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Trusted Choice® for Insurance Information
We know the insurance marketplace, so you don't have to. Tracy-Driscoll is a Trusted Choice® insurance agency offering a broad selection of insurance and financial services. These firms are committed to treating you as a person not a policy. Because a Trusted Choice® insurance agency has access to multiple insurance companies, they are able to offer you competitive pricing, a broad choice of products and valuable advocacy. Trusted Choice® agencies don't just say they will do these things. They put it in writing. Read our Pledge of Performance.
Some free insurance information from your Trusted Choice®:
Graduates Guide to Insurance
Invasion of Privacy
Summer Storm Recovery Tips
Business to Business
Construction Bulletin
Employees Benefits
Employees Benefits Voluntary
Financial Planning
Life and Health
Workers Comp
Personal Perspective
Graduate's Guide to Insurance
Congratulations! You’ve got your degree and you are
ready to take advantage of the exciting new opportunities life has to offer. However, with new opportunities come new risks—particularly financial risks. Insurance is your major protection against financial risks, and knowledge about basic insurance facts can make you a better consumer.
This guide is a product of Trusted Choice® and will introduce you to the different types of insurance—which ones you need and which ones you don’t. While this guide addresses the most common questions about insurance, your Trusted Choice® insurance professionals can answer your specific questions, and make sure you have the coverages you need. Trusted Choice® agents represent multiple insurance companies, so they offer you a variety of coverage choices and can customize a plan to meet your specialized needs. Most importantly, a Trusted Choice® insurance professional isn’t an employee of an insurance company, so you have someone who works for you.
Invasion of Privacy
In December 2010, Honda joined the list frequented by major financial institutions and retailers, suffering a breach of customer data thought to affect over 2 million Honda owners. Stories such as these send shockwaves through industry, and while they often don’t result in damages, the fear is justified. The mistake most small business owners make is that they assume such breaches are the realm of large companies. The reality is that the opposite is true, according to the chronology of data breaches available from privacyrights.org/data-breach. The evidence indicates that small businesses are a favorite target of cyber crooks because they often lack the resources to protect themselves from such crimes.
So how much could a data breach cost your firm? An average of $204 per customer record that is lost or stolen, according to the Ponemon Institute’s First Annual Cost of Cyber Crime Study, published in July 2010 and including both private and public enterprises. Fifteen percent of data breaches are inside jobs, perpetrated by employees or contractors with access to the system, according to Kroll, a London-based consultancy firm.
The crimes vary, sometimes resulting from a disgruntled employee and other times as a result of a widespread theft operation. The Ponemon study lists several common cyber crimes, including:
-Creating and distributing viruses
-Posting private company information in a public forum online
-Compromising online bank accounts
-Theft of intellectual property
-Identity theft.
The first step in combating such crimes is a formal risk management plan. Creating an effective plan takes tremendous resources, and it must be constant monitored. Large firms are more likely to have complex risk management tools and programs in place to identify and manage exposures. A smaller business is less likely to be able to afford the time and money needed for such a program.
Insuring Cyber Risk
Cyber crimes have been around for several years. Insurance companies have developed policies designed to cover many different exposures. Some policies are specifically designed to cover first-party exposures while others address third-party exposures. Some policies cover both.
Businesses must evaluate cyber risk from both a first-party and third-party perspective. First-party losses are costs that cover the company’s own expenses caused by a cyber crime. Examples of such costs may include notification and credit monitoring for compromised individuals (note that some policies consider notification costs as a third-party coverage), data restoration, system repair and lost income.
Traditional first-party insurance policies typically limit or exclude coverage for cyber crimes. For this reason, a cyber insurance policy that covers first-party costs should coordinate with other first-party insurance policies. Such policies may include equipment breakdown, crime and other property insurance.
When a cyber crime occurs against the first party’s system or operations, third parties may be affected. Examples of third-party exposures include: infringement of copyright, invasion of privacy, unauthorized access to confidential information, software that causes the third party’s system to fail, and theft of identity, medical or other private data.
