Flooding is unfortunately a hazard familiar with St. Augustine, FL residents. After the waters recede, it’s difficult to know how to recover. We at Tim Huber Insurance want to make sure our readers get the best start to their flood recovery efforts with these tips provided by the American Red Cross. 

Stay Informed

If you live in an evacuated area, do not return until you’re told it’s safe. Local news and weather radio stations will often carry updates about when evacuated areas are safe to enter. Take time to let loved ones know you are safe. Inform your insurance company as early as possible to begin the claims process.

Return Safely

Inspect the outside of your home and property for any unsound structures. When in doubt, don’t risk entering. If you notice downed power lines avoid stepping in any water and report them to your power company. Don’t use any electric or gas appliances until they’re inspected.

Clean Up Smartly

Be cautious about where you put your feet and hands; dangerous insects and animals will often hide out inside after a flood. Wearing rubber gloves and boots can help prevent accidental injuries from broken glass and furniture. You should throw away any food that has come in contact with floodwater and don’t drink from the tap. As you clean, take pictures and document any damage for your insurance claim.

Take Care of Yourself

It’s too easy to ignore your emotional well-being when faced with a crisis. Make sure you and your loved ones take breaks to decompress. Reach out to disaster recovery services to assist yourself and others, especially those who have disabilities or lack transportation. 

Floods are always stressful, but flood insurance can provide a little more peace of mind. If you live in the St. Augustine, FL area, let Tim Huber Insurance make sure you’re prepared.

Although a condo isn’t a stand-alone residence, you’re still required to carry condo insurance if you don’t own your condo unit outright. Generally, a mortgage company will require you to carry insurance as a way of protecting their financial investment in your condo in the event that something happens to your unit. However, if you own your condo, you may not be required to carry condo insurance. However, it’s a good idea to know the difference between homeowners’ insurance and condo insurance.

Condo Insurance 

Condo insurance only covers the actual unit and not the exterior halls or structure. Some policies may also cover installed structures like granite countertops and wood floors. You’ll need to purchase insurance on both the contents of your condo and the structure itself. Condo insurance will also cover three main areas: medical payments, loss of use, and personal liability. The exterior areas or common areas of the condo or usually covered by the condo owners association. These areas are usually maintained through monthly fees that owners pay to the Condominium Association. However, each condo association will have different rules and as a result, cover different things. A Tim Huber Insurance representative can answer many questions for St. Augustine, FL residents regarding condo insurance and condo owner’s associations. 

Homeowners Insurance

Homeowners insurance covers the house as well as any other personal property. This includes sheds, garages, and any other property attached to the home. In addition, homeowners’ insurance also covers property that can’t be used or lived in as a result of some circumstance or event as well as medical payments. It also covers personal liability.
 
The Similarities…

Although a condo differs from a conventional residential home, you are still legally required to carry condo insurance if you don’t own it. Condo insurance covers the interior components of your unit only, whereas homeowner’s insurance covers the external areas of a conventional home as well. 
 

Choosing Your Life Insurance Beneficiary

Choosing a life insurance policy can be complicated enough, and choosing a beneficiary can be even harder. At Tim Huber Insurance, serving St. Augustine, FL, we’re here to help you understand your life insurance policy, and how it can help those you care about after you’re gone. Check out these tips for choosing your beneficiary:

– Think about the purpose of your insurance policy. If your goal is to provide for your family, your spouse or an adult child may be the best option. If your goal is to give to charity, a trusted member of the charity’s board of trustees may be a good choice. 

– Update your beneficiary regularly. As your life and circumstances change, you may also change who you’d like your estate to go to in the event of your passing. For example, if you’re married and name your spouse your beneficiary, but they pass away, you need to name a new beneficiary. 

– Understand your options when it comes to choosing a beneficiary. You are able to name more than one person. 

– Name a secondary beneficiary. In the event that your primary beneficiary passes away or refuses to accept the money, it will be up to a court to decide where your money goes. Having a secondary beneficiary takes care of this problem. 

Call Tim Huber Insurance, Serving St. Augustine, FL

If you’re ready to start protecting your assets and your loved ones with a life insurance policy, we’re here to help. Call Tim Huber Insurance, serving St. Augustine, FL, or stop into one of our offices to chat with an agent about how we can help with your life insurance needs. 

If you are reaching retirement age, annuities may be a good tool to guarantee an income for the rest of your life. Annuities are contracts made between you and an insurance company rather than through an investment company. 

Simplified Retirement Income

Annuities can be a simple way to turn over a sum of money to get a steady income every month, depending on your contract, in exchange. They are especially helpful for people who are retired and no longer work. There are different annuities such as variable, fixed and more. It is good to understand the basics of annuities with a financial planner assisting you. Once you have a contract set up it is easy to collect income every month for the rest of your life. Many retirees enjoy the simplicity of it and it can be beneficial well into your retirement years.

Annuities Help Those Who Need Them

If you are wealthy and have a good deal of money saved, you may not need annuities. Also, if your Social Security and other assets are substantial enough, annuities may not be something to look into. If you are in good health however, annuities can be a way to have an income into old age and also to help spouses and heirs. It is advisable to consult with financial advisors. Understanding charges, fees, and conditions can get confusing and it is a best practice to have trained professionals that can guide you through it.

If you are shopping around for a carrier and need help understanding if annuities are right for you, contact Tim Huber Insurance of St. Augustine, FL to speak with one of our representatives. We can help you make the most of your retirement financial planning and help walk you through all the complex details of annuities. Give us a call to set up an appointment today.

Smart leaders are often able to organize a company nicely for profits and excellent customer service. Companies with products or services are pleased to have insurance protection and good staff to contact for commercial insurance needs.  A good relationship with an insurance company goes nicely with successful profits and product sales.  

