Keevily Spero Whitelaw Inc.

Dear Safety Group Member. Would you like to get up to $500 back on your workers comp premium? HERE IS HOW! https://keevilyworkcomp.com//up-to-500-credit-for-ppe-in-/

We participate in the Virtual Safety Symposium 2020 hosted by Trucking Association of New York. Here you can find one of our presentation. If you are a TANY member and you want more information about our Workers Comp Program please contact us at 800-523-5516

Serving the NY State Trucking Industry, Safety Group #588 was established by the Trucking Association of NY (TANY) in 2011. This program gives the TANY members the opportunity to reduce their workers compensation costs.

Keevily has served the construction industry for over 80 years! Reach us at 800-523-5516

Protect Your Business Income Most commercial packages include some form of business income coverage, but do you know what this term means and what amount of money is enough? As a business owner, you must consider your normal operating expenses in a given month: payroll, rent, and other overhead costs. You must also consider profits in a given month and if those profits vary throughout the year (e.g., seasonal profits). There are intricate spreadsheets that your insurance age...nt or broker can help you navigate if you want to determine an accurate number. These spreadsheets ask for a lot of data, but much of it can be gathered from an annual financial report. Another item to consider is the term business income with extra expense. Maybe you have a business that requires a brick-and-mortar facility with certain equipment to operate. What if you experience a loss that destroys that equipment or you need to rent space elsewhere while your building is repaired? The extra expense part of business income coverage gives you money for rented equipment and expedited payouts to get up and running in temporary operations so that you do not lose your customers. You may also have to hire temporary employees during this time frameagain, an extra expense to consider. On the other hand, your business may be able to operate without your brick-and-mortar facilities and people could work at home if your building burned down. But don’t write off the extra expense exposure just yet! There are other incidents that can cause business income interruptions. As part of your business continuity plan, you should look at business income disruption exposures and talk to us at Keevily about options for protecting against crippling revenue and expenditure events. www.Keevily.com

Commercial Auto Insurance Limits Many companies get business auto insurance with $1 million in liability limits and consider their risk covered. But what about some of the other jargon you may see on your policyspecifically first-party benefits and uninsured/underinsured limits? Should you, as the business owner, stick to the minimum or go beyond to maximize your protection?... Most often, a commercial package policy has minimum or low limits that shield your company from typical liability losses. The business, in this case, asks each individual’s personal auto insurance to provide primary coverage while the employee is driving on company time. Workers compensation insurance will take care of the employee if injured in the course of work duties. But what if you are a small business and your family uses the company vehicle? Should you increase these limits? Maybeor you can consider personal auto policies for all the family members who drive company vehicles. Keevuily can help you sort these issues out. You will need to know who will be driving the vehicles in question, the frequency of use, and what current personal auto policies are in place on the drivers at issue. Having the right commercial auto policy will reduce the chances that your company will have unexpected, serious losses due to vehicular accidents. www.Keevily.com

Small Businesses: Sole Proprietorship or LLC? Business owners often start up quickly as a sole proprietorship and do not consider the implications from having their personal name associated with the business. If given the choice, wouldn’t you want to separate yourself personally from potential liabilities of your business?... A limited liability company (LLC) is one such strategy: an LLC has its own unique name, has its own federal employee identification number, and can create a barrier between the individual who owns the business and the business name itself. In contrast, a sole proprietorship usually lists the business owner’s personal name, and this is reflected on the business’s insurance policy. If someone slips and falls at your business, do you want the business or the individual business owner to face the liability costs? If your name is listed on the business’s title (as in a sole proprietorship), it may open you up to being sued personally! Talk to us at Keevily today about the insurance advantages and disadvantages of the different ownership designations available to you. Call us at 800-526-5516

New Operations: Don’t Assume You Are Covered We live in an entrepreneurial age, and if you own a business, you most certainly have thought about trying new operations or endeavors, but have you brought insurance into your plans? Your current commercial package insurance policy reflects the risks you had when you procured it, so you should not assume that protection exists for a new operation. The good news is your commercial insurance policy can be modified to accommodate new... operations, which is often necessary. Additions may include new locations, equipment, employees or activities. Don’t let a failure to procure the right insurance expose your new endeavor to failure. Make coverage a priority consideration in your business expansion strategy, and get the right protection from the earliest stage onward. www.Keevily.com

