People make mistakes, we all do. It’s just a fact of life. Unfortunately, in some businesses, mistakes are costly. One wrong mistake could cost you a major financial loss, not just for you, but for your client as well. So, what do you do to protect yourself against such instances? You get professional indemnity insurance from K. L. Owens and Associates LLC. 

If you are an architect and you have been asked to oversee the construction of a new home only to find that years later, that home has collapsed due to faulty materials or a mistake in the building process, you could be found liable. If you are a doctor that performs a surgery that should have saved a life, but leads to your patient’s passing due to negligence on account of your nurses or staff, you could be found liable. If you are an alarm installation company that has installed an alarm system for a business that fails to alarm when they are robbed due to your employee incorrectly installing the system, you could be found liable. In all of these instances, it is a simple mistake that has led to thousands of dollars of loss and hardship. This is where your errors and omissions insurance coverage would kick in to cover the costs incurred from the mistake, as well as the associated legal feeds.

K. L. Owens and Associates LLC specializes in coverage for high risk individuals or businesses. Call us today for a free quote and to learn more about our personal indemnity insurance options. 

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If you’re trying to start up a small business, we know you’ve got more than 4 questions. You probably have so many questions that you don’t even know where to begin. Well, take deep breath. K. L. Owens and Associates LLC is going to help you with the answer to these 4, and when you have the rest sorted out, just leave those questions in the comments below.

1. Where do I begin with Business Licenses? 

Unfortunately, this answer varies from state to state, city to city. The best place to find the cut and dry answer is with the state’s secretary of state office. It’s their job to provide you with the answers you need to operate your business legally, whether you’re in Atlanta, GA or in Smalltown, USA.

2. Business vs. Personal Assets

Can you run your business assets through your personal bank account? Sure, but do you really want to? Combining your business and personal assets into one account makes things tricky. It’s much easier to separate the two so that if ever someone does ask the question, they won’t be tempted to look into your personal property to settle a financial matter.

3. Do I need an Attorney? 

The short answer to this is, yes. Why? Because they will be the one that protects your assets if an issue ever was to arise, and they can help you walk through all of the legal red tape to get your business started without wasting any additional money or time.

4. What about insurance? 

The best place to start is with a small business insurance provider such as K. L. Owens and Associates LLC. We offer free quotes where we will assess all of your exposures, and help you decide on the right insurance plan that fits your business and your budget.

Are you in the middle of starting your own company or are you thankfully through the startup phase and seeing success? Let us know what your questions are in the comments below.

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Everyone is looking for ways to save these days. Whether it’s clipping coupons, buying on sale, or simply reducing your outgoing expenses, everyone is taking to heart the old adage of “a penny saved is a penny earned.” To help you reduce some of your costs and add to your growing savings fund, K. L. Owens and Associates LLC is going to offer you 5 tips on how to save on your homeowners insurance.

1. Raise Your Deductible

The deductible on your insurance plan is the amount that you will have to pay out of pocket towards a loss before the insurance policy will cover a claim. Most homeowners insurance policies require a deductible of at least $500. Raising that deductible to $1000 could save you up to 25% on your annual premium cost. With those kinds of savings, you could save up the $500 difference in your deducible cost from the reduction in your premium costs, and you’ll still come out on top due to the continued annual savings of 25% reduction in your premium.

2. Buy Your Policies In One Place

K. L. Owens and Associates LLC offers discounts to clients that have purchased more than one insurance policy through us. That means if we already carry your business insurance, switching your homeowners and auto insurance over to us will save you even more.

3. Make Your Home Stronger

Did you know that adding things like storm shutters, reinforcing your roof, or getting your home retrofitted to make it better able to withstand earthquakes can actually reduce your homeowners insurance? Also, modernizing your heating, plumbing, and electrical systems will reduce your risk of fire and water damage, which will in turn reduce your insurance costs.

4. Maintain Good Credit

We often check credit scores when we are offering a quote to a new client. If you have a solid credit history, then you will likely get lower insurance costs. To keep your credit in good standing, pay your bills on time, keep your credit balances low, and check your credit score on a regular basis.

5. Review Your Policy and Your Possessions

Make sure that your policy covers any high end possessions or home additions, but don’t carry more coverage than you actually need. For example, if you had a floater on that new, expensive computer you bought 4 years ago, reassess its value and either drop or change the coverage. As quickly as technology changes, your computers value has likely decreased significantly.

