The Hidden Dangers of Not Having Home Insurance

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Home insurance is one of those things that many people think they don’t need until it’s too late. While it may seem like an added expense, home insurance can save you a lot of money in the long run. So, before you decide to forego coverage, take a moment to consider the hidden dangers of being uninsured. They include:

1. You Could Lose Everything

The most obvious danger of not having home insurance is that you could lose everything in the event of a fire, theft, or another disaster. While your home may be your most valuable asset, it’s also one of the most vulnerable. Without insurance, you would have to bear the entire cost of rebuilding or replacing your home and possessions. This could easily bankrupt you, especially if you have a mortgage.

2. You Could Be Sued

Another hidden danger of not having home insurance is that you could be sued if someone is injured on your property. If you’re found to be at fault, you could be responsible for paying the victim’s medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. This could easily cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars or even more. Home insurance would cover these costs up to your policy limit.

3. You Risk Huge Repair Bills

One of the most common reasons people file insurance claims is to pay for major repairs, such as a new roof. These repairs can be costly, and if you’re not insured, you’ll have to pay for them out of your pocket. This could leave you in a serious financial bind.

4. It Leaves Your Home Vulnerable

Another hidden danger of not having home insurance is that it leaves your home vulnerable to vandals and criminals. If your home is broken into or vandalized, you’ll have to pay to repair the damage yourself. This can be costly, and it could easily be avoided by having insurance.

Don’t let the hidden dangers of not having home insurance surprise you. Taake Insurance Agency in Columbia, IL can help you find the right coverage for your needs and budget. Give us a call today to get started.

 

How do you purchase supplemental health insurance?

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Your employer now must legally provide health insurance, and the government sets minimum standards as to what the coverage includes.

You still might not have the coverage you want, but you can add a supplemental or secondary policy to your medical coverage. Most people think of supplemental medical as related to Medigap insurance. You don’t have to be on Medicare or Medicaid to purchase a supplemental medical policy.

You can purchase your own policy and the one your employer provides. At Taake Insurance Agency, serving Columbia, IL, we can help you find the secondary medical coverage that rounds out your employer-provided one.

What might a secondary policy offer? You can obtain a policy that provides drug coverage, preventative care, or hospital coverage. Some supplemental policies cover a pre-existing condition that the employer’s group plan exempts.

You can have complete medical coverage by purchasing one of these policies. With medical insurance, no such thing as a one-size-fits-all policy exists. You build your own coverage based on your own medical needs. We can help you find medical coverage for your family, too. Your employer may offer family plans. You can purchase a plan that covers your entire immediate family, too.
Taake Insurance Agency doesn’t list every option on our website. Instead, please email or phone us for a consultation. We will meet with you online or in person to explore the range of suitable possibilities to address your medical coverage needs.

An option exists for nearly everyone. Call or email Taake Insurance Agency today. We serve the residents of Columbia, IL with the medical insurance they need. Let us help you find the right supplemental medical policy.

Benefits of life insurance for a bereaved family

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Taake Insurance Agency wants to help you protect your family. If you are a resident in the greater Columbia, IL area, you can count on us. Having the right life insurance policy in place can help your family cope with the stress of an unexpected death. Give us a call today and find out more about the options available in our area.

Benefits of life insurance for a bereaved family

Losing a spouse is always a traumatic event, even if you are lucky enough to enjoy a long life together. It can be even more complicated if the death is unexpected and you have young children.

In any situation, having an appropriate level of life insurance in place can make coping with the situation a bit less stressful. Of course, money cannot ease emotional pain, but grieving can be more manageable when there aren’t any financial concerns.

With a robust policy in place, surviving family members can take care of burial costs and other end-of-life expenses without worrying about filing a claim. Having financial stability can also help maintain some sense of normalcy for small children. 

Knowing that you and your family can remain in your home, even after the death of a spouse, can help the transition period for all family members, not just children.

Now is the perfect time to find out how a life insurance death benefit can help secure your family’s future, no matter what may happen. 

Call today and set up an appointment.

Taake Insurance Agency is here to help with all of your insurance needs. If it’s time for you to start thinking seriously about life insurance, give us a call today. We are proud to serve the Columbia, IL community!

Does My Business Need Cyber Liability Insurance?

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With the recent increase in cyber attacks, no business is safe from threats. Contrary to popular opinion, small businesses present an easier target for cybercriminals than large multinational companies because their cyber defenses are often far less robust. Consequently, whether you own a business in Illinois with ten employees or a hundred, you need to protect yourself from the rise in data breaches, phishing attempts, and other cyber incidents with the appropriate insurance. 

