The Insurance Family Blog

Are You Smart with Your Smartphone?

diana@sutherland-scherff.com (Diana Scherff) — Fri, 13 Nov 2015 23:59:01 GMT

A Dallas insurance professional was recently mugged in broad daylight at a Dallas Area Rapid Transit station. As he was checking his iPhone for messages, two teenagers ran up to him, grabbed his brand-new phone, knocked him over, and sprinted away. He had 12 stitches on his face and 7 on his arm. His knee was also severely bruised. A Dallas police officer told him that they field 2-3 incidents like this per day.

A 48-year-old Dallas woman was looking at her cell phone as she began to cross the street a couple of

Does Your Hobby or Home Business Require Extra Insurance? – Part Two

Susie Scherff — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:37:00 GMT

(Please also see Hobby or Business – Part One.)

Most individuals use their homeowner or residential insurance policy to handle their hobby activities as a collector or enthusiast. A homeowner (HO) policy usually includes a definition of “business” and some are so broad that nearly any activity qualifies as a business. In such instances, a hobbyist or enthusiast should consider whether separate business insurance is necessary.

Does Your Hobby or Home Business Require Extra Insurance?– Part One

Susie Scherff — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:01:00 GMT

(Please also see our blog post Part 2 for this same topic.)

Did you know that your hobby may significantly affect your personal insurance needs? Hobbies often require a large investment in tangible property and may even create some legal responsibility to other persons or their property.

Do You Have the Right Insurance for Your Auto Repair Business?

Susie Scherff — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:00:00 GMT

Garage operations have hybrid coverage needs: there’s a blur and overlap between the general liability for the operations and the automobile liability exposures. A general liability policy does not provide enough coverage and a commercial auto policy provides too much. Fortunately there is a way to properly handle this need.

Business Insurance - Covering Your Signs

Susie Scherff — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:00:00 GMT

Restaurants, auto repair shops, real estate offices and nearly all other businesses have signs that tell their customers their name, address, hours of operation and so on. Signs may be simple or complex and many businesses typically use lighted signs. The Sign policy created by Insurance Services Office is available to insure against the loss or destruction of signs, including fluorescent, neon, automatic or mechanical sign. Coverage also extends to lamps. However, fixed, non-lighted signs (such as billboards) are not eligible under a sign policy, even if they are illuminated by separate electric lights.

Which Homeowners Policy is Right for Me?

Susie Scherff — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 18:05:00 GMT

If you own a home, you’ll want to think about the best way to insure it. One goal is to match your needs to the right company. Some companies like new, high-valued homes while some companies do well with older or historic preservation homes. Others are comfortable with country homes or old farm homes. It pays to shop around, both for the best coverage and for a company that likes your type of home.

Restaurant Insurance: Food Service Delivery Risk Management

Susie Scherff — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 15:50:00 GMT

Does your restaurant or food services business use independent contractors for delivery services to customers? It’s a wonderful way to serve customers and grow your sales – but its also a risky operational exposure and needs to be managed properly. At Sutherland-Scherff we specialize in restaurants and have the experience to help you build a solid risk management program for delivery services.

Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Susie Scherff — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:00:00 GMT

Hiring and firing decisions are legal minefields that are best navigated by the use of Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI). It is important that your business (restaurant owners, auto services and garages, property management firms are some of the specializations at Sutherland-Scherff) have clear policies that are applied consistently to each employee. Such policies must directly relate to the duties of their job. Do you know what type of decisions could trigger a claim? For example, is it legal to terminate:

Food Service Delivery Risk Management

Susie Scherff — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 06:24:00 GMT

Protecting your restaurant from loss of utility services

Susie Scherff — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:46:00 GMT

A commercial property insurance policy can usually be depended upon to handle direct loss to structures, equipment and related property that are owned by a restaurant or other food service business. However, what happens when weather conditions take a turn for the worse and cause indirect damage by knocking out utility services to your establishment? Examples of losses include damage by heat-induced transformer breakdowns; or broken power lines, including compressors, motors and switches, which could result in food spoilage.