Happy 236th Birthday, America!

In June 1776, as Thomas Jefferson composed a draft of the Declaration of Independence from a second floor parlor of a bricklayer's house in Philadelphia, the largest invasion force in British military history was headed for New York Harbor. By the time the last of the fifty-six signers had affixed their names to the final, edited document months later, an invading force of British soldiers had landed at Staten Island, the British had taken New York City, and the American patriots had committed themselves to a long and bloody struggle for liberty and independence.

The Declaration announced to the world the separation of the thirteen colonies from Great Britain and the establishment of the United States of America. It explained the causes of this radical move with a long list of charges against the King. In justifying the Revolution, it asserted a universal truth about human rights in words that have inspired downtrodden people through the ages and throughout the world to rise up against their oppressors.

Jefferson was not aiming at originality. The Declaration articulates the highest ideals of the Revolution, beliefs in liberty, equality, and the right to self-determination. Americans embraced a view of the world in which a person's position was determined, not by birth, rank, or title, but by talent, ability, and enterprise. It was a widely held view, circulated in newspapers, pamphlets, sermons, and schoolbooks; but it was Thomas Jefferson, the 33-year-old planter from Virginia, who put the immortal words to it.

On July 4, 1776, Congress completed its editing of the document that reduced the text by 25 percent ("mutilations" is what Jefferson called it) and formally adopted the Declaration; on July 19, Congress ordered that a formal copy of the Declaration be prepared for members to sign; and on August 2, the final parchment was presented to Congress and the signing began.

SOURCE:  Archives.gov

High-tech system on vehicles is preventing crashes

Why You Need an Umbrella Policy

Imagine working and saving for decades, only to have it all taken away with one incident.

Personal Umbrella insurance is additional liability insurance, designed to pay out on top of your existing auto and homeowner’s/renter’s insurance policies. For example, you may only have $300,000 in liability coverage on your car insurance. If you are hit with a claim of $1,000,000, you would be on the hook for $700,000 yourself unless you had an adequate umbrella insurance policy.

Banks make people buy home insurance to get mortgages and states require drivers to buy auto insurance. But no one mandates buying a policy that could turn out to be the most important part of your insurance package.

Listed below are a few reasons to buy an umbrella policy:

• A blogger writes something bad about a company and gets sued for defamation.
• A man was asked to cut down a tree from his own yard. He refused, and later a storm blew the tree down and injured someone in the neighboring house.
• Your dog bites someone.
• You have a pool, and a visitor hurts themselves.
• A handyman or contractor hurts themselves on your property.

A personal umbrella insurance policy can give one added liability protection without a large added cost. Additional liability insurance is often inexpensive, especially compared to the added coverage one gains. Having the added protection of a personal umbrella policy is coverage no one should go without.

Visit www.hunt-miller.com for more information on obtaining a Georgia personal umbrella policy.

Understanding The Cost To Rebuild Your Home

The cost to rebuild your home is based on a number of factors and can often be higher than what you could sell your house for. The price of raw building materials may have increased over the past few years, while the value of real estate has generally decreased.

Key factors that impact the cost to rebuild your home include:

• Total living area (square footage of home)
• Style of home (e.g. ranch, contemporary, colonial)
• Exterior wall construction (e.g. frame, brick)
• Number of kitchens and bathrooms and quality of materials
• Garage type (e.g. attached, detached, built-in)
• Special features (e.g. fireplaces, porches, skylights)
• Additions or enhancements (e.g. finished basements; in-law apartment)

Why rebuild costs can differ

Costs to rebuild your home often differ from home market values, mortgage requirements, tax assessments and real estate appraisals. This is due to a number of factors:

• Cost for many raw materials that are needed to make repairs or rebuild have increased in recent years, in some cases very significantly
• Specialized workers are often needed, in the event of a loss, to prevent further damage to your property
• Building codes may have changed since your home was built

Make sure you have the right coverage

Updates, additions and improvements to your home may increase the amount of coverage you need. Most common changes like installing hardwood floors, updating a kitchen or bath or adding a deck can affect the cost to rebuild. 

For more information on home insurance, please call 478-922-8531 or visit our website at
 www.hunt-miller.com to obtain a free home insurance quote.

Source:  Travelers

Rising Gold Prices and Your Need For an Appraisal

Have you received any new gifts of jewelry?  Have you recently had your ring appraised?  In the past 10 years, the price of gold has more than tripled.  Due to the increased price of gold, we have found many of our clients are insured for half of their needed value. We recommend clients obtain an appraisal every 5-10 years.

Listed below are reasons for obtaining an appraisal:

1. To obtain insurance for...

• Loss from theft or home break-ins
• Mysterious disappearance
• Travel accidents, theft or hotel break-ins
• Stones falling out or other damage

2. To confirm the value of a new purchase

• Independence and high ethics
• Honest and accurate evaluations
• Consultants to the consumer

3. For future identification

• Detailed reports guarantee against switching when left somewhere for repair
• Accurate damage assessment based on any change from the original condition
• How many items of jewelry do you have undocumented? If lost or stolen, how will you prove you actually owned the item for tax purposes? Professional Jewelry Appraisals are "legal documents" showing the items actually exist, for you, your family and your heirs.

4. Estates

• Fair market evaluation for tax liability
• Valuation for equitable division of inherited jewelry

5. Divorce

Fair market value for equitable division of property

For more information or to obtain a quote, please call Hunt-Miller Insurance Agency @ 478-922-8531 or visit our website at http://www.hunt-miller.com/

WorkComp Advisor Certification

Hunt-Miller Earns WorkComp Advisor Certification Did you know that more than 50% of companies are paying too much for Workers’ Compensation insurance? There are a variety of reasons for the overcharges and most business owners and agents don’t know how to fix the problem.

 Our agency has recently earned the prestigious Certified WorkComp Advisor designation, conferred by the Institute of WorkComp Professionals. With this certification we now have the background and training to assist companies in gaining refunds and correcting what could become unnecessary, costly mistakes.

 Preston Diamond, president of the Institute of WorkComp Professionals, says because Workers’ Compensation insurance differs from other types of insurance coverage, it is difficult to detect errors. “Unless the insurance agent has the necessary training to locate and correct the errors in Workers’ Compensation coverage, the problems may go undetected and cause business owners to pay higher premiums than required,” says Diamond.

 This certification empowers Hunt-Miller Insurance with the ability not only to spot errors, but also to work more effectively with insurance companies. Because of this training, we will be able to make sure our clients’ Workers’ Compensation records are completely accurate.