During a typical day, how many separate websites do you have to log into? Taking the time to enter complex passwords over and over again can be quite tedious. You need passwords for your email, your social media accounts, your online banking and probably other important tools and services. Each website you visit has its own unique requirements for how long or how complicated your password must be and how often you must change it. With a password manager you can log in once at the beginning of your day or your browsing session and instantly have access to all of your online accounts…no extra typing required!

How many online accounts do you currently have? When was the last time you updated your important online passwords? You probably can’t recall. If you are required to change passwords for an account frequently it can be easy to mess up and type in an old password. Websites don’t like frequent log-in attempts and may choose to lock you out if you try too many combinations! All of this can create a huge headache when you are just trying to get through your day and accomplish simple tasks. Having a good password manager puts you back in control and provides one central place to verify and keep track of your online accounts. The number of passwords and usernames you can memorize has a limit, but a password manager can keep track of a huge number with no problem. Why not make your life easier?

Many people try to solve their password problems by using the same password on every website. This creates a huge (and unnecessary) security risk. If a hacker can uncover your username and your password on one site, what’s to stop them from trying that same password on another website you use? Think of how many websites you already have the same username for. This is why having diversity among your passwords is important. The more that you re-use the same password, the more likely it is that a hacker can “crack” that password on one small, poorly secured site and from there obtain access to all of your important online accounts.

Find a password manager that is recommended and reviewed by trustworthy sources. There are many to choose from. Make sure that you understand how the program works (is it online only? does it have an app for your phone?) and the specific benefits it provides. Check out these top password managers and start protecting yourself today: LastPass  Dashlane  1Password  RoboForm.

We care about your safety both online and offline. Call Sackrison Insurance today for a free review of your insurance. Call us at (888) 332-6609.

​Statistics say that as many as 45% of Americans make a New Year’s Resolution. But only 8% of us keep them.

What’s the number 1 New Year’s Resolution? You guessed it- to lose weight.

Well that’s cheery news.

But wait.

Even if we can’t resist that chocolate bar, we can do something that will make us feel better than a candy bar. We can call our insurance agent and schedule a review of all of our insurance policies.

We can hear you thinking- “uhm, that is not better than a candy bar.”

OK, maybe it won’t be better than a candy bar. But we can catch up on what happened last year in your life, laugh about funny things that happened and talk seriously about the sad things of life that happen to all of us. We can also make sure that you are covered properly and also not paying more than you need to be paying.

Reason #1

• New discounts, new rules and new laws can change the insurance landscape- and that can affect you for better or worse. It’s our job to know things you don’t know. Stuff changes out there in “insurance-land.” Call us and ask us if any of it affects your coverage or rates.

Reason #2

• Life changes mean that insurance needs can change. If you had someone move out of the house or into the house last year (like a new birth!), you need to make sure that your insurance coverage still meets your needs. Did anyone get married or divorced? Did you add an addition to your house last year? How about a pool or a deck? What about the new dog you adopted? Did you get anything valuable for Christmas- and is it properly covered? Call us to ask. We want to hear what’s changed in your life.

We wish you a Happy New Year, and we want you to know how much we appreciate your business.

We will make it easy to review your coverage. It only takes a few minutes. Call us at (888) 332-6609.

If you are like most American’s you’re not sure whether of not you are covered in the following situations:

1. Your pipes burst, flooding and ruining things everywhere.
2. Your washing machine floods, ruining all the carpeting and woodwork.
3. Your sewer backs up, flooding the basement.
4. Your roof leaks in a heavy rainstorm and destroys furniture in your living room.

The repair to the pipes is seldom covered, but the damage caused by the burst pipes is… usually. Keep reading to see where it might not be covered.

Burst pipes is one of the most common homeowners claims made. The good news is that this is usually covered. But it’s not always covered. For instance, if you knew that you had a slow and steady leak, but failed to repair it, some insurance companies can fight the claim and say that you had a duty to repair the leak before it burst.

Another duty that you have as a homeowner is to keep heat on in your house, even when you are gone on vacation. Normally, the damage caused by a pipe that bursts due to freezing is covered. But if you neglected to heat your home while away, the insurance carrier can deny a claim due to negligence.

Another (and common) burst pipe scenario is when a washing machine hose bursts, and gushes hundreds of gallons of water all over your home. (Of course, understanding Murphy’s Law, this will happen while you are gone all day visiting your grandkids.) Is this covered? Again, the answer is “usually” but not always. The insurance company has a right to question whether or not it was a pre-existing slow leak that should have been handled.

Here’s an easy one. The answer is almost always: NO. But here’s the good news: you can often minimize this risk by asking your insurance agent if there is supplemental coverage for sewer backup. Also, if you live in a designated flood plain, and may be eligible for flood insurance. Of course, both of these types of insurance coverage for flooding and sewer backup will cost an additional premium. But flooding causes billions of dollars in damage in America each year. Check with your agent to see if this type of coverage is available.

Here we enter the area of – you’d better check with your agent ahead of time!

