We are looking for a licensed P&C insurance agent to join our team in Hampton! Must be licensed. Bilingual (Spanish) a plus! Excellent customer service and sales skills could land you this exciting opportunity to earn great pay plus benefits and 401K. If you are looking for a great place to grow with a leading company, then look no further. We are seeking individuals who can produce results and want to become the industry’s most highest paid professionals. If you can build and maintain an exemplary level of relationships, sales and customer loyalty, you’ll be looking at your best years ever, with a company that has been in business for over 25 years. If you have a proven past record of exceeding sales goals, strong leadership and successful customer relationships, please reply to this ad or fax your resume to #866-901-0471.
Insurance Doctor is looking for a licensed P&C insurance agent to join the team at our fast-paced Richmond office location. Must be licensed and bi-lingual (Spanish). Excellent customer service and sales skills could land you this exciting opportunity to earn great pay plus benefits and 401K. If you are looking for a great place to grow with a leading company, then look no further. We are seeking individuals who can produce results and want to become the industry’s most highest paid professionals. If you can build and maintain an exemplary level of relationships, sales and customer loyalty, you’ll be looking at your best years ever, with a company that has been in business for over 25 years. If you have a proven past record of exceeding sales goals, strong leadership and successful customer relationships, please reply to this ad or fax your resume to #866-901-0471.
Santa stopped by our Richmond office location and paid his insurance payment just to be safe on Christmas Eve! We invite you to join us today at our Customer Appreciation Day in appreciation of your business. We are located at 1700 Willow Lawn Drive Ste 103 Richmond, Va 23230 right behind Jason’s Deli at Willow Lawn. Or give us a call at #804.288.1999. Our elves will be sure to help you!
Here at Insurance Doctor, we know that homeowner’s insurance is a terrifically valuable thing to have (and something we gladly offer with great service at a great rate), but it’s also the one thing you never really want to use. When you have to make a claim, that means something has happened to damage your most prized possession: your home. So this blog series provides a few tips to help keep your home safe from damage and your home ownership headaches to a minimum.
Cook Safely
The U.S. Fire Administration states that the leading cause of reported home fires is cooking equipment. The good news is that there are lots of simple, preventive measures you can take. First, avoid loose clothing when cooking. Not only will that keep you from dragging your sleeves through the gravy, you’ll reduce the chance of your clothing catching fire (and spreading the fire to your home). Also, be sure to stay near the stove when cooking, especially when frying foods. Keep a pan lid nearby to quickly cover and contain a grease fire. Another good tip is to always check to make sure your oven is empty before pre-heating.
Clean Gutters
Sure, cleaning gutters sometimes just feels like that chore you have to do every fall but there’s a great reason for it. When gutters get clogged with leaves, twigs, and other debris (how about that tennis ball your son threw up there?), water flow to the downspouts can be restricted, especially during heavy rains. When that happens, water can only go in two directions – over the front of the gutters, where it can pool around the foundation, or behind the gutter, possibly flowing back under the roof. Neither scenario is good news for your home. So bite the bullet and get those gutters cleaned out regularly, or invest in a leaf-free gutter system.
If you’d like to learn some other ways to help keep your home safe from damage, or to discuss homeowner’s insurance options in North Carolina or Virginia, get in touch with us today.
There’s no question that homeowner’s insurance is a great thing to have in the event of damage to your home or the possessions inside of it. No one ever complained about having their home insured after a natural disaster. But there are also plenty of things you can do to minimize the danger of something happening to your most valuable investment. This blog series will list some of the top tips.
Install & Maintain Smoke Detectors
For home safety, it’s hard to beat the value in smoke detectors. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, deaths due to fire are 51% fewer in homes with working smoke alarms, compared to those without. A quick internet search shows prices for smoke detectors from as little as $8.00 up to $25.00, a real bargain for the peace of mind they provide. A couple of things to remember: first, be sure to install one on each level of your home; second, change your batteries every 6 months (a good reminder is to change them when the time changes in the spring and fall). Oh, and KEEP THE BATTERIES IN THEM! Far too many people disable their smoke detectors by removing the batteries.
Keep an Eye on Your Trees
For those who don’t mind the leaf raking duties, an arboreal home is a comfort and delight. Still, mature trees close to the home bring their own set of issues to home ownership. Dead or rotting trees are a frequent source of damage, either falling in whole or dropping limbs on roofs. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a dead tree or rotten limb will hold on forever – one good-sized storm or even just a stronger than average gust of wind could be the source of a major headache. If you have problem trees, contact a qualified, professional tree service company to trim branches or remove trees entirely. It’s better to take them down at your convenience than theirs.
As always, if you have questions about homeowner’s insurance rates or coverage, contact us today.
If you’re looking to get in a quick leaf-peeping trip in Virginia before the leaves lose their gorgeous colors, you’re in luck. The beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains run the length of the western part of the Old Dominion, so they’re easily accessible and a fairly short drive from just about anywhere in the state.
Skyline Drive is one of the most well-known destinations (or journeys!) for a reason: it offers amazing views of the Blue Ridge Mountains in any season, but particularly in autumn when the mountains are on fire with reds, yellows, and oranges. Skyline Drive covers a 105 mile stretch along the crest of the Blue Ridge, right through Shenandoah National Park, from Front Royal all the way to Rockfish Gap. The speed limit is just 35 miles per hour for the length of the Drive, in part because of the wildlife that inhabit the area. Of course, you probably won’t want to drive any faster – this is a trip to be savored. While you’re looking at the leaves, just remember to keep your eyes opened for deer and other animals.
