Keeping Your Home and Family Safe This Summer

Wyatt Dowling, your Red River Mutual brokerage, wants to ensure that your home and family are kept safe this summer.

Spending time outdoors is one of the highlights of summer. However, there may be several dangers in your back yard that you are unaware of.

• Check your deck for rotten boards, popped out nails, and wobbly steps. Railings should be secure and at least 3 feet tall, with no more than 4 inches between them.
• Prevent trips and falls by installing adequate lighting along pathways and stairs. Outdoor lights are also a deterrent to burglars, especially if they are equipped with motion sensors.
• If you have a fire pit in your back yard, keep a fire extinguisher or hose nearby and establish a 3-foot safety zone around the pit. It is also important to make sure the embers are fully extinguished after a fire so they do not reignite.
• Place your BBQ at least 10 feet from your house or other flammable objects. Regularly check the gas valves, hoses, and connections for leaks.
• Create shaded areas in your back yard and always have sunscreen available so you are protected from harmful UV rays.
• If you have a pool, provide constant supervision for young children, flotation devices, and install a fence that is 4 to 5 feet high.

For more safety tips visit preventingloss.com or speak to your Wyatt Dowling Insurance Broker.

Loss Of Use Coverage

Having a car is a substantial convenience. Just ask anyone who doesn’t own one. For some people, owning a car is even a necessity.

But what would you do if you were without your car for a day, a week, or even a month?

If you get in an accident, you never know how long post-accident repairs will take. Predicting the future availability of your car is tricky – and you can’t afford to leave that prediction to a crystal ball. Loss of use coverage with Autopac takes away the guesswork.

Loss of use coverage provides you with a vehicle when yours is in for post-accident repairs. Doesn’t that sound better than rolling the dice on your auto insurance?

Take a look at loss of use insurance options on the MPI website and leave your worries at our door.

Mortgage Insurance From Your Bank Could End Up Costing You More

When you buy mortgage insurance, you do so to protect yourself, your family, your home and your future.

But what if the protection you thought you were providing to your family in the event of sudden illness or death wasn’t what it seemed?

On the surface, mortgage insurance seems like a great idea – in the event of illness or death, your spouse would have the additional support of an insurance payout to make the mortgage payments and keep a roof over your family’s heads. Plus, filling out the form at your bank at the time of the mortgage signing is affordable and easy! But is it worth it?

The truth is, insurance companies notify many people that they don’t qualify to receive their insurance payouts – even if they’ve been paying premiums.

“How is that even possible?” you might ask.

Basically, the ‘simple’ forms you fill out and sign at the bank are designed to be completed with the help of an insurance agent – but agents aren’t always available for consultation when you buy mortgage insurance from the bank.

Mortgage brokers and mortgage professionals aren’t trained to know about the insurance they sell.

Decreasing coverage/increasing cost is another thing to watch out for when purchasing mortgage insurance from a bank.

When you think about it, you’re paying the same amount every year for insurance – but your mortgage amount keeps decreasing. That might not be a big deal, until you find out that your payout – if you even qualify for it – is based on the most recent, and lowest, value.

In the end, the apparent ease and affordability of getting mortgage insurance from your bank could end up costing you a lot more in the long run, and not just financially.

That’s why we’re here – to help you get the protection you want and deserve.

Come on in and leave your worries at our door.