These are 5 great tips to help you reduce your homeowners insurance. For more tips or for a free quote, contact K. L. Owens and Associates LLC today.

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As a commercial driver, your safety is a number one priority. Your job depends on you navigating the roadways in the worst conditions to make your deliveries on time and in pristine condition. As the arctic vortex wreaks havoc on our winter weather conditions, K. L. Owens and Associates LLC has four tips for you on how to stay safe on the roads.

Be Prepared

As a commercial delivery company, making sure that your drivers are adequately prepared for the winter weather will save you both time and money. Keep your vehicle fleet in tip top condition – make sure that the tires are in good shape, the windshield fluid is full, and have your drivers carry emergency roadside kits including salt for the roads, a warm blanket, and jumper cables. Training your drivers on how to handle conditions that are snowy or icy will help them adapt and prevent a potential accident.

Clear the Way

If your drivers cannot see the road than staying on it and in their lane will be next to impossible. Make sure drivers are completely clearing their windshields, side windows, and mirrors of any ice or snow before hitting the road. Also, having everyone drive with their lights on at all times will increase visibility.

Make Good Decisions

Understand whether your vehicle has anti-lock brakes or not and learn how to use each in slippery conditions. Incase your vehicle starts to skid, you should how what type of braking pressure you should use to regain control. Driving commercial vehicles means that you should take extra precaution – drive under the speed limit, scan ahead of potential problems, leave extra following room, and keeping your focus on the road will help you stay safe.

Be Cautious

Commercial companies and drivers have a lot to consider if there is bad weather on the way. Dispatchers will make the call as to weather drivers head out or not, so they should be monitoring the weather closely. Companies should be making delivery appointments in enough time that their client is happy, but their drivers are safe and don’t feel rushed. Your entire commercial vehicle operation should be supporting your drivers, making sure they have everything they need including a vehicle in tip-top condition and the knowledge of the weather conditions they will be driving into.

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When your architectural firm decides that it’s time to buy your first professional liability policy, it’s a moment that marks a place in history. It means that either your firm has grown large enough to be looking to the future, they’ve just landed a huge contract, or a client has particular concerns about a project. No matter what the reason, purchasing professional liability insurance from K. L. Owens and Associates LLC will help keep your firm and employees protected.

While many smaller firms go without coverage, the truth is that most architectural firms over estimate the cost, and under-estimate the benefits of professional liability insurance. The most valuable benefit of your insurance plan will be to pay for legal costs in the event that a claim is filed. Even if you only have a limited amount of assets to loose, these costs could easily pile up and outweigh what you would potentially be losing.

Young architects should know that they can be held liable for the negligence of contractors and others working on a project. Claims can also be filed against them based on faulty cost estimates, or delays in construction. As a general rule, professional liability claims are most likely the results of a failure to manage the expectations of a project, rather than a resulting injury.

To get a quote for professional liability insurance for your architectural firm today, call us at K. L. Owens and Associates LLC! 

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Each year, you make a list of resolutions to make yourself, your life, or your career better in some way. This year, as a small business owner, you should be making these four resolutions for your business, and make sure that you keep them.

1. Follow a Content Marketing Plan

SEO. Social media marketing. Content marketing. It all goes in the pot together and in 2014, it’s more important than ever. The first step in taking your businesses marketing plan from zero to hero to is to make it – then stick to it. Use an editorial calendar to plot social posts, blogs, articles, and website updates. Keeping your content fresh will let your potential customers that you are in the know about your industry, and you’re willing to share your knowledge.

2. Use Apps

There is an app for that – literally. There are apps for just about everything that you possibly need to do. Whether it is making lists, tracking social media, or sending out invoices, there is an app in the app store designed to meet your needs. So go ahead, load down your iPhone, iPad, or whatever mobile device you’re using with the apps that fill your gaps.

3. Show Your Customers Some Love

Everyone loves a discount, a sale, or something that’s free. Show your customers how much you appreciate them not by giving new clients a discount, but by offering your most loyal clients a discount on their services. You can promote it through social media or your website, or by word of mouth, just get it going.

4. Get Into the Cloud

Cloud technology is making it much easier for small businesses to compete on a larger scale. Whether you are taking advantage of cloud based software, or you move your entire network into a cloud infrastructure, cloud based technology is putting resources at your fingertips that you would have never been able to afford previously.

K. L. Owens and Associates LLC wants to help you make your small business a success. Let us help you make sure that all of your insurance needs are covered. Call us today for a free quote! 

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