If you can’t make it as far as Skyline Drive, a trip to Charlottesville and the surrounding area might be just the thing. Barely over an hour west of downtown Richmond, VA on I-64, the Charlottesville area has enough elevation changes to make for beautiful views. And of course there are plenty of things to see. The area is home to many wineries that offer tours and tastings, such as Barboursville Winery, Horton Vineyards, and Jefferson Vineyards. And speaking of Thomas Jefferson, the University of Virginia – founded by Mr. Jefferson himself, and featuring his architectural masterpiece, The Rotunda – is here as well. And Jefferson’s historic home, Monticello, is a 10 minute drive away.
So get out there while you still can and enjoy this gorgeous Virginia fall weather!
All it takes is that one cold snap to bring home the point that yes, those warm fall days are really going to end, and winter’s right around the corner. In our last post, we talked about how to winterize your motorcycle to handle the climates in North Carolina and Virginia, while leaving you the freedom to ride on those unseasonably warm days we sometimes get. Here are a couple more tips to get you through.
Get a Trickle Charger
No, a trickle charger isn’t something you buy in a novelty store. It’s actually a type of battery charger. Typically, the battery in a motorcycle (or a car, for that matter) will fail to hold a charge if it sits too long. And when that surprise warm day arrives, you don’t want to get your leathers on just to find out that your bike’s motor won’t turn over. The trickle charger detects when the voltage in your battery begins to drop, then charges it just enough to get back to normal. Think of it as “topping off your electricity.” This will keep your battery healthy and ready to go when you are.
Don’t Let Your Bike Get Lonely
Probably the biggest thing you can do is just start your bike once a week and let it run, or even just take it for a spin up and down the street a couple of times. This keeps things lubricated and working like they should, and circulates your gas and oil. It’s hard to argue that a little movement of parts is a good prescription to keep your bike in top shape through those lonely winter months.
Stay Covered
It might be tempting to drop your motorcycle insurance during the winter to save a few bucks, but think about the temptation to ride when it’s suddenly 75 degrees one day in January. You don’t want to give up that opportunity, do you? Or even worse, you might be tempted to ride anyway, and riding without insurance is a bad, bad idea at ANY time. Of course, if you’re looking for insurance in VA or NC, give us a call. We’re happy to help.
In Virginia and North Carolina, motorcycle enthusiasts are pretty fortunate: it usually doesn’t get bitter cold here, and even during those months when some areas are buried under several feet of snow, we can get surprised with a short string of days when the sun is bright and the temps remind you of spring. So unless you’re headed somewhere warmer for a couple of months (in which case – why aren’t you taking your bike with you?), a full winterization is not only overkill, it could rob you of the chance to take advantage of those intermittent warm days. So here is part one of what you might call “Winterization Light”.
Treat Your Gasoline
If you do only one thing, do this. Gasoline goes bad, in a manner of speaking, when it’s just left to sit. Not only does it tend to lose octane, it can actually gum up your carburetor or fuel injectors. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and a few bucks spent on fuel stabilizer is worth a couple hundred for a professional carb/injector cleaning. Start by filling the gas tank (a full tank helps prevent moisture from getting in the system as it sits), then adding a stabilizer per the instructions on the label. And remember: if you do get a chance to ride every now and then, top off the tank on your way home, taking care to add a bit more stabilizer when you park it.
Change Your Oil
Gasoline isn’t the only thing that breaks down over time: motor oil does as well, even when it’s not running through the motor on a daily basis. Most motorcycle owner’s manuals recommend oil changes either every few thousand miles or every few months for this very reason. And considering the low cost of purchasing oil and a filter compared to the cost of your motorcycle, it’s hard to argue this is a bad idea. So change your oil when you start parking more than riding, and change again when spring rolls around.
We’ll have the second part soon. In the meantime, if you need motorcycle insurance in VA or NC, get in touch with us. We’re glad to help.
There seems to be little argument that using a cell phone while behind the wheel has an effect on driving ability. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) studied the effects of “distracted driving” in 2009, releasing a full report in 2010. Distracted driving, as defined by the NHSTA, includes things like eating, drinking, speaking with passengers, adjusting the radio or climate controls, and of course, speaking/texting on a cell phone. According to the report, the administration attributed 5,474 traffic deaths in 2009 to distracted driving. Of those, 995, or nearly 20%, were related to cell phone use while driving.
There is still quite a debate about the extent that driving ability is diminished by cell phone use. One study measuring drivers speaking on phones versus those who were not showed that, while following distance was increased, braking time and braking force were decreased. Another study indicated that drivers took their eyes off the road an average of four out of six seconds while texting.
Of course, these studies and more have given rise to cell phone usage laws in 34 states, with a wide range of regulations and punishments. Virginia and North Carolina are among those 34 states, so as a service, we’d like to provide a summary of the laws for each:
North Carolina
• Text messaging is completely prohibited for all drivers.
• Email and internet use completely prohibited for all drivers.
• All cell phone use prohibited for those drivers under 18 who have a provisional drivers license, unless calling parents.
• All cell phone use prohibited for school bus drivers.
Virginia
• Text messaging is completely prohibited for all drivers. Fines are $20 for the first offense and $50 for subsequent offense.
• Cell phone use prohibited for all drivers under 18 years of age.
• All cell phone use prohibited for school bus drivers.
Help insure yourself against an auto accident: follow your state laws about cell phones and drive safely. And of course, contact Insurance Doctor for auto insurance quotes in Virginia and North Carolina.