Liability coverage is what pays for damages when you are at fault in a vehicle accident. What if your car is stored? Do you collected need to carry liability on it? The acknowledge is not clear cut and depends on different factors. The chances of a vehicle being involved in an accident while being stored is greatly diminished, but doesn’t always alleviate the requirements for state insurance coverage.
Financed Cars - Even if you are not currently driving a car and have it in storage, a lien holder may require you to preserve the liability coverage intact the entire time you are making payments to them. You should check with the institution or entity that you make your car payments to before dropping liability coverage to ensure that you are complying with the terms of your loan agreement.
Classic Cars - Classic cars and some special use vehicles that are only used a couple times a year or for special events may qualify for exceptions. Check with a local insurance agent to decide what concessions can be made for limited usage vehicles.
Unregistered Cars - An affidavit of non-use could attend you of the requirement to carry liability insurance. Laws very across the United States so you should check with an agent in your location to determine if you can legally go without liability. Some states require all registered vehicles to carry liability even though they are not currently being used on the roadways. Whether or not you need to register the car will often be sure by where you are storing it. Find out what laws apply to vehicles parked in your driveway or in view from public roadways versus those that are parked out of recognize in a garage or rented storage facility. Some local laws could require cars parked in plain peep to be registered and insured. Opting to park them in other locales may be an option for you if you are trying to gash out the cost of insuring an unused vehicle.
Other considerations you should make when storing a car is whether or not your car is covered in the case of a loss caused by theft, vandalism, fire or other anxiety. A car parked in your garage may not be covered by your home owners or property owners insurance, so you should check on your coverage to make sure you don’t incur a loss that you can’t pay for. Storage facilities where you rent space generally don’t have insurance to cover your items that are in storage.
Armed with some knowledge about the laws and your insurance, you can avoid unnecessary losses and out of pocket expenses.
Resources
CarInsurance.org
Love To Know, Do I Need Liability Insurance on a Car in Storage
Florida Department of Highway Safety, Vehicle Insurance Q & A
Car Insurance Comparison
Filed under Vehicle Liability Insurance by on Feb 27th, 2011. Comment. 
Not everyone thinks about insurance. If you have never had to use it, then it is probably is the furthest thing from your mind. I am here to remind you of the hazards of not having it, and what could happen to your world if things were to go terribly wrong.
Before I get into the list, I need to roar you what brought this about. On the way home from work yesterday, around 6:15pm or so, I was at a light attempting to turn right on to a main thoroughfare, near my home, when I heard sirens. This is a pretty common occurrence, so I was not too alarmed. I was, though, on my Bluetooth headset talking to my husband when this was happening, so I thought I would be the reporter that I am and inform him that he would be hearing sirens in a slight or two. The sirens got louder and louder, and then like a flash they were honest in front of me as I waited to turn right! First the large red fire truck, then the red and white fire truck, and then the SUV for the Battalion Chief rolled by as well! Again, this was comely provocative, seeing how they were right in front of me, travelling down the same road. But the fire house was just a block away, on the other side of the overpass, so I wasn’t worried. This wasn’t even the department assigned to my area, so I had nothing to peril about. Then my husband said something that really freaked me out.
