Although you’ll only need renters insurance if your landlord mandates it, you should strongly consider having coverage regardless of your landlord’s decision. More and more landlords require tenants to show proof of a renters insurance policy before renting the house or apartment because it limits their liability exposure. 

Renters’ insurance policies typically cover several areas, including:

• Personal Property Damage: If your belongings, including electronics, furniture, and clothes, are damaged in a covered incident, your insurance company will cover the cost of repairs or replacement up to your policy’s limits.
• Personal Liability: Similar to your auto insurance policy, the liability component of your renter’s insurance reduces your exposure if there is an accident involving a third party at your residence.
• Loss of Use: If you can no longer live in your rental because of a covered incident, your renter’s insurance will include assistance to pay for another place.

One often overlooked benefit of renters insurance is that the coverage continues even if you are on vacation or out of town when a covered incident occurs, providing needed peace of mind. For more information or to customize a renters insurance policy to your exact needs, give the team at Thompson Insurance Services a call. Our conveniently located office in Highland Village, TX offers a welcoming environment to meet with one of our knowledgeable insurance professionals. We’ll help answer any questions about renters insurance and ensure that any policy you purchase will provide you with the coverage you need. Give us a call today to schedule a no-obligation consultation. 

 

Umbrella insurance is a secondary type of insurance that kicks in when primary policies reach their limits. Umbrella insurance also covers unusual cases and expenses that are covered by primary insurance. This type of insurance is like additional protection that has many benefits. However, there are also certain limits that need to be taken into consideration. Thompson Insurance Services, an insurance serving clients in Highland Village, TX, prepared a list of pros and cons of umbrella  insurance:

Pros and Cons of Umbrella Insurance

Here is a list of advantages and disadvantages of umbrella insurance. 

Pros:

• It protects your assets. If your auto or home insurance gets exhausted, you can be left with a huge amount of expenses to take care of. However, if you have umbrella insurance, these expenses will be covered.
• There are flexible coverage options. With umbrella insurance, you can scale up or down your insurance needs depending on the primary insurance options. For example, if your primary insurance policy does not cover false arrest or libel, umbrella insurance will cover them. 
• It protects you from expensive lawsuits. Today, getting a lawsuit is quite common, especially if you are a public figure or own a business. Umbrella insurance helps you protect yourself from liability claims.

Cons: 

• It is not available without primary insurance. In order to purchase umbrella insurance, you have to buy a home or auto liability first. 
• It is an additional expense. Umbrella insurance costs money, and it can be expensive. 

Thompson Insurance Services in Highland Village, TX – We Help You Get Insurance You Really Need 

Umbrella insurance is not a mandatory type of insurance, meaning that you do not have to purchase it. However, it is still good to have it in order to be fully protected against unexpected circumstances. If you are thinking of getting this type of insurance, and you are looking for a trustworthy insurance agency, Thompson Insurance Services is ready to assist you. Do not hesitate to call us – we are always here for you. 

The list of entrepreneurs keeps growing as more and more are starting home-based businesses in Highland Village, TX. As a home-based business owner, you may be pondering over whether to get business insurance. Additionally, if you have renters insurance, you may wonder if your business has any form of coverage. 

Continue reading to learn more about if your renters insurance policy covers your work-at-home business, and then give us a call at Thompson Insurance Services for additional information and available coverage. 

Does My Renters Insurance Cover My Work-at-Home Business? 

As a business owner, it is essential to understand that your renters insurance policy does not cover home-based businesses. Therefore, those who have a home-based business need to work with an insurance professional to learn more about the different types of insurance available to protect their business. Without proper coverage, you may find yourself in a situation having to pay for medical costs due to an injury, or you could find yourself battling a lawsuit. 

What Coverage Is Available for My Home-Based Business? 

The type of insurance coverage needed depends on the business, what inventory you carry, and any equipment inside your residence. Available insurance for home-based businesses includes business property insurance, liability insurance, professional liability insurance, product liability coverage, and business automobile insurance. To determine which coverage is needed, speak with an insurance agent today to learn more about the different options.

Working from home in Highland Village, TX offers you plenty of flexibility and opportunity to be your own boss. Call the experts at Thompson Insurance Services for additional information about your renter’s insurance coverage and how to protect your work-at-home business. 

Sometimes, you just need to cover all your bases or add some extra coverage above and beyond standard policies. Thankfully, there is umbrella insurance. Umbrella insurance is exactly what you expect it to be—a little coverage over your head in the event of a storm (which often happens in life). And because life can be unpredictable at times, you want to make sure that everything is covered to the fullest that is appropriate for you and your needs.

At Thompson Insurance Services in Highland Village, TX, servicing Texas, Arizona, and Nevada, we understand the need for something dependable that goes more than just standard coverage, and we can help you explore your coverage options. Just because the likelihood that you find yourself in a drastic scenario, it is never impossible. And with the ever-changing world we live in, it can be comforting to know that you are protected when life throws a wrench in the mix.

