The first question a financial advisor will ask you is what coverage you have in your personal insurance program. Having the right coverage is essential to protect your assets. Insurance contracts vary. Consider these points when determining if you have adequate protection:

– Excess of responsibility in front of umbrellas. Just as “Kleenex” has become the generic label for facial tissue, “Umbrella” has become the generic label used for high limit liability policies. These days, “real” umbrellas are harder to find. Most of these policies are actually “excess liability” policies, which means that you must have a loss covered by the underlying primary policy (such as a car or home policy) for the excess liability policy to provide coverage. . That’s great if your loss is covered by your auto or home policy, but what if you rent a boat or motorhome on your next vacation? “True” umbrellas can cover additional exposures and provide more protection.

– Board of Directors, anyone? Non-profit organizations and associations often have a board of directors. If you gave up a few afternoons a month to serve one, you certainly want to make sure you get “Directors and Officers” insurance, especially if it is a paid position; otherwise, any act of the board that results in bodily injury. Property damage or personal injury to others could hold you personally liable.

– Personal injury coverage: to have or not to have? This was just mentioned in the previous point and it also applies to you personally, especially if you are a rental home owner. Personal Injury covers things like libel, slander, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, invasion of privacy, defamation of character, and wrongful eviction.

– Maintain the limits of liability required by your umbrella. Did you call the “lizard” you saw in a TV commercial to make sure you weren’t paying too much for your car insurance? Do you have a general policy? General policies require that certain underlying liability limits be maintained for the higher limits to respond. If you have limits of $ 15,000 / $ 30,000 on your auto policy and general or excess liability requires you to maintain limits of $ 250,000 / $ 500,000, you have a significant “gap” in coverage. That is an expensive mistake!

– How much coverage do you need? Add up the equity in your home and any other “real” property you own, personal belongings, investments outside of a retirement account (retirement accounts, like 401ks, are often “fail-safe”). Also include savings, checking accounts, and future wages. (Most people forget about future wages.) The total is the amount of total liability coverage you must have.

Contrary to popular belief, you are not paying “extra” to have an independent insurance agent guide you on the coverage you need for your unique situation. Contact your agent today if you have any questions about your personal insurance program to make sure you are receiving the protection you think you have.