I finally made my right turn and was ready for my mile or so hurry through stoplights and 3 lanes of traffic, anticipating squeezing my kids until they squeaked, when my husband said the he could hear the sirens very well, and then noticed a lot of confusion around one of our neighbor’s house! He confirmed with me that there were fire trucks outside our home and all along the interior street of our lovely mobile home park! (On a side note I need to tell you that mobile homes, when they catch fire, can go up pretty fast and then, because they are so close together, the fire can spread even faster. Mobile homes are not built like normal homes and many have very thin plywood walls that burn very fast.) Here I am traveling down the same path I do every night, but what makes this one unique is the fact that I am following the emergency vehicles to my fill neighborhood! Since I was on the phone with my husband, I knew that he, the kids, our dog and home were not burning, but a neighbor’s house was! I was trying to stay serene and the fire trucks blasted their sirens and horns, trying to get the packed street cleared enough to get through. I begged my husband for more information, and all I heard on his end was our baby daughter crying and more sirens. I was less than two minutes from the house when the fire trucks turned the corner. There are two ways to get to our place, and the fire trucks split up and took both paths! Oh, no…
My husband told me that it was the house that Louie lived in. Louie is a dog we know and I couldn’t remember which house it was. I was racking my brain as I saw these emergency vehicles turning down my street, praying that my friend’s house was contained and it would not spread to my tin can house! (And yes, I was worried about their house and family.) I pull up to my street, and like many mobile home parks, there is only one main entrance to a sea of side streets with many, many houses closely packed together. The entrance was blocked by two large fire trucks and multiple police cars and police SUVs. I pulled over and asked a police woman a few questions. I asked her, after I told her that I live there, what happened. She said we have a fire in one of the mobile homes, but she thinks it was out already. I gulped and inquired to which one it was. She told me and my face froze. It was three houses down from mine! She saw the scare in my face and reassured me that the fire was out, and that they would be clearing out in just a few minutes. I nodded and said a weak thank you. My husband was still in my ear (my Bluetooth) giving me play by plays of what was happening. I drove around the block and by the time I got back, most of the circus was cleared out. I drove into the park and up to my house. I wanted to ask my husband which house it was, but when I turned the last corner, in the relieve of the park, I stopped and gasped. There it was. Two fire trucks parked two doors down from my house, lights still flashing, and men in their fire gear. I pulled in and hugged my kids.
Once I was breathing again, I pulled out my camera and took pictures. I found out that it was their curtains that caught on fire and was quickly put out again. Curtains can go up in a few seconds and light the rest of the house if not caught mercurial enough. I told my husband that I needed to go online and pay my insurance because it was a few days late. My other neighbor just looked at me in a puzzled scheme and then glanced at the fire trucks again. She hugged her baby boy and asked me,” You can have insurance on a house that you rent? ” Stunned, I said, “Of course you can. It is called renters insurance. Let me tell you about it.”
After I told her about it, I thought about how many others don’t realize that they can have it as well. Here are the top 5 reasons why you should have it. They are not numbered because all the reasons are important in different ways.
Personal Property: Unlike homeowners insurance that protects the structure of your home and personal property, renters insurance protects the personal property you have, but not the structure. Your landlord is responsible for that part. So you sit back and say that you really don’t have that much stuff and it can easily be replaced. Okay, I can buy that. Now do me a favor… See at the computer you are reading this on. Look at the stuff around it, and now spread your line of vision to the other rooms in the house. Can you really afford to replace everything; electronics, furniture (including beds, dressers, etc.), kid’s toys, and all of your clothes? Can you do all of this while living out of a hotel and unexcited going on with your daily routines? Most renters’ policies start out at $25,000 coverage at a super low annual premium. For my location, mine is only $125 a year!
Loss of Use: This ties in to the above example very well. If you do have a fire, and your house is uninhabitable, where are you going to finish? Renters insurance has a Loss of Use coverage that will put you up in a hotel while your home is being cleaned up. The actual time frame depends on the coverage your insurance company offers. It is best to consult your agent.
Liability: Has anyone ever threatened to sue you? Have you ever done anything that might justify being sued? Do you own a dog? These are all questions that you need to ponder to better understand why you need renters insurance. If something happens at your house and a neighbor decides to sue you, your liability coverage will kick in and help you out. Most policies come with a basic amount of $100,000 base coverage included in the annual premium. Judge about this. You are walking your dog, on a normal day, in your normal routine and out of nowhere a dinky child runs up to pet your lovely pooch. Your pooch turns to lick his hand and his tooth accidentally cuts the child’s hand. No big deal, right? It was an innocent accident. Well, that is still considered a dog bite and you can be sued! Simple things can turn ugly, and being prepared is the best map to cope with it.
Damage to Other’s Property: How many times have you told your son or daughter not to play baseball in the street? The one that went way back, way back, tell it goodbye… unbiased broke your neighbor’s window and they are furious. What to do? Can you afford the expense fair then and there to fix their window? No? Well, something like that is covered under your renters insurance. Talk to your agent and watch what kind of coverage you can get and how it will best suit your needs.
