference between the car’s resale value before the accident and after the repair. This cost is usually covered by the liability portion of his or her insurance policy.
If the at-fault driver is uninsured and cannot pay for repairs, receipt of payment will depend on whether you have purchased uninsured motorist’s coverage. About half of the states allow recovery for diminished value under this coverage.
Proof of diminished value
In order to recover the amount by which the car’s value has been diminished (whether under the at-fault driver’s liability policy or under the policyholder’s own uninsured motorist or collision coverage), it is the policyholder’s responsibility to prove the repaired vehicle is worth less than before the accident. Payments may be reduced by the degree to which the policyholder was to blame for the accident.
Does auto insurance cover a rental replacement car after an accident?
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceIf you rely on your car, rental reimbursement is an inexpensive and invaluable option that you’ll want to consider adding to your auto insurance policy.
On average, a car is in the repair shop for two weeks after an accident and renting a replacement vehicle for that amount of time can be costly. Many insured drivers are surprised to find out that their auto insurance does not automatically cover the cost of their rental because they’ve overlooked the policy option known as rental reimbursement.
Rental reimbursement coverage is available for a nominal extra amount with almost every auto insurance policy, although the option is often bypassed by those who are shopping for the lowest cost premium.
But there are a number of other ways to save money on auto insurance and, if your car is in the shop for an extended period, rental reimbursement can be a bargain. Even if your accident is another driver’s fault, the details of a claim may take time and you may have to wait get his or her insurance company to agree to pay for your rental car. With your own replacement rental coverage, there’s no waiting.
Comprehensive vs. Collision: What's the difference?
Arvada Insurance, Blog, Denver Metro InsuranceCollision is commonly confused with comprehensive. They’re both optional coverages and pay to repair or replace your car (if it’s totaled). But they cover separate events. In short, collision covers accidents (other than with animals) and comprehensive covers events that are beyond your control such as theft, vandalism, hitting an animal, fire, glass breakage or an act of nature.
Think of it this way: Collision is colliding with another vehicle or object (other than animals). Comprehensive is all other events. Accidents with animals are covered by comprehensive (and not collision) because these accidents are considered out of your control. Also, you can’t add only collision. You have to add comprehensive first and then collision.