Depending upon the type of policy you have, the cause of the leak, and the special deductibles you may have related to wind and hail damage, you could be unpleasantly surprised at claim time.

If you have a standard HO3 policy (or its equivalent) and your neighbor’s tree falls on your roof during a storm, and rain pours into your home… you are probably fine. (OK, we know you aren’t really “fine” and it would be an awful thing to happen!)

But if you have had an aging roof, and shingles are loosened in a storm, and a slow leak develops that you don’t notice for weeks, ruining drywall inside closets… it may not be so simple. As a homeowner, you have an obligation to repair your aging roof. And a claim needs to be related to a covered event.​

​Do the following:

1. Find your homeowners policy and turn to the exclusions page. Read what’s not covered. This is not fun, but it will often tell you more than reading the “what’s covered” part. (Here’s an example.)
2. Don’t be “penny-wise and pound-foolish.” Saving money on premiums now can often result in losing thousands of dollars later. You have a 1 in 15 chance of making a homeowners insurance claim this year. Don’t cut corners on your coverage.
3. Check on potential water damage hazards. Then fix them. How long has it been since you replaced your washing machine hoses? Have you checked all the pipes under the sinks in your house? How old is your roof- do you really want to put off replacing it one more year?
4. Call Your Agent. Today. Call them before that washing machine hose bursts, or before your neighbor’s tree falls on your home. Ask them, “Hey Insurance-Person, how can I make my homeowners coverage better?”

You have a “person” for just about everything nowadays. Let us be your “Insurance-Person.”
 
Call Sackrison Insurance at (888) 332-6609.
 
We are experienced in handling flood insurance and sewer backup questions in Napa, CA, as well as in Sonoma, Calistoga, Vacaville and Fairfield California. We represent multiple companies, and we can offer you the best insurance quotes that fit your budget and meet your unique needs. We are your neighbors. We’ll treat you that way.

The holidays are upon us, and that means many of us are looking for the perfect gadget for the family member who has every gadget.

Ipad, iPhone 6, the newest Android Phone… what’s the next best gadget to get that someone special in your life? You need to find the PERFECT GIFT- great! Get your loved one a carbon monoxide detector.

Every year, accidental carbon monoxide poisoning sickens over 20,000 people, and kills over 400 people. It is cruel, silent, odorless and deadly. It shows no favorites- rich and poor alike become its victims.

Warning: Sciency-geek stuff ahead: Carbon Monoxide (CO) is just about as small as a molecule can get- just 1 carbon atom and 1 oxygen atom. It is created by the incomplete burning of a fossil fuel (like wood, natural gas or propane). That incomplete burning is caused by a lack of oxygen. So an oxygen-deprived fire produces a byproduct, carbon monoxide, that ironically deprives the human body of oxygen. The body keeps breathing, but it is slowly deprived of oxygen.

Carbon monoxide can be a byproduct of your natural gas or propane heater, water heater, stove or portable space heater. It can also be produced by your portable generator (a major cause of CO poisonings every year in power outages). Even if you have no fossil fuel burning appliances in your home- your neighbor might. Carbon monoxide can enter your home by a neighbor’s nearby faulty appliance, or a friend parking in your driveway or garage and leaving their car running. No one is safe from the invisible reach of this deadly molecule. And don’t forget lawn mowers, chain saws and gas powered leaf blowers. All of these can be sources for carbon monoxide.

You can tell if someone is suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning by watching for these symptoms: shortness of breath, nausea, dizziness, and a sense of sluggishness. If any of these symptoms are present, especially if combined with a headache- exit the home immediately and get the victim fresh air. If symptoms progress to vomiting, severe confusion or loss of consciousness, the victim is in serious danger. Call 911 immediately.

A carbon monoxide detector works by detecting CO as measured in Parts Per Million (PPM). Usually, even a low amount of carbon monoxide, such as 70 ppm, will trigger an alarm. The way it often works is that a small biomimetic gel sensor inside the CO detector will mimic your blood’s hemoglobin, and turn color just like your own blood would. A separate sensor can tell the color change, and triggers the alarm.

Yes, and maybe several. Ideally, you should have a CO detector within 15 feet of every entrance to a bedroom in your home. In addition, you should have one on every level of your home. Carbon monoxide detectors are inexpensive, and they are now required by law in many homes in many states.

So get those stocking stuffers ready, and get a few for you too. Set the example. You may save a life.

Call Sackrison Insurance today at (707) 931-0186 and we will be happy to talk to you about homeowners insurance discounts that you may be eligible for and might not be getting. Located in Napa, CA, we also serve Sonoma, Calistoga, Vacaville and Fairfield.

Welcome to our new insurance agency blog!
 
This is our very first post. We're not quite sure what we're going to write about here, but the plan is to create helpful content for customers and prospective clients about information that is relevant to you.
 
We hope you'll come to view this as a top resource for keeping your family and your finances safe.
 
Here are a few of the topics we may be writing about:

• Answers to clients' frequently asked questions.
• Helpful information about insurance shopping.
• Safety and Health Tips and Ideas.
• Local Community Information.

 
Stay Tuned!