Baby, You Need Life Insurance You know a baby will change your life. Not only your daily life but your financial portfolio will also be affected as you take every measure to protect your child’s future. Life insurance especially term life, which is a policy that typically ends around the 65th birthday of the policyholder is important. It is intended to cover costs like a mortgage, car payments, living expenses, and higher education until the child is sufficiently independ...ent. Term life policies can be complemented with universal or whole-life insurance, which ends at the policyholder’s death, often up to age 99. A return-on-premium term life insurance policy is an attractive offering to many. It guarantees a return on the money invested at the end of the policy term (typically 20-30 years), as long as you pay your premium on time during the life of the policy and do not go into cancellation. Many of these policies also have the option, at the end of the policy term, to convert the invested premium into a small, permanent death benefit to cover final expenses, such as a funeral. If you want to start your child off on the right financial foot, you may wish to secure a permanent life insurance policy for children. Typically, these are paid over the course of the child’s youth and can be (a) very affordable and (b) convertible to a larger amount of coverage when the child takes ownership of the policy upon reaching adulthood. This is a great gift for your children, who will now have guaranteed life insurance for the rest of their lives, even if they develop a condition or disease that would otherwise make life insurance unavailable or unaffordable. www.Keevily.com

Employment Practices Complaints Can Cost You Today, more than ever, allegations against employers for unfair or discriminatory practices are seen in the news, and lawsuits and reputational damage are common. However, unless your business has employment practices liability insurance, you could face adverse financial risks. An important asset to a business’s insurance plan, employment practices liability insurance will help pay for a company to defend itself should a disgruntl...ed employee file a suit for wrongful employment practices, including harassment, unfair hiring/firing practices, and discrimination. This coverage may also provide access to legal services and risk prevention advice. Even if your company has a stellar record and policies that clearly support best employment practices, you could be accused. Remember that even the innocent must mount a defense, and that can be costly. Don’t gamble your assets and your reputation. Take a look at employment practices liability insurance as a means to protecting both. Contact us to learn more 800-523-5516

Life Insurance Through Your Employer Some employers offer group life insurance as an employee benefit. It is an affordable option that often requires no medical exam. In other cases, employers may provide the opportunity to get individual life insurance as a voluntary benefitalso usually very affordable. In the latter case, you can typically take that policy with you if you change jobs, though the premium price may change. There are some concerns, however, that you should ...address. What if I become disabled? Will I still have coverage? How will it be paid? Can I keep coverage if I change employers, and how will my premiums change? What if my employer changes insurance plans or eliminates coverage altogether? Will I be too old or have a condition that will prevent me from obtaining affordable coverage on the individual market? Discuss your life insurance options with us at Keevily before making any decisions. You may find there is an alternative method or a combination of life insurance policies that is better suited to your needs than just the employer-provided option. www.Keevily.com

Careful on That Lease A lease agreement is a binding contract between the lessor and the lessee. Do you know what you are agreeing to when you sign that lease? It might surprise you to learn that, depending on the type of lease, you have certain responsibilities that put you at financial riskrisk that isn’t covered by your commercial insurance policy. Before signing, read every provision of the contract carefully to make sure you are not agreeing to financial responsibilitie...s you are unprepared to cover. Better yet, ask us at Keevily to review the lease before you sign it to verify that your insurance policy will cover the exposures you agree to carry. Oftentimes, business owners think they need their insurance policy to simply list the landlord as additional insured, and they do not review the lease requirements with their insurance professional. In the event of a claim, the insurance carrier may ask for a copy of that lease. If the business has agreed to something that is not consistent with its commercial insurance policy, coverage can be denied. As you review the lease provisions, carefully inspect maintenance and property duties, additional insured requests, and hold harmless and indemnification agreements. Your lease should play a critical role in how your commercial insurance policy is written. Call us to learn more 800-523-5516

Tax-Deductible Savings for Healthcare A health savings account (HSA) is an account you can establish and use for medical costs if you have a qualifying high-deductible health insurance policy. Some employers offer HSAs, but individuals insured outside employer plans can set up their own. For plan year 2020, the minimum deductible for a qualifying individual high-deductible health insurance plan is $1,400 ($2,700 for a family). When looking for health insurance, ask if it is H...SA eligible. You can contribute up to $3,550 for self-only coverage and up to $7,100 for a family policy in 2020, and funds in an HSA roll over to the next year if you don’t use them. The money you deposit in an HSA is tax deductible, and it can be used to pay for expenses under your deductible, as well as co-payments and other expenses, including some costs that aren’t covered by your insurance policy. www.Keevily.com