Umbrella insurance policies can be greatly beneficial. Speaking with a Thompson Insurance Services agent can help you find out if you would be best served by getting an umbrella insurance policy. Here are some of the benefits of umbrella policies:

Extending Coverage:

• Property damage: in the event of extensive damage to your car or home in an accident or disaster, your standard insurance policy may not cover the liability or the cost of repairs
• Bodily injury: homeowner’s insurance can be exhausted quickly if there is a serious injury to you, your family, or any guests on the property
• Landlord liability: if you own property and rent it out to tenants, you can be held liable for any injuries they sustain on the property. Umbrella insurance can protect you against the extensiveness of your liability

Legal Coverage:

• Slander/Libel: umbrella insurance can help you cover liability if there is litigation against you for any abusive or implicating statements made to another individual in terms of their character
• Malicious Prosecution/Intention lawsuit: umbrella insurance can help financially if you find yourself in a pickle with a case against you for malicious prosecution

Covering Others:

• Animal attack: If your dog, cat, or other household pet seriously harms another individual, umbrella insurance can help cover you from paying everything out of pocket
• Harm to another: any physical altercations or well-intended acts gone wrong (food poisoning, allergic reaction, etc.) can be covered with the help of umbrella insurance
• Serious automobile situations: if there is a major accident, and you are at fault, umbrella insurance can help cover all harmed parties, or if someone under your care is arrested for driving under the influence, umbrella insurance can be helpful

 While umbrella insurance is by no means (or rarely) required to have, it is a nice little supplement to existing policies. When life hands you lemons, we here at Thompson Insurance Services want to help you make lemonade. Umbrella coverage is handy to have in your back pocket if you find yourself in a sticky situation and your standard policy does not quite cover everything.

If you currently have an umbrella policy, it can be helpful to find out the exact extent of coverage. Your present umbrella insurance may not cover everything you need or want it to protect in the event of an emergency. If you find that your policy is not a good fit anymore, it may be time to update your coverage.

To find out more about umbrella insurance or to find the right policy for you, please do not hesitate to contact us at Thompson Insurance Services in Highland Village, TX. We service the states of Texas, Arizona, and Nevada, and are here to answer any questions you may have about umbrella insurance. One of our agents can help you explore coverage options and find the best policy for you.

Renting a home is nothing like owning a house where everything in the compound is under your protection. When renting a home in Highland Village, TX, tenants only have to worry about their personal belongings. That’s why many people often ignore the value of renters insurance. So should you buy renters insurance? Here are a few possible reasons you may need it.

If your landlord requires it?

Your landlord may buy insurance to protect the entire building but not your personal space. For this reason, they might require you to buy your own renters insurance to protect your property and their investment. Most landlords in Highland Village, TX will not allow you to rent their property without proof of insurance.

For more liability coverage

Depending on where you live, you might want to consider more liability coverage in your policy. Renters insurance comes with liability coverage designed to protect you financially if someone gets injured in your home and decides to sue you for the injuries. At Thompson Insurance Services, we recommend having personal property coverage that equals the value of your belongings.

If you travel often

The majority of tenants in Texas prefer to rent apartments because they travel frequently. If you have valuables in your rented apartment, you might want to protect them if something happens when you are away. Renters insurance protects your personal belongings up to the covered limit.

Can help pay for additional living expenses

Nobody knows tomorrow. If one day you woke up and went to work only to come back and find your home destroyed by fire or a covered peril, your renter’s insurance is all you need to get back to normalcy. The insurance company will pay for temporary accommodation while they find you somewhere safe and comfortable to stay.

It’s never too late to protect what matters to you most. Thompson Insurance Services cares about your insurance needs. Call us for a warm discussion about renters’ insurance.

Insurance is designed to offer protection from a variety of different risks. Many types of insurance offer a liability component. Liability insurance offers protection against claims filed against you for medical expenses, physical damage, pain and suffering, and more. At Thompson Insurance Services in Highland Village, TX, we are a family-owned and operated independent agency. We understand the benefits of umbrella insurance and will gladly discuss the reasons why it can help to protect you and your family. 

Umbrella insurance is a form of liability insurance called excess. It can be added to any policy that already has liability coverage. It is not a policy you buy without already having some form of liability coverage. Some policies that have this coverage include auto, home, commercial, boat, and motorcycle policies. You may not have paid a lot of attention to the amount of liability protection you carry on the policies you have. If your assets have increased since you purchased the policy, chances are you are under-protected. 

Picture an umbrella, the visual helps you see the coverage an umbrella policy offers. Your assets are represented by you under the umbrella feeling dry and protected. Without it, you would be out in the rain. In a society that encourages suing for any reason, it has become a necessity to protect your assets. A typical policy that provides liability protection likely has less coverage than you need to feel safe. An umbrella policy starts at 1 million dollars and goes up to about 5 million in additional liability protection. When your primary policy reaches its maximum, the umbrella policy picks up the coverage.  