There are two main types of cyber liability insurance: first-party coverage and third-party coverage. First-party coverage is for paying costs that directly impact your business. For example, if your network is hacked and sensitive customer information is stolen, first-party cyber liability insurance can be used to cover any of the following:

  • Extortion payments
  • Hiring an outside firm to investigate the data breach
  • Regulatory fines
  • Notification to impacted customers
  • Crisis management and public relations
  • Customer credit and fraud monitoring services

The second type of coverage, third-party cyber insurance, protects you if a client blames you for failing to prevent a data breach or cyberattack at their company. Third-party cyber insurance is predominantly used by IT consultants that may be hired to provide specific technological services to a company. This type of coverage can pay for legal defense costs, settlements with the third party if settled out of court, and judgments that you may be required to pay after a breach. 

At Taake Insurance Agency in Columbia, IL, our professional team of insurance masterminds will help determine if cyber liability insurance is needed for your business. Call us today to schedule a no-obligation consultation to learn more about our insurance offerings.

Adding Your Teen to Your Auto Insurance

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Adding Your Teen to Your Auto Insurance

Taake Insurance Agency serving Columbia, IL understands that harrowing moment in every parent’s life when your teenager obtains their driver’s license. Your little kid makes their first foray into adulthood, and it is likely that you foot part of the bill.

You might help them buy their first car or help them pay for their auto insurance. You have two options when it comes to their auto insurance:

  • add them to your own policy,
  • purchase a separate auto insurance policy for them.

Which is better?

It depends on your policy, your driving record, and where you live. You should contact Taake Insurance Agency to discuss which would provide a better premium cost for you. Many factors influence how much your auto insurance costs, including your credit score. Since your child doesn’t yet have a credit score, the insurance company relies on yours.

Your costs to add them or obtain their own policy will differ. Although we are the insurance firm, we’ll counsel you to choose the option of the two that costs you less money since you will obtain the exact same coverage from either.

The vehicle they purchase will also influence the cost. Insuring them to drive the family station wagon or a good used car will cost less than if they purchase a sports car with the money from their part-time job. The vehicle you let them drive plays a large part in the cost of the insurance policy.

Contact Taake Insurance Agency today to explore insuring the new driver in your family today. We can help you find the most cost-conscious solution for your Columbia, IL insurance solution.

Why do you need home insurance in Illinois?

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When you are in the Columbia, IL area, you could find that owning a home is a great option for housing. While there are a lot of benefits that will come with property ownership here, there are risks as well. It is important that you mitigate some of these risks by getting home insurance. There are various reasons why the typical person here will need to get a home insurance plan. 

Coverage Needed to Protect Home

A primary reason to get home coverage in this state is that it is required to protect your home. When you are a property owner, you will want to know that you have support if your property is damaged due to a fire, vandalism, or other accident. With a home insurance plan, you will get the support that you need in these challenging situations. 

Stay in Compliance

You will also have to get a home insurance plan so you can stay in compliance with various requirements. If you are going to buy a home, your mortgage lender will require that you have insurance in place. Also, if you live in a home association, there will be community rules and guidelines set up around your insurance needs. Maintaining a proper plan will help you remain in compliance with all of these requirements. 

As you are evaluating your options for insurance when you are in the Columbia, IL area, you can find that there are complexities that come with picking a plan. Fortunately, the professionals with Taake Insurance Agency understand this type of coverage. As you discuss your options with Taake Insurance Agency, you will get to build your own plan that will properly meet your needs. This will help ensure that you remain fully protected in the future. 

Does Auto Insurance Protect My Passengers?

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If you are about to invest in a car insurance policy from Taake Insurance Agency in Columbia, IL, top in your mind is the safety of you and your car. But have you ever wondered if your auto insurance covers passengers? Because at times we carry people in our cars, it’s important to know what happens in the event they are injured following an accident.

Are passengers covered in an auto accident?

There are two ways we can answer this question. First, if you have invited in personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, this insurance plan can cover a certain percentage of injuries sustained by passengers. However, for the passenger to enjoy this benefit, they must show proof of not having PIP coverage on their own. Unfortunately, PIP coverage isn’t mandatory in Illinois, but it is a necessary investment to have.

The second way a passenger in your vehicle can be compensated is by claiming injuries from the other driver responsible for the accident. Since Illinois is an at-fault state, it means the person who caused the accident is responsible for the injuries of you and your passengers.

But what if you both share some fault of the accident? If this happens, you revert to the Illinois “tort” system of comparative fault. To understand this principle, let’s look at the example below.

Suppose you are at fault for 30% of the accident and the other driver the remaining 70%. If the medical bills are $10,000, you will claim 70% ($7,000) of the medical claims from the other driver.

