Florida is one of the most heavily populated states with over 18 million residents. That’s over 300 residents for every square mile in the state of Florida! And as amazing as it sounds these 18 million residents have over 20 million vehicles registered in Florida. That makes for a heck of a lot of traffic for you to navigate on your way to school, work, or wherever the road may take you. The problem with this many people and cars is statistics show that there will be over 300,000 accidents this year and sadly those will result in over 3500 deaths in Florida alone. This is why your choice of auto insurance coverage and your driving decisions are so important to you and your families well being. Speak with your Crosslet representative about the following ways to protect yourself and other risk reduction techniques: Click here for a free Auto Insurance Quote

• Try to avoid rush hour traffic! If you can drive to or from work outside traditional traffic times, you decrease your chance of accident by over 90%!
• Don’t let your children drive with children! Kids always want to drive, but sadly the number one cause of death in young people is vehicular accident. Also, the odds of an accident increase by over 400% when a second minor rides in the car and increases exponentially with more children. Having your loved one drive to school alone or not ride more than two in a car enables them to focus and maybe avoid being a tragic statistic.
• Save the makeup for the bathroom and the bagel for the kitchen! One of the most common causes of accidents is lack of focus. Texting, eating, and other distracting activities are major causes of unnecessary accidents. Make the drive your focus and live to enjoy your breakfast!

As much as you may try, at some point accidents do happen. When they do, you choice of auto insurance company becomes vital. Some points to make sure you consider in your purchase of auto insurance coverage:

• What Bodily Injury limits do you carry?In Florida, the minimum limits a person can carry to meet the Financial Responsibility Law is 10/20/10. Buying a policy without this minimum coverage can result in the loss of your license if you’re in an accident. Also, you should choose a liability limit that is more than the assets you’re trying to protect which means that minimum limit is not enough for most Floridians.
• Do you have Uninsured Motorists protection? Over 20% of vehicles on the road do not have any auto insurance, and that number is increasing as our economy tightens. Your single greatest way to protect yourself is buying uninsured motorist’s coverage from your Crosslet representative. While no coverage covers all your pain and suffering, the knowledge that you can recover the dollars for a surgery or for your lost wages even when the other driver is uninsured will allow you to sleep better at night, (while your children are driving!)
• What deductible(s) do you carry One of the biggest mistakes insurance consumers make is thinking a larger deductible saves them money…It can but only if you do not have a claim. Your choice of deductible(s) should be based on an amount you can afford to pay at the time of claim. Remember, claims (or being covered when you have an accident) is the whole reason we buy insurance in the first place!
• Do I have or need physical damage coverage? Carrying physical damage coverage should be be based on whether or not you can afford to repurchase your vehicle should you be in an auto accident. If the answer is no, physical damage gives you the piece of mind to know you can replace your vehicle after an accident, (and remember one out of five other drivers are uninsured so they will not be able to even if they are at fault!)

Purchasing a home is one of the proudest moments of any person or family. Homes are the places of memories and where we raise our families. Homes are where we house our most prized possessions. And here in Florida we have some of the most beautiful land you could ever build a home. Taking steps to protect our homes from loss, (hurricane and otherwise) is an important part of being a Floridian, (just like carrying sun-block!) Speak with your Crosslet representative about how to better protect yourself from losses including:

• Is getting hot in here isn’t it? Fires are typically one of the most senseless and controllable of losses. Some of the top reasons for fires are listed here. Do not leave food unattended on the stove and never put out a grease fire with water, use baking soda or an extinguisher for grease fires. Always blowing out candles before leaving a room. Watching where you discard cigarette butts and ashes can decrease the chance of fires tremendously. Cleaning the lint from under your dryer periodically can keep the motor from igniting a blaze in your home.
• Water everywhere and not a drop to drink. Water damage is another major cause of loss to property and one that can be easily controlled as well. Making sure to check water lines in your home for cracks or rot including the refrigerator ice maker line, the washing machine hoses, and all faucet and toilet valve lines on a periodic basis can save thousands in unnecessary damage. Also, always turn off the water at the source whenever you are leaving for an extended period of time.
• Don’t make it easy or attractive for the bad guys. The majority of theft occurs when the thieves know what they are stealing. Lock all doors and windows. Do not leave valuable items in plain sight, close your windows when not at home and leave valuable items in a car in the trunk as opposed to the seats. Motion lights are a major deterrent for thieves as well as alarm systems for both your car and home.
• Smile pretty for the camera! Documenting your home, other structures, and contents, (both valuable and everyday items) is an important step to take to protect yourself and one you probably will not have time to do once the loss is occurring or about to occur. Take photos of your home, garage, pool, sheds, and other outdoor items to make sure you know what you had and the condition they were in before the loss. Many of these items will factor age and condition, (depreciation) at time of loss so make sure you can show what fine shape you have kept your shed in. Inside the home is even more important to document. Stand in the center of the room and take a photograph of each wall turning 45 degrees each time insuring overlap in the pictures. Open every drawer and every cabinet as well as closets and take photos of the items inside as well. Then write down each of the items in the photos, when you purchased it, and the cost of the item to make sure you get what you deserve at time of loss. And remember DO NOT store the photos in the house, you want to store the photos offsite so you will have them after the loss. (Your Crosslet Representative will be happy to store them for you in your file to make sure you always have them!)

With three of the last four best beaches as ranked nationally, it is no wonder why Florida is considered such a wonderful place to live. This Florida living