What Guy Fieri Knows About Grilling Safety

The three d's might have been one of the best TV shows over the past decade. Unaware of what the "three d's" is, no worries, it is a slang for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives a show hosted by Guy Fieri, one of America's original bad boys.

So what exactly does Guy Fieri know about grill safety? I am sure that he knows a lot about it but there weren't any direct tips that I could find online. In fact, most of the stuff I found online was under his name was some great recipes that you can try out this summer.

Since Guy wasn't able to provide us with any grilling safety tips we figured we'd share with you some tips from our very own experience.

Grill Safety Tips

1) Location

Do you have a nice deck or patio that you store your grill on? If so, make sure that upon starting your BBQ you move the grill or smoker away from your garage or home. Every year we hear the horror stories of homes catching on fire because the grill wasn't it a safe location.

2) Fire

What is your contingency plan if your grill gets out of control? Having a bucket of water or hose nearby is never a bad idea. For those of you who are using a gas grill, do you know the safest way to cut the fuel supply if the fire gets out of control? In case you didn't know, charcoal and gas grills should only be used in an outdoor area.

3)Food Safety

Growing up, I was always preached to the importance of food safety. This could be something as properly cooking your meat to the right temperature or making sure you wash your hands after touching raw or uncooked meats.

Now I am not saying that I am by any means the safest man on the grill but the one thing I can tell you is that common sense pretty much applies to grilling safety. So next time you light up that BBQ make sure to remember that thousands of injuries and fires occur each year from a grilling related incidence. They are called accidents for a reason.

Spalding Insurance Agency is an independent agency with two locations in mid-Michigan to service you. We want to be invited to your next BBQ. For a quote on your personal or business insurance click here.

Before the Loss: Homeowners and Renters

I recently had the chance to move and with moving comes one of my favorite activities: purging.Now I am not saying my wife and I are hoarders but like everyone, we accumulate a lot of stuff over the years. 

35% of the stuff we had in our home I had either forgot about or most likely wouldn't remember we owned if we suffered a total loss. Why is this a problem? Lets pretend a loss occurs, such as a fire. The insurance adjuster gets in touch with you and wants a list of everything in your home destroyed by the fire. So you start to make a list and before you know it, you have everything you remember down. 

Well a few months down the road you go to use your waffle maker because you love waffles and only make them on special occasions. Problem is you forgot you had a waffle maker that was destroyed in the fire. So instead of enjoying your waffles you become frustrated as this is just one of the several dozen items you forgotabout whilst making your list. 

Since 99% of us will only remember 65% of the stuff we own, I always advise clients to document all that they own, as a way to avoid waffle maker mishaps. 

A few great ways to document what you own:

1) Make an Excel spreadsheet with each item that is in your home. Go room by room and get a good idea of exactly what is in the room and the approximate cost to replace it. If you can, be specific, get the makes and models of items.  Save this file and e-mail it to yourself, this way if your computer is destroyed in the loss, you will still have access to this information. 

2) Take photos of everything you own. This might not mean everything but go to your closet and snap a few photos. Walk around your place and take photos of the rooms from various angles showing all four corners and the room's contents. For higher priced items, such as electronics, appliances, or  furniture make sure you take photos of the brands. Again, e-mail these photos to yourself.

3) Make a video. Walk around the house with your camcorder (they still have those, right?) and capture all of your belongings.  I am sure a lot of people will not use a camcorder, as smartphones are highly capable too, but it is still important to either e-mail yourself this video or store this information in a place protected from potential perils. 

Being prepared with this information before the loss will greatly reduce the stress you might feel after it. 

Have a recommendation for another way to track everything in your home/condo/apartment? Leave a comment. 

What Does a Renter's Insurance Policy Cover?

We recently talked about how not having renter’s insurance was a mistake that fools make. 

Now that you have made a decision not to be a fool, you are wondering what exactly a renter’s insurance policy covers.