Get more information about car insurance

Sometimes, car insurance isn’t as simple as it looks. You need an experienced insurance agent to teach you the ropes of auto insurance. If you are in Columbia, IL and its environs, please book an appointment with Taake Insurance Agency to learn more about auto insurance.

Top 5 Mistakes Homeowners Make When Buying Home Insurance

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Buying home insurance is a big decision, so you need to be careful to ensure you buy the best policy to protect your investment. For residents of Columbia, IL, Taake Insurance Agency has agents who can help you with this decision.

Top Mistakes Homeowners Make When Buying Home Insurance

Choosing the wrong insurer

Make sure that the company you choose is solid financially and don’t just go for the cheapest policies. Depending on how stable the company is, after thorough research, you can tell how long the company has been in business and if they are the best to handle your claims.

Purchasing less coverage to save on costs

Most homeowners might opt for cheaper coverage, but it isn’t a smart financial or investment decision in the long run. It will affect your compensation when it comes to making a claim, and you might have to pay out of your pocket. You can opt to increase your deductibility instead of getting less coverage.

Failure to ask the right questions

Buying home insurance is confusing, especially when you don’t know about the coverages. As such, don’t make the mistake of rushing to buy an insurance policy blindly without consulting with insurance agents. Ask about the coverage exclusions, the deductibles, and any discounts available, and find out how claims are handled.

Thinking flood insurance is included.

Most homeowners make the mistake of thinking that their standard home insurance policy covers floods as well. You will need to buy flood insurance in addition to your home insurance for protection against floods, hurricanes, storms, and torrential rains.

Not reviewing all coverages included in the policy

Reading through everything that has been covered can be very tedious at times; unless of course, you understand every single word on the page. Many people just sign up for whatever their current policy says, but this can leave out some necessary coverage – especially if something changes. In order to prevent this from happening, you should really just go through every single detail of the policy and make sure that is accurate.

With the right insurer and necessary insight, you are guaranteed to buy a policy that fits your needs and avoid the common mistakes people make when buying home insurance. Consult with Taake Insurance Agency serving Columbia, IL when buying a home insurance policy to get the advice you need.

How do you buy health insurance outside of open enrollment?

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You probably know that the US health insurance marketplace holds open enrollment annually. What happens if you miss it though? Perhaps your situation changed and now you need insurance, but your employer-provided it before. Taake Insurance Agency serving Columbia, IL can help you obtain the health insurance policy you need.

You do not need to wait for open enrollment if you qualify for an exception. If your employer fired you or closed their business, that’s an exception. Other exceptions include your spouse’s death or another life-changing occurrence that was out of your control, like a transfer that moves you across the country.

You fill out the form at the marketplace and document your exception. This lets you purchase insurance through the marketplace purchase from Taake Insurance Agency. You will need to provide proof of the exception, such as separation paperwork, documentation of your move to Illinois or Columbia specifically, and show that this negates your use of your current health insurance. Your new employer must provide insurance, but if you have to re-locate without having a job, you can obtain it through us.

You can also purchase a temporary policy if you do not qualify for an exception. To do this, you also visit the marketplace and choose Taake Insurance Agency. This displays the temporary plans we have to offer. You choose one and purchase it. These policies provide coverage while you wait for open enrollment. You must purchase full health insurance once open enrollment occurs.

You can avoid going through the marketplace by contacting Taake Insurance Agency serving Columbia, IL. We can help you obtain the health insurance you need directly.

How much life insurance do I need to have?

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When it comes to protecting your family, one of the most important things you can do is to make sure that they will be provided for if you are no longer there to take care of them. Trying to get that right is what it is all about. An independent agent who knows you, your family, and your needs certainly can help. At Taake Insurance Agency in Columbia, IL, we have more than 40 years of experience providing our customers with the highest quality products and services.

How much life insurance you need is something that only you can determine. Not your employer, and not your insurance agent. Only you know the amount of insurance that will allow you to sleep at night knowing that your family and loved ones will be taken care of if something happens to you. 

Determining that amount requires careful consideration and answering some questions honestly. Who depends on your income? Elderly parents, spouse or partner, children or dependents? All of these are potential people who count on you for financial support. 

How long will you need to support this or these dependents? This is an important figure. Think about it in terms of years. How many years of your income will you need to provide? Does it need to be equal to your entire income or is it just supplemental support? Once you have these figures you need to do some math. How many years times how much money. Now you have a figure to consider for the amount of life insurance you need. 

You need to be able to afford life insurance for tomorrow while living today. It can be a fine balance that you must maintain.  

Contact Taake Insurance Agency in Columbia, IL with all your life insurance needs and questions.