At Thompson Insurance Services in Highland Village, TX, we want to help our customers to get the coverage that they need. Give us a call to set up an appointment for a consult and a no-obligation quote. 

There are a lot of important decisions that need to be made when you are looking for insurance. Those that are in the Highland Village, TX area should carefully consider their personal liability risks and determine if additional insurance is needed. For those that would like more personal liability coverage, getting umbrella insurance would be a great option. There are several reasons that someone should get this protection.

Ensures Enough Coverage

A reason that a lot of people will get umbrella coverage is that it can ensure that they will have enough coverage. When you have home or auto policies, you will receive a coverage limit. This is often going to be enough if you do cause an accident, but there are situations when damages could be higher. Due to this, you should seek additional coverage. With umbrella protection, the coverage will be on top of your base policies.

Covers More Risks

Home and auto policies will give coverage to offset most risks that people could incur. However, there are additional risks that may not be covered. To offset this, you should get an umbrella insurance policy. This type of insurance will cover a much wider blanket of risks that may not fall under your base policies. This will ensure you receive appropriate protection for risks that you may not even consider today. 

If you would like to learn more about umbrella insurance and are in the Highland Village, TX, you should reach out to the team at Thompson Insurance Services. Those that come to Thompson Insurance Services for their insurance needs will learn a lot about how this insurance can protect them. Based on this, you will be able to determine whether umbrella coverage is right for you and what you need to have included in your policy. 

When you are in the Highland Village, TX area, there are plenty of great housing options to consider. One option that you will have includes renting your home. If you are going to rent a property, it is very important that you consider your insurance needs. there are several reasons why you should get a renters insurance policy in this area of Texas. 

Protects Assets

One of the main reasons why you should get a renters insurance policy is that it can protect your assets. When you move into a new rental home, you are going to be bringing with a lot of personal items. If there is a fire, bad weather damage, or another incident that causes a loss, you could lose thousands of dollars worth of clothing, furniture, electronics, and other personal items. With a renters insurance policy, you can receive coverage for these items.

Required by Landlord

When you are going to move into a new rental property, it is very important that you read your lease to understand all of your obligations. One responsibility that you will have will include making sure that you are covered by insurance. A landlord will usually have specific renters insurance requirements in the lease and will often ask for evidence of coverage before the start of the lease term.

When you are looking for a renters insurance policy in the Highland Village, TX area, it is important that you work with someone that is experienced with this form of insurance. The team at Thompson Insurance Services can help you to build an insurance policy that is right for your situation and meet your needs. Thompson Insurance Services will ensure you have appropriate coverage for your personal belongings and also are in compliance with your lease. 

If you live in Highland Village, TX, you may not have even heard about umbrella insurance. When it comes to taking care of your property and yourself, things like home insurance, life insurance, and auto insurance are likely what comes to mind. To clear things up for you, Thompson Insurance Services wants to give you a brief rundown of what it is and who usually has it. 

A Safety Net 

Umbrella insurance is a type of safety net that you use to supplement your other insurance. When it comes to things like home and auto, you have a duty to ensure that you’re keeping others safe. If you injure someone in a car accident or a guest is injured at your home, you might be held liable for damages. And of course, if you own a business, you need to account for accusations and reputation damage. 

But a standard policy has limits when it comes to how much it can help you. You can increase the coverage of course, but even that might not go as far as you’d like. Umbrella insurance will essentially activate when you’ve maxed out the limits on your other policy. 

Who Should Have It?

If you own property or a car in Highland Village, TX, it’s not absurd to consider the possibility of this kind of insurance. However, it’s often more sought after by those in prominent positions. The CEO of a major company or a community politician may be more likely to accused of wrong-doing and sued for fault. 

If you want an honest opinion about whether to protect yourself, Thompson Insurance Services can help. We’re here to explain how your policy works under real-life scenarios and what you can do to account for the unexpected.

Residents of Highland Village, TX who live in apartments can enjoy the benefits of having a home security system installed in their home. The agents of Thompson Insurance Services are able to assist their clients in finding the right type of home security system to meet their needs.

DIY Systems

DIY home security systems are easy to install but provide efficient security measures to give you peace of mind. Most come with entry sensors for doors and windows as well as a keypad that allows you to control your system and any other "smart" devices you may have added to it.

Easy to Move From One Place to Another

With a DIY home security system, you can relocate your devices easily. Just take them down and reinstall them in your new home. There are no screws or hardware to deal with and the keypad is easy to reprogram once you have the system installed in your new home.

Self-Monitoring

Most DIY home security systems can be monitored through an easy to use app that is downloaded to your smartphone or tablet. Install the app and you can connect with your system from almost any location. With a DIY system, you are normally the one responsible for notifying the authorities in the event of an emergency.

The agents at Thompson Insurance Services offer their clients in Highland Village, TX sound advice when it comes to DIY home security systems. If you are renting an apartment, visit one of the agents today! They can re-evaluate your renter’s policy and help you decide if a home security system is something you could benefit from.