Car and Home Insurance discounts for State of Michigan employees

One of the best ways to reduce your insurance costs is through a group discount. An insurance company provides discounts to people for belonging to different social or professional groups.

These discount range anywhere from 2% to 23% depending on the group and company. We take great pride in that all of our home and auto insurance companies will provide you with a group discount if you qualify.

As an employee of the State of Michigan you qualify for a group discount with Spalding Insurance Agency. We help people who are work for the State of Michigan all of the time and would love to be of service to you.

Although you qualify for a discount as an employee of the State, this doesn’t mean this is the best group discount we have for you. When requesting a quote please think about all potential group discounts you will qualify for and we will find the best one for you.

Between Auto-Owners Insurance, Michigan Millers Insurance, Citizens Insurance, and Fremont Mutual Insurance we offer group discounts for thousands of different organizations. Some companies are very specific while others are very broad for who qualifies.

If you’re an employee of the State of Michigan please get in touch with us today as we would love to see how adding this group discount to your auto and home insurance can help you.

Other insurance discounts are available to all of our clients on their home insurance and auto insurance. One of the most substantial discounts is the multipolicy discount that is applied to your home and auto insurance when they are insured through the same company. A major discount that you might qualify for is the prior carrier discount which is available to people who were previously insured with certain insurance companies.

Other insurance companies want for you to ask which discounts are available to you. At Spalding Insurance Agency we ask you. We make sure your insurance is reliable, easy, and transparent. We look forward to serving you.

Should a stay-at-home parent have life insurance?

The cost of raising a child is an overwhelming expense. If you are lucky enough to have a parent stay home or work from the home you are missing out on large expenses of raising a child such as daycare.

When a family makes the decision that they can afford for one member of the house to stay home they should also be making sure they are investing in life insurance for that person.

Why does someone who isn’t generating income need life insurance?

This is a great question people will ask since usually life insurance is used as a way to help offset the lost wages of someone who has passed.

You are buying life insurance in order to offset the new expenses that your family will face.

What is the cost to raise a child?

The cost of childcare in Michigan varies based on the age of the child needing cared for. The expense can range from $10,114 for an infant to $4,575 for a school-aged child [1].

A family of two kids will spend somewhere between $9,000 and $20,000 a year in daycare costs.

How will your family survive with an additional expense of $15,000?

The surviving spouse is going to need to find a way to make up this cost. This can be done a few ways including making more money, cut out other expenses, or with life insurance.

Life insurance is the perfect solution to avoid placing an unneeded financial burden on your family.

How much life insurance should a stay at home parent have?

This is something we will need to talk about as every situation is different. Some information you should consider is the age of your children, existing debt, and future expenses such as college.

Should I worry that I don’t have life insurance?

Yes, I would be worried. I would be worried about your family and the financial burden they might go through if you and your spouse don’t decide to make life insurance a priority.

Is applying for life insurance easy?

Applying for life insurance is an easy and convenient process. It will only take you a short period of time to get a quote for life insurance. The application process is just as easy.

Does my home insurance cover my pool?

Your pool should now be open for business as Michigan has been blessed with great weather for the last couple of weeks. People often wonder when they install a pool or if they currently own a pool whether or not there is coverage for there pool under their homeowners insurance policy.

Yes, you have coverage under your homeowner’s insurance policy for your pool. In fact you have two types of coverage, liability and physical damage coverage.

The physical damage for your pool is covered under the other structures portion of your policy. If you have multiple garages or pole barns you might find that you’re not properly covered in the event of a total loss to all buildings plus a pool.

For example, a windstorm comes through your area and destroys your unattached garage and ruins your pool. Under your policy the cost to fix the damage is above your limit for other structures. At this point in time you are subject to your policy limit which might not be enough to coverage the cost of repairs to all of your other structures.

How do I know what coverage amount is right for me?

Knowing the cost to fix or replace a damaged pool is very important. It is also important to look at all of your “other structures” and determine the total dollar amount you would need in order to replace/repair them in the event of a total loss.

Can I increase my limit for other structures?

Yes, you and your insurance agent should take the time to review your coverage for other structures. This is especially true if you have a huge pole barn or pool. In this instance you might be underinsured.

What liability coverage do I have on my pool?

The liability coverage that protects you will depend on the limit that you and your insurance agent deciced on when writing your home insurance policy. We recommend having at least $300,000 worth of liability coverage on your homeowner’s policy.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Pool Safety Tips

For thousands of Lansing area residents, the perfect summer will consists of BBQs around the pool. A pool offers the perfect hosting area.

It is important to be aware of the hazards that are involved with a pool. Drowning and other non-fatal injuries happen every year around the family pool. Being aware of the risks around a pool can make sure that your day at the pool is an enjoyable experience that doesn’t turn into a tragedy.

