Spring Cleaning For Your Insurance Policies by Carl Maxwell
As surely as the frigid blasts of winter give way to the milder breezes of March, thoughts turn to the annual chores of spring cleaning. Organizing, reorganizing, clearing out, remodeling—there’s something about the season that puts many of us in the mood to start fresh.
While you work on sprucing up your living spaces, consider a different spring cleaning project with the potential for helping you better manage some of life’s risks. Spring cleaning for your insurance policies—auto, homeowners, life, health and disability—is worth some of your time and energy and requires just a few tasks.
Read your policies. Your insurance policies may not always be the most exciting reading, but the time spent studying them can benefit you in more ways than one. It will refresh your memory about the protection you have in place and can also help you identify needed updates for recent life events, such as a marriage, divorce, birth of a child, the acquisition of valuable assets and more.
While you’re tackling this task, make sure you’ve updated your home inventory for insurance. Or if you haven’t created one, get started on it. Consider using home inventory software, one of the mobile apps created for the purpose or a paper checklist—whatever works best for you. Keep your inventory in a secure and accessible location, such as a safe deposit box, away from your home. Then, make it a priority to review and update your inventory regularly.
Understand what each policy coverage means. Reading through your policies is a good start, but clearly understanding the coverage they provide is even more critical. A thorough knowledge of what is actually covered by your policy and how it works if you need to use it might reveal some coverage gaps you weren’t aware of. Note any policy terms that you don’t understand or questions you have that aren’t answered in policy documents. You’ll want those for your next visit with your insurance professional.
Visit with your insurance professional to update coverage or make other necessary changes. You’ll want to review existing coverage and discuss any recent life changes to ensure you have adequate and appropriate insurance protection. While you’re discussing coverage updates and changes, ask about the possibility of discounts that you may have overlooked in the past or that you’re now entitled to use because of life changes.
Consider taking advantage of Frost’s complimentary annual insurance review.
If you have questions or want to schedule an insurance review, contact Carl at 713.388.1255 or Carl.Maxwell@frostinsurance.com. Carl offices at Frost’s River Oaks financial center.
Insurance products are offered through Frost Insurance for solicitation in the state of Texas and are not insured by the FDIC or any other Federal Government Agency; are not a deposit, obligation or guaranteed by Frost Bank; and may lose value.