Good Leadership

The owners of businesses are usually good at organizing for success.  This includes a smart hiring process to get the best talent that works with the planned expense amounts.  Business success is a smart reason to consider insurance options.  There are many other reasons owners should consider the benefits of commercial insurance.  A smart focus on commercial auto and commercial umbrella insurance is easier with experienced staff.  Successfully serving businesses in St. Augustine, FL, Tim Huber Insurance is able to answer all of your questions and make the process simpler. 

Business Success

Planning for success is smart and good leaders often figure out how to build a strong network with a long contact list.  Experienced professionals offering commercial insurance can be nice additions to a contact list. Also, the staff involved with commercial insurance can help you with rental payment insurance or business expansions.  New property acquisitions are possible topics of conversation with any new employee hiring and commercial auto needs.  Successful business growth should be celebrated and the people at Tim Huber Insurance are there to applaud your efforts. 

Serving St. Augustine, FL, the insurance company knows business success and can help simplify everything.  The experienced staff at Tim Huber Insurance is available to discuss the options for commercial insurance.  Contact this insurance agency for more information.  You can visit their website at http://www.timhuberins.com/blog.  Let an experienced company help you build your business and celebrate your success.

At Tim Huber Insurance of St. Augustine, FL, we want you to understand the many ways insurance can benefit you. This blog explains how to use life insurance as an investment tool to save for retirement.

You can use insurance to fulfill the old adage, “Kill two birds with one stone.” That’s because if you buy the right policy, it functions as both insurance and investment tool. By choosing permanent insurance, you cover your impending burial costs, plus provide for your family. It also works to your advantage in four key ways as an investment tool.

• It provides tax-deferred growth. You pay no tax on the interest of the cash value component. You won’t pay taxes on capital gains, dividends or interest related to the life insurance policy until withdrawal.
• You can keep the insurance policy into old age – up to age 120. So long as you pay your premiums, you have coverage. Unlike term, you will still be covered past your 70th year. With improvements in health care, people live longer. This ensures you still have life insurance coverage, so your spouse or adult children do not get stuck with a surprise expense.
• Your insurance policy works a little like a savings account. If you want to take out a loan for a large purchase, you can borrow against the policy’s cash value. It functions as collateral and makes it easier for you to pay for college for your children or buy a house. Another plus is you can do it without paying penalties or taxes.
• You can access accelerated benefits if you fall critically or terminally ill. Depending on the policy, you can receive between 25 and 100 percent of the death benefit if you fall ill with a condition specified in your policy, such as end-stage renal failure, heart attack, invasive cancer or stroke. This lets you pay medical bills and improve your end-stage quality of life. While your beneficiaries won’t get the full death benefit, they also won’t be stuck with your medical bills. Even if you have health insurance, you’ll have to pay the deductibles.

Call or visit Tim Huber Insurance of St. Augustine, FL to learn more about how you can use life insurance as an investment tool. Why not obtain a policy that helps you in multiple ways? We can help. Call us.

An insurance policy for a trailer home and an insurance policy for a stationary home are pretty similar in that they basically cover for damages, theft, and other run-of-the-mill things that can occur to a structure. However, there are some subtle differences with a home insurance policy for a home that has the ability to move and for a home that should never move.

Because a trailer home is usually located with other trailer homes, sometimes there is security provided for that particular community as opposed to a stand-alone home that is stationary. It is like the advantage of living in a gated community. As a result, your agent may specifically discuss the merits of how much theft insurance you should carry on the trailer home. There are also many differences in the foundations of the trailer home as opposed to the stationary home which can affect home insurance guidelines. Trailer homes have different types of foundations some of them are made to be temporarily stationary. Before speaking with your agent have a clear understanding of this aspect.

We are a community of homeowners here in St. Augustine, FL and at Tim Huber Insurance we understand the value of what you are trying to protect with your home insurance policy. Whether you own a trailer home or a stationary home, you want your property which you work very hard to be fully protected. Call us today to discuss how we can help you realize your home insurance goals. Additionally, if you are in the market for auto insurance, home insurance, flood insurance, life insurance, commercial insurance, recreational insurance or classic car insurance please call us at  9048–824-2555. Please stop by our offices today, Tim Huber Insurance is located at 28 Clark St., St. Augustine, FL 32084.

 

Running a restaurant in St. Augustine, FL can be a rewarding experience but can be a challenge if you don’t buy high-quality commercial insurance. The following mistakes are ones we at Tim Huber Insurance have seen far too many unfortunate business owners make.

Weak Liability Coverage

Though general liability coverage is a good choice for restaurants, you’re going to want more than that to protect your business. For example, umbrella insurance policies help protect you from claims such as damage from food poisoning or burns caused by spills. Comprehensive liability also helps to protect you from specialized restaurant claims, such as slipping on a wet floor.

No Loss of Income Coverage

What happens to your business if a fire or a health-related shutdown close your doors for weeks or months at a time? You won’t be getting any money and neither will your employees. If you bought loss of income coverage, this situation wouldn’t be devastating. This coverage will pay for your lost income when your restaurant is closed. It may also help your employees if you set up this type of extra coverage with your insurance company.

Poor Background Checks for Drivers

If your restaurant does deliveries, you need to make sure that you double- and triple-check the records of each employee who drives your company vehicle. Your commercial auto insurance policies will hinge on the abilities of your drivers. So even if you don’t cause an accident but an employee does, you will end up having higher premium rates and struggling to make your payments.

Avoid These Issues With Our Help

So if you run a busy St. Augustine, FL restaurant and want to make sure you don’t fall a victim to these mistakes, please contact us at Tim Huber Insurance right away. Our agents will work with you to identify the best commercial insurance coverage for your restaurant’s needs.