Here is a list of pool safety advice to share with your friends and family:

Protect your pool

A fence should surround all pools and if there is a gate allowing direct access to the pool, that gate should be locked when you’re not entertaining. We know that sometimes people in rural areas with above ground pools do not always have a fenced in pool, in this instance, make sure you remove all ladders when the pool is not in use.

Supervise children at all times

Each summer you hear a story of someone turning away for a moment when they are watching over children in a pool only for tragedy to strike in a matter of seconds. When children are swimming all it takes is a few seconds. Make sure that all supervision isn’t distracted and is ready to act in the case of emergency.

Set the Rules

When I was growing up and going swimming I knew that there were rules for me to follow no matter whose pool I was by. It is important as a parent to make sure your kids know general pool rules such as:

-No running around the pool
-No diving in shallow areas
-Never swim alone, use the “budday system”
-No horseplay on the diving board or slides

Keep your pool clean

Maintaining your pool is important for your guest’s health and safety. Make sure you are regularly testing chemical levels to prevent potential earaches or rashes.

Be Prepared

Knowing what to do in case of emergency is all about preparation. If possible it would be great for everyone in the home to take special training in CPR or other life saving courses. If this is not possible you should have an emergency kit handy. The emergency kit should include the steps of performing CPR for both a child and adult.

Pool safety is no joke and is a topic that should be brought up with your friends and family as we enter summer.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Business Insurance Discounts for Chamber of Commerce Members

One of the best ways to reduce your insurance costs is through a group discount. An insurance company provides discounts to people for belonging to different social or professional groups. These discount range anywhere from 2% to 23% depending on the group and company. We take great pride in that all of our business insurance companies will provide you with a group discount if you qualify.

As a member of a Chamber of Commerce you qualify for a group discount with Spalding Insurance Agency. We help small businesses who are members of Chambers of Commerce all of the time and would love to be of service to you.

Between Auto-Owners Insurance, Michigan Millers Insurance, Citizens Insurance, and Fremont Mutual Insurance we offer group discounts for thousands of different organizations. Some companies are very specific while others are very broad for who qualifies.

If you’re a member of a Chamber of Commerce please get in touch with us today. We will verify and ensure that you are getting the best value for your Chamber membership which includes an insurance discount. 

You would be amazed how often that we will recommend a small business to join their local chamber of commerce in order to apply this discount to their insurance policies. Even after factoring in the cost of the membership it is not uncommon for a small business to still save substantially from this discount. 

Other insurance discounts are available to all of our clients on their business insurance as well. One of the most substantial discounts is the multipolicy discount that is applied to your insurance when they insurance multiple polices through the same company. 

Other insurance companies want for you to ask which discounts are available to you. At Spalding Insurance Agency we ask you. We make sure your insurance is reliable, easy, and transparent. We look forward to serving you. 

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Why is my home insured for more than it is worth?

Why is my home insured for more than what it is worth?

That is a common question we get in the insurance world.

The answer is relatively simple, insurance is meant to make you whole again (indemnify) after a home insurance loss. In this case the only way to make sure you are properly insured is through calculating the cost to rebuild your home and not calculating the market value of the home.

What is replacement cost for my home?

Replacement cost for your home is the amount of money it would take to rebuild your home using similar quality construction and materials in today’s construction market.

How is replacement cost determined?

The replacement cost of your home or known as dwelling coverage on your declaration page is carefully calculated through information you provide us. We enter information about your home into a cutting edge replacement cost estimator and it provides us with a dollar amount using today’s cost of materials and labor to determine the cost to rebuild your home.

Where do you get the information about my home?

Whenever you are getting an insurance quote for your home insurance we will ask you about your home. Some of the details include information about square footage, number of bathrooms, style of home, and any unique or additional features. This information can often be obtained online through the local assessor’s office. We will often pull up your home’s information online and verify the details with you.

Does Spalding Insurance Agency share the replacement cost estimator with me?

Yes, it is our practice to share the recently completed replacement cost estimator with you to make sure that all information appears accurate to the best of your knowledge. This way we can be sure that your home is being covered adequately.

Keep in mind that your home insurance is insured for the cost to rebuild your home not the cost on the open market.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Insurance Discounts for Credit Union Members

One of the best ways to reduce your insurance costs is through a group discount. An insurance company provides discounts to people for belonging to different social or professional groups. These discount range anywhere from 2% to 23% depending on the group and company. We take great pride in that all of our home and auto insurance companies will provide you with a group discount if you qualify.

As a member of a credit union you qualify for a group discount with Spalding Insurance Agency. We help people who are members of credit unions all of the time and would love to be of service to you.

Although you qualify for a discount as a member of credit union, this doesn’t mean this is the best group discount we have for you. When requesting a quote please think about all potential group discounts you will qualify for and we will find the one best for you.