Medical Payments for Others: So, you are having a party and a friend trips on your stairs and sprains his ankle. He needs to go to the doctor and you are responsible for his medical bill. Can you open your checkbook and fork over a few hundred for an emergency room visit right then and there? Well, believe it or not, this kind of thing is also covered on a renter’s policy.
Renters insurance has many aspects that most people don’t know even exist for people that do not own their home. Here is another true story that happened to my sister-in-law last summer.
My two teenage nieces were doing laundry for their mother. It was tedious and they decided to build the clothes in the dryer before going to bed, as they usually did. A little while later they all woke up to their two story apartment filled with smoke and the smoke alarms blasting away. The fire department came and extinguished the blaze as all four family members, and their two cats (okay six family members) watched in fright as their home smoldered.
Yes, they were very happy everyone was fine, physically, but all of them were torn up inside as they watched their charred belongings being sifted through by the fire fighters looking for hot spots. Where were they to go? What were they to do now at 3 o’clock in the morning? They went to a hotel and checked in with only their clothes on their backs as the crews completed their cleanup. The next morning they called their insurance agent.
I won’t give you all of the details of their case, but I will tell you that they had renters insurance and are ecstatic they did. Their insurance put them up in a hotel and gave them money to repurchase their belongings, including the school clothes just purchased to the girls. I know they did not even want to fathom what would have happened if they were not insured. In the end it all turned out just beautiful. The insurance also covered for the well-kept up by a separate company after the fire was put out. (You need to clean up all the water before mold sets in.) They are now a very happy family and they found out that the dryer they had objective purchased about a year prior was the culprit. Bad dryer! They are now advocates in their apartment complex. If they study new people moving in, the remind them to ask about renters insurance and tell their legend. They have helped build many families by doing this task.
One other tid bit I need to mention is that your ‘liability’ and ‘medical payments to others’ are not subject to your deductible. The ‘damage to other’s property’ and your ‘personal property’ claims are. Talk to your agent about what deductible will best fit you and your family. You might also want to consider the amount of peace of mind you accept for such a small amount of money.
So that ends this article. Following the fire trucks to my believe home and seeing them parked two and three doors down was a wakeup call for me. I am going to make a list of all my belongings in case this was to happen to me. I am also purchasing a fire safe box to put it in. The insurance company will ask you if you have a list of lost/damaged items, and when disaster strikes, that is the last thing on your mind. Did I mention I am calling to update my insurance?
Filed under Vehicle Liability Insurance by on Jan 22nd, 2011. Comment.
When filling out a Schedule C for your tax return, there are a wide range of items you must put down for your expenses. Chances are that you may miss a couple items that could save you some money. Here is a look at all the expenses that could be put down on your Schedule C, going line by line on the form.
Advertising – This is any expense used to promote the business. Newspaper ads, making flyers, what it costs to distribute fliers, television promotions, radio promotions, internet banners, and business cards are the most common examples.
Car and Truck Expenses – Actual car and truck expenses are deducted on line 9. Depreciation will go on line 13. Lease payments go on line 20a. The mileage allowance rate may be taken on line 9. On part IV of the Schedule C, you will be able to build more expenses there.
Commission and Fees – Here you can put down amounts you paid to individuals or businesses for almost all services. You can put down anything here that was not achieve down on any other line of the Schedule C. This does not include employee wages or benefits. This does not include any amount paid to independent contractors, either, nor subcontractors that work for you.
Contract Labor – These payments are what you can pay for compensation pay for independent contractors or subcontractors for services. You must distinguish between an employee and an independent contractor.
Depletion – The only items this pertains to is oil and gas wells, exhaustible natural deposits, and timber.
Depreciation – This is where you are allowed to recover the cost of business property that will be used for more than one year. There are positive methods you must look into in order to determine how much depreciation and what items of yours are able to be depreciated.
Employee Benefit Programs – Here you can spot money contributed to employee fringe benefit programs that are deductible. This includes those to education, recreation, health, dependent care, or adoption assistance programs.