Here is an idea of the basic parts of a renter’s insurance policy. 

Personal Property

This is the coverage for your stuff. Your furniture, clothes, electronics, jewelry, and other knickknacks around your home/apartment. 

Loss of Use

An important coverage for you in the event of covered loss. This provides you with additional living expenses for you or your family while you are temporarily misplaced.  Items such as temporary shelter, dining out expenses. 

Personal Liability

Providing coverage for your actions or negligence in property damage or bodily injury to others. 

Medical Payments

Coverage for medical payments that may cover others’ medical expenses that result from and accident or injury on your property. 

Those are the four majors parts of a renter’s insurance policy. Later on this week we will give you coverage options that we feel that no renter’s insurance policy should be without. 

Renter's Insurance and Your Excuses!

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? Leave a comment.

No longer have an excuse? Request a quote! 

Are you a good cook? If so, read this.

In the past we have touched on the safety devices that you should have in your home. We hope you are thinking about ways to make your home a safer place. The problem with some of you is that just because you have these devices, doesn't mean they are in working order.

Let me ask you this, when was the last time you checked to make sure your smoke detectors worked? If you're a bad cook you might unintentionally test your smoke detectors often. But for those of you who are a whiz in the kitchen, the odds are you haven't tested your smoke detectors lately or ever. 

I am sure you're a busy person just like everyone who claims they don't have the time to test their detectors. The good news for you is that it only takes a few minutes and is pretty dang simple. Make it a weekly routine like getting the Sunday morning paper or right before you start your work week.

The most precious sound in your life just might be that alarm going off in the middle of the night. A smoke detector is a life saving device. Make sure it is able to do its job should it need to. 

Spalding Insurance Agency is an independent agency with locations in East Lansing, Michigan and Perry, Michigan. We want to make your life easier. For a quote on your personal or business insurance click here.

What Safety Devices Should I have in my Home?

One question we often get asked is "what discounts can I get on my homeowners insurance if I make it safer?"

Seems like a silly question. So if you didn't get a discount for having safety devices in your home, to protect you and your family, than you wouldn't bother to have them? 

Of course, there are discounts available for having safety devices in your home. All of our carriers offer these discounts.The biggest discount for safety devices is by having a central station reporting alarm system, think ADT, in your home. But not everyone is in the financial situations to have one of these systems installed. 

Here is a list of protective devices to have in your home. These devices should be in your home to help reduce risk and protect your family (and get a discount). 

-Smoke Detectors

-Fire Extinguisher 

-Carbon Monoxide Detectors

-Deadbolt locks

All of these devices are imperative to have in your home for your family's safety. Although we love to tell you about insurance discounts, don't forget that these devices are about protecting you and your loved ones.

Shovel your Sidewalks!

Do you live in Michigan? If so, it is likely at some point in your life you awoke to a blanket of snow covering your sidewalks and driveway. 

Most towns have laws and ordinances demanding snow removal from "city" owned sidewalks within a 24 hour period. If you live in certain Michigan towns or cities you might know someone who has been fined for not obeying these laws.

As an insurance agent I know how important it is to clear your sidewalks not only because of these ordinances but because of the liability exposure you face for not doing so.

Let me give you an example:

It is a few days after a snow storm and you have neglected to clear off your sidewalks. Luckily for you the township hasn't been enforcing the law so you have not received a fine. 

However, that same day the local youth basketball team is going door-to-door fundraising for new jerseys. All of a sudden the boys get to your home and make their way through the snow still piled on your walkways. The team captain approaches your home and as he puts his right foot up to walk up your stairs he slips, falls, and breaks his arm. Your laziness or disregard to remove the snow, now might be looked at as negligence to this injury. At this point in time you have opened up yourself to a potential lawsuit.

Trust me, I hate shoveling snow as much as the next guy. Getting bundled up to brave the cold is not an idea of morning fun for me but it is vital in protecting yourself from a potential claim.