Between Auto-Owners Insurance, Michigan Millers Insurance, Citizens Insurance, and Fremont Mutual Insurance we offer group discounts for thousands of different organizations. Some companies are very specific while others are very broad for who qualifies.

If you’re a member of a credit union group please get in touch with us today as we would love to see how adding the group discount to your auto and home insurance can help you.

Other insurance discounts are available to all of our clients on their home insurance and auto insurance. One of the most substantial discounts is the multipolicy discount that is applied to your home and auto insurance when they are insured through the same company. A major discount that you might qualify for is the prior carrier discount which is available to people who were previously insured with certain insurance companies.  

Other insurance companies want for you to ask which discounts are available to you. At Spalding Insurance Agency we ask you. We make sure your insurance is reliable, easy, and transparent. We look forward to serving you.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Home Insurance and Auto Insurance Discounts for Golfers

One of the best ways to reduce your insurance costs is through a group discount. An insurance company provides discounts to people for belonging to different social or professional groups. These discount range anywhere from 2% to 23% depending on the group and company. We take great pride in that all of our home and auto insurance companies will provide you with a group discount if you qualify.

As a member of the PGA of Michigan or PGA of America you qualify for a group discount with Spalding Insurance Agency. We help people who are members of the PGA all of the time and would love to be of service to you.

Although you qualify for a discount as a member of PGA, this doesn’t mean this is the best group discount we have for you. When requesting a quote please think about all potential group discounts you will qualify for and we will find the one best for you.

Between Auto-Owners Insurance, Michigan Millers Insurance, Citizens Insurance, and Fremont Mutual Insurance we offer group discounts for thousands of different organizations. Some companies are very specific while others are very broad for who qualifies.

If you’re a member of the PGA group please get in touch with us today as we would love to see how adding the PGA group discount to your auto and home insurance can help you.

Other insurance discounts are available to all of our clients on their home insurance and auto insurance. One of the most substantial discounts is the multipolicy discount that is applied to your home and auto insurance when they are insured through the same company. A major discount that you might qualify for is the prior carrier discount which is available to people who were previously insured with certain insurance companies.  

Other insurance companies want for you to ask which discounts are available to you. At Spalding Insurance Agency we ask you. We make sure your insurance is reliable, easy, and transparent. We look forward to serving you.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Reasons you don't have renter's insurance

Odds are pretty good that if you rent your home or apartment, you don’t have any coverage for your belongings or personal liability coverage. In the United States it is believed that nearly 65% of renters do not have coverage for their belongings or liability protection. 

Why don’t you have renter’s insurance? This is because at some point you made a decision that you didn’t need this coverage or your insurance agent didn’t tell you why this coverage is important.  So why didn’t you get renter’s insurance? Here are some of the worst excuses:

- “It is too expensive!”

- “I don’t have anything valuable, so I don’t need insurance.”

- “My landlord has insurance, therefore I have coverage.”

- “My roommate has insurance, so if anything happens I will just submit a claim under their policy.” 

All of your excuses are CRAP. Don’t believe me? Let me tell you why:

“It is too expensive!” – Renter’s insurance is one of the least expensive insurance products to purchase. A typical policy can range from $12-$25 a month depending on the coverage amount you decide on, among other factors. In most cases by applying the multipolicy discount to your auto insurance policy you can greatly reduce the expense of your auto insurance to the point were your renter’s insurance pays for itself. 

 ”I don’t have anything valuable, so I don’t need insurance.” – So you don’t have anything of value? Walk to your bedroom, open your closet door, and then tally up all of your shirts/pants/shoes alone. Say you have 100 articles of clothing, imagine that in order to replace them it is $50 a piece. Your closet alone is worth $5,000. If a loss occurs, do you have $5,000 sitting around just to buy new clothes? Remember, you haven’t even calculated how much value you have in electronics, furniture, or kitchen supplies yet. 

“My landlord has insurance, therefore I have coverage.”- A major misconception among renters all over the US. Your landlord has coverage for their interest in the home and only their interest. There is $0 worth of coverage for your stuff under their policy.

 ”My roommate has insurance, so if anything happens I will just submit a claim under their policy.” – A renter’s insurance policy requires the policy owner to have a financial interest in the items they’re insuring. Since you bought the items, your roommate has a 0% financial interest in them. So if a loss were to happen there would be no coverage for your stuff. Think you can pull a fast one and attempt to submit a claim under their policy? Insurance fraud is a crime and an insurance adjuster is trained to detect fraudulent activity. 

Still have a reason for not purchasing renter’s insurance? 

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Holiday Driving Tips for Michigan Drivers

A long holiday weekend in Michigan means the opportunity to head up north, even if your “up north” means heading  to the west or east. With the joys of a holiday weekend you can also guarantee that there will be heavy traffic.  