Third-party costs may include defense costs and judgments or settlements for lawsuits brought by customers, employees or others. Costs may also result from an investigation brought by a regulatory body.
Traditional third-party insurance policies typically limit or exclude coverage for cyber crimes. For this reason, a cyber insurance policy that covers third-party costs should coordinate with other third-party insurance policies. Such policies may include professional and general liability, technology and other liability insurance.
Important Considerations
When reviewing coverage for cyber crime, consider the following:
-Is the liability coverage sufficient to assist with costs associated with defense, settlements and judgments that the business is legally obligated to pay?
-Is the coverage for so-called “remediation” sufficient? Remediation refers to costs associated with a data breach. These costs may include the cost of investigation, consumer notification, credit monitoring and public relations and may be mandated by state law. Currently, 47 states have privacy and/or breach notice laws requiring businesses to make timely notifications to consumers when a breach has occurred, regardless if any damage is actually done. The laws differ by state. Many such laws require the first party to pay notification costs, such as mailings, setting up a website and providing a consumer hotline. These efforts cost an average of $9 per customer. Many businesses also offer affected customers access to credit-monitoring services that range from $10 to $60 annually per person.
-Is the coverage for the cost to investigate and close the breach sufficient? Such costs may include hundreds of dollars per hour for computer forensics experts and attorneys and the cost of installing new systems.
Don’t Go It Alone
There is no “standard” cyber insurance policy. A thorough examination of the policy’s terms with your Trusted Choice® insurance professional is a necessary step to identify potential gaps in coverage. Your Trusted Choice® agent will help you determine your exposure and if there is an enhancement available to one of your firm’s existing policies. If such an enhancement is not available or proves insufficient, your agent will assist you in determining which policy will best protect your firm from costs associated with cyber crime.
Summer Storm Recovery Tips
Independent insurance agents not only advise clients about insurance, but they’re disaster readiness consultants. It is imperative to know what your risks are and what to do in the event of a hurricane. We recommend meeting with a Trusted Choice® independent insurance agent who can consult with you in assessing your risks and ensuring that you, your family and your home are prepared in the event of a disaster. Trusted Choice® offers many disaster-specific readiness and recovery tips for consumers.
GETTING STARTED
A good way to begin your planning process is to gather as much information as you can.
There are numerous resources available to guide you through the process of getting your
household prepared to deal with a disaster. Trusted Choice® offers many
disaster-specific readiness and recovery tips for consumers including the following
suggestions to get started:
• Make a list of each of your insurance policy numbers and the insurance company name,
and keep the information in your wallet, purse, or on your mobile device. For example,
nearly all states use some form of a wallet-size auto ID card, which is required to be kept
on your person, or in the vehicle. It's a good idea to do have similar information with you
on all your other insurance coverages.
• Make a record of your insurance agent's web site address, and keep this information in
your wallet, purse or mobile device. After a widespread catastrophe, more and more
agencies post information about claims procedures on their web site. This is especially
important in cases where the agency itself has been affected, and has set up temporary
operations at another location. In addition, agency web sites will usually post emergency
insurance claim phone numbers, etc.
• Use social media to contact your insurance agent. Many agencies use some form of
social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, etc., and these information outlets can provide
vital, timely information about claims procedures and other necessary information for
policyholders.
• Find out how you and your neighbors would be informed about an imminent disaster.
• Ask if evacuation routes have been established.
• Contact your city's or town's planning and emergency assistance organizations. Ask
them for information about disaster planning.
• Contact your children's school(s) or day care center to learn about the emergency plans
they have in place.
• If a family member is in an elder care facility, check to see what emergency procedures
they will follow.
• Take a First Aid/CPR class from the American Red Cross.
• If you have pets, have a contingency plan in place. Many emergency shelters won't
accept them.