Insurance (Other than Health) – This constitutes for premiums paid to protect the business. Advance payments may be deducted only in the year of which they apply. The types of insurance include fire, theft, flood, merchandise and inventory, credit, workers’ compensation, business interruption, errors and omissions, malpractice, and product liability. Vehicle insurance can be deducted with the rest of your car expenses on line 9.
Mortgage Interest (Paid to Banks, etc.) – This line is venerable to deduct interest on mortgage payments that were made out to institutions on real property that was mature in the business and that the taxpayer got a Form 1098 for. If this business is located in your home, the mortgage interest, real estate taxes, rent and utilities will be entered on line 30. In order to enter the amount on line 30, you must first complete a form 8829 to determine what expenses you deduct.
Other Interest- Here you can deduct interest on business indebtedness except for mortgage interest. Mortgage interest is placed on line 16.a. Finance charges on business loans or credit card purchases are eligible. Interest that is paid in advance must be deducted in the year of which it applies to.
Legal and Professional Services – Here you can put down attorney, accounting, or other fees that are necessary in order to conduct the business you run. Expenses for the preparation of tax forms can also be placed on this line.
Office Expenses – This line has a wide range of items that can be place. Simply, it is items that are needed to help the business run. Examples are pads, pens, pencils, books, items for computers and printers, calculators, cash registers are just a couple of the long list of items possible. Basically, if you need to use it for your office, it can be placed here.
Pension and Profit-Sharing Plans – Here are amounts paid for contributions to pensions or annuity plans for employees.
Rent or Lease – Here you place money that was paid for which rent is due. Lease payments are eligible in this category. Vehicles, machinery or equipment that was rented or leased should be put on line 20a. All other items should be put on 20b.
Repairs and Maintenance – The amount here is what you paid for maintenance that are necessary for the business to function. The services paid for must have been ordinary. This includes costs for labor, supplies, or any other items needed for a repair. The value of unpaid services toward friends does not constitute as an eligible item for this category. You need to distinguish whether the repair was needed as a repair and not an improvement in the building. These improvements, called capital expenditures must be depreciated. A capital expenditure is a change that was made to increase the value to the asset or prolong the life, increase the productivity, or change its use. It is best to seek abet from a tax professional for specific questions.
Supplies – Simply put, any supply that is necessary to run your business can be set here.
Taxes and Licenses – Items placed here can only be those that are related directly to the business. Real estate and personal property taxes on business assets are allowed, along with state and local taxes. Payroll taxes, federal highway use tax, and sales taxes are allowed, too. Licenses that are needed for this trade or business can also be deducted from this line.
Travel, Meals, and Entertainment – These may be minute and are based on the needs of the employees. There are some limits as to what you can or cannot deduct.
Utilities – Items deducted here can be the cost of heat, lights, power, telephone and Internet access. Allocations must be made to distinguish how worthy money is being spent for work and pleasure. For telephones lines, if a second line is added for business use, this can be placed here. However, if there is only one telephone line, this amount cannot be placed here. Any long distance charges pertaining to business use can be placed on this line.
Wages – In order to deduct wages, they must be ordinary and necessary. This means they must be a fair trace and must be out of necessity. They must be for services that were rendered and paid during the tax year of which they were provided. Examples of qualified wages are salaries, wages, or any other compensation.
Employment Credits – Credits that are given to employees that are from certain groups or areas of high employment can be deducted.
Other Expenses – In this category, you may put down anything that is ordinary and necessary to make your business function. Bank service charges, business-related publication costs or laundry expenses for uniforms are some of the expenses eligible. Items used for personal utilize may not be deducted for business use. When items are passe for both, only the business fragment or value should be added. For an example, if you got your taxes professionally done, you could put down the forms you paid for pertaining to business down in this category, but cannot put down the cost of the other forms pertaining to your personal life.
Home-Office Expenses – If a portion or your home is your business and you greet customers, you may deduct the expenses needed to operate the office. Use form 8829 to calculate what expenses can be tallied up. This amount is entered onto your Schedule C, line 30.
Filed under Vehicle Liability Insurance by on Dec 16th, 2010. Comment.