Driving during heavy traffic is a completely different experience. For those of you who are not used to these driving conditions, here are six tips for safe driving during heavy traffic.

Maintain Your Distance

The rule of thumb for a safe distance between your car and the car in front of you is known as the 3 second rule. The 3 second rule means that when the car in front of you passes a mile marker or some other sort of marker, it should take you 3 seconds to reach that same marker. By maintaining the 3 second rule you will allow yourself more time to break in an emergency situation.

Avoid Tailgating

Tailgating is the act of following the car in front of you too closely. By following step one you will avoid tailgating. Tailgating can be considered a form of road rage and makes for hostile driving situations for you and the cars surrounding you.

Drive Defensively

Defensive driving is critical during heavy traffic. Driving defensively means that you are constantly thinking about potential dangerous situations and anticipating your actions. My Grandpa used to have a saying “worry about the car in front of the car behind you and the car behind the car in front of you”.

Use Your Signal

Anyone who has drove during rush hour or during holiday traffic knows how many “jerks” decide that their blinker is just a fancy looking lever attached near the steering wheel. Don’t be that jerk when you’re driving. People cannot read your mind and do not know what your intentions are. Use your blinker to help other drivers can expect your next move.

Do Not Text

Texting while driving is not only illegal it is dangerous and deadly. If you need to read or write a text don’t be afraid to pullover to the side of the road or take an exit. No text message is worth a life.

Drive with the flow of traffic

Driving at a slower speed is most likely going to be necessary during a heavy traffic situation. Driving slower gives you more time to react to your surroundings. There will also be situations in which the flow of traffic will be moving smoothly at a higher speed. Be aware of your surroundings so you can judge what the flow of traffic is.

These tips will help you from having to call and file a Michigan auto insurance claim. If you do find yourself in need of assistance over the weekend we have our emergency phone numbers for all of our companies listedhere.

Safe travels!

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

Protect your home during Spring Break!

Spring has rolled around and that means one thing for a lot of families, SPRING BREAK. A chance to get out of the cold and head to a sunny oasis for a week.

I remember growing up and whenever we were going on a family vacation we didn't go around broadcasting that our home was going to be vacant for an extended time. Why? Well living in a small town, news tends to travel pretty quickly and if the word got around to the wrong crowd that our home was going to be empty for a long time, we knew that is a burglars dream.

Fast forward to the year 2013, now we tell the whole world that we are going on vacation through social media. So how can we continue to share our vacation experiences with our friends and family while still being cautious about who sees this information? Here are some tips:

1) Make sure your privacy settings on social media sites are restricted to private. This allows for you to share information only with the people you want to share information with, not the entire world.

2) Don't give people a timetable of how long you will be gone or that your home is vacant. The worst thing to do is to let people know when you are leaving or when you will be coming home.

3) Consider making a fake post thanking a friend or family member for house sitting while you are away/

4) Ask a neighbor or friend to check up on your home and make sure that everything still seems to be in order.

5) Don't be shy about leaving an interior light on in the home, this shows potential intruders that someone is still occupying the residence.

Hopefully these tips will give you the peace of mind that you can still share your vacation with your friends and family via social media without worrying about coming home to a nightmare.

Travel Safely!

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here. 

When the Snow Melts....

Winter has piled on more snow than we know what to do with. I am sure that I speak for the majority of us when I say that spring cannot get here soon enough!

Snow is everywhere and if it were to melt rapidly you might experience flooding. A few common questions we have been getting lately and the answers to these questions are listed below.

Does my homeowners insurance cover flooding that might be caused from the snow melting?

No, your standard homeowners insurance policy is not going to cover flooding from the snow melting. A flood insurance policy is required in order for your home and personal property to have coverage from a flood.

How long does it take to get a flood insurance policy into effect?

There is a thirty day waiting period for those who are not closing on a new loan that requires flood insurance.

How can I prevent flood waters from ruining my home?

-Build levees or flood walls that prevent water from reaching your home.
-Clean out your gutters. A blocked gutter will cause all water to flow directly into your foundation and not away from your home via the downspouts.
-Although it might be too late, when the spring does come make sure that the grade goes away from your home to prevent foundation damage from groundwater.

Reduce Groundwater Damage

1) Have a sump pump installed in your home.
2) Look into waterproofing your basement through a local contractor.
3) Install seals to windows and or doors that groundwater is going to impact.

Is it too late to get flood insurance?

No, we are happy to provide you with a quote.

About Spalding Insurance Agency

Spalding Insurance Agency provides exemplary service and access to Michigan's finest insurance companies. We proudly serve the personal and business insurance needs of people in East Lansing, Okemos, Haslett, Lansing, DeWitt, Perry, Detroit, Holt, Mason, Grand Rapids, Laingsburg, Bath, and other great Michigan cities. For a quote on auto insurance, home insurance, business insurance, or life insurance click here.