Bradley Altman

As a business owner or a contractor, you know that having the right contractors insurance is imperative. Construction sites or homes that are being remodeled are prime places for accidents.

Any kind of contractor needs insurance. Most people and companies won’t hire you if you don’t have coverage. Having contractors insurance will cover injuries or damage that happen during work, and will protect you from lawsuits.

Contractors and those who hire them must consider worst-case scenarios. Are you prepared for what would happen if you were suddenly faced with five injured employees after scaffolding collapsed, or a faulty elevator dropped them down a floor? Everyone understands that accidents will happen, but sometimes we don’t think about accidents happening to more than one employee at a time. This can result in a lot of liability costs.

Accidents can be as small as an employee getting shocked from faulty electricity, to something as big as a crane slamming into something. Imagine a safety harness that’s so old it breaks. Even welding rods can be dangerous.

Does your contractor business manufacture, maintain, or repair many machines? What happens if an employee is injured on one of your trucks or someone’s finger is cut off by one of your power tools? Forklifts often cause accidents because pedestrians don’t notice them reversing. Really, the number of possibilities for accidents involving contractor machinery is countless.

We’re Altman Insurance, an independent insurance company based in Olympia, Washington. To learn more about contractors insurance, call us today!

With the cost of business offices and suites so high right now, it’s no surprise that more and more companies are asking their employees to work from their spare rooms and garages. With computers, people can easily work from home. Employers cut their expensive office overheads by having their full-time staff telecommute. Those who are self-employed freelance or run e-commerce sites. Home becomes Your Office.

Despite this, most people never think about how this affects their home insurance. They have their home insurance policy, sure, but they need insurance that most other people don't need. Whether you’re working from home for a company or you’re self-employed, you need to consider extra insurance.

Let’s say you work from home for a company, and they’ve provided you with a computer or other equipment. You need to make sure that your company insures their property! If they don’t, you may be expected to pay for damages or loss in the event of your home catching fire, being robbed, or being damaged by storms. Since regular home insurance policies don’t cover property belonging to those outside your immediate family, the cost to repair or replace your company’s equipment could be devastating.

If you run your own business from home, you need to find out how much all of your equipment and inventory is worth. Even if some of the value is covered under your home insurance, there’s almost certainly no cover if you take any of it outside the home, and no liability if anyone is injured while dealing with your business. If your business is small, you need to add an endorsement to your policy.

But if your business is bigger, there’s no substitute for a work-at-home business owners insurance policy. Other good ideas to make sure you’re entirely covered: keep your computer files backed up in another location, and talk to someone trustworthy who knows all about insurance in regards to home businesses or working from home.

Be sure to insure your home business or company’s equipment as you do all of your other valuables.

Altman Insurance is an independent insurance agency in the Olympia, Washington area. To learn more about Olympia, Tacoma, Lacey, and Seattle home or business insurance, contact them today.

Business Insurance: every company needs it. Even if you think you have the safest company in the world, don’t risk it. Sometimes it just takes a lawsuit from an unbalanced employee to wipe out a whole business that’s just gotten on its feet. Even if you run a business by yourself somehow, you could get hurt or sick for a month – what then? Who’s bringing in the money?

No one is exempt from unfortunate situations in the workplace. Business insurance is a must. Here are a few tips on how to be smart when buying it.

Know & Assess Your Risks. When you buy business insurance, your insurance agent determines the level of risk they will accept when issuing policies. Your premium (the amount you pay for the coverage) will depend on a few things – where your business is located, what sort of building it’s in, what type of work it is, how many employees you’ll have, etc. Knowing right off hand these facts will help your insurance agent find the right policy for you.

Consider a Business Owners Policy. You can get business insurance separately or in a package called a business owners policy (BOP). Sometimes if you purchase separate policies from different insurers, it results in higher total premiums. A BOP combines all the normal coverages (cover property, general liability, work vehicles, business interruption) into a standard package at a lower cost. BOPs simplify the insurance buying process, and can save you money.

Shop Around. The extent and costs of coverage vary from company to company. Some brokers specialize in insuring specific types of business, while others can connect you with policies specific to your business activities. For example, if you operate a tow truck service, you'll want to find an agent that can help find policies that specifically cover automotive service businesses. Often specialist brokers can get you the best coverage and best rates.

Assess Your Insurance Coverage on an Annual Basis. As your business grows, so do your liabilities. You sometimes gain more employees, more equipment, more property, etc. If you’ve purchased or replaced equipment or expanded operations, you should contact your insurance agency to discuss how these changes could affect your business insurance policy.

Altman Insurance is an independent insurance agency in the Olympia, Washington area. To learn more about Olympia, Tacoma, Lacey, and Seattle business insurance, contact them today.

I have a wealthy cousin who would probably order a $400 steak just to say he’d done it. I, however, would never in a hundred years purchase a piece of meat that would cost me so much – a piece of meat that, by the end of the day, I would never see again.

Or would I? Certainly not intentionally. Well, let’s just say I did eat a $400 steak. I bought it, too. Two weeks ago, I took a piece of meat from my freezer and thawed it. I cooked it for dinner and ate it. It was delicious. The next day, I found myself to be very, very, very sick. When my wife looked at the steak package, she saw that the meat had indeed expired. I was in trouble.

My wife offered all day to take me to the doctor, but I kept saying “I’ll ride it out.” Why? Because I’m in between jobs and I currently don’t have health insurance. I knew it would cost at least $150, even at a walk-in clinic.

However, by the late afternoon, I couldn’t take any more. There was nothing left in me, and I was dizzy and dehydrated. I crawled into my car and let my wife take me to the nearest walk-in.

Sitting in the waiting room, I felt awful, but I was comforted by a large sign that hung over the sign-in area. Visits Free, it said, and Lab Work $70. Well, I definitely wouldn’t need anything except lab work, which I assumed meant a urine test or a little blood work. So basically $70 for that? Not bad, I thought.

I was wrong. The doctor insisted on giving me an anti-nausea shot as well as an antibiotic shot, plus a urine test, before writing a prescription for me. By the end of my visit, I was grateful for their help, but appalled at my final bill: $250. My antibiotics and anti-nausea pills were another $150.

I asked both the doctor and the pharmacy how much the visit and the medicine would have been with health insurance coverage. The visit: $30, the medicine, $15. I’ve since gotten health coverage.

My advice: never risk it. It just takes one accident or illness while you’re uninsured to cost you hundreds of dollars. My $400 steak was not worth it.

Altman Insurance is an independent insurance agency in the Olympia, Washington area. To learn more about Olympia, Tacoma, Lacey, and Seattle health insurance, contact them today.

It’s no secret that we’re in financially tight times. Between the economic crush, sky-high gas prices, and rising food costs, everyone is watching what they spend. It seems like some people can’t even spare a dollar here and there – so naturally, most people aren’t thinking too much about their car insurance. In fact, a lot of people may even be thinking of cancelling their car insurance, or not buying it at all.

But besides saving you loads of money if you’re in an accident, auto insurance is mandatory by law if you have a car, and getting caught without it just is not worth it – it will cost you much more in the long run. A better idea is to keep your auto insurance, but take our tips on how you could lower your premium:

If you haven’t updated your policy lately, ask us to check it out for you. Maybe your lifestyle has changed in ways that can result in a lower premium. Or maybe we can look into a different carrier for you.

Ask us if you’re available for any discounts. Certain factors can sometimes lower your premium, like having multiple policies with us, good student discounts, if you’ve attended defensive driving classes, retirement discounts, safety discounts, and loyalty discounts.

You may also be able to increase your deductible. This applies to your collision and comprehensive coverage (not your liability) and is the insurance that specifically covers your car. Increasing your deductible can cut your premium dramatically.

You may also want to think about cleaning up your credit report, which affects whether a company is willing to insure you, and at what rate.

And lastly, if you’re getting auto insurance to cover a new car, think about what kind of car willl be kindest to your budget: keep in mind the cars with the highest theft rates, repair costs, and what types of cars have a reputation for living a good “life.” If you’re having trouble deciding between two models, give us a call to see if there is a notable difference in the insurance costs.

There are always ways to lower your auto insurance costs. Give us a call today to find out the best way to lower yours.

Altman Insurance is an independent insurance agency in the Olympia, Washington area. To learn more about Olympia, Tacoma, Lacey, and Seattle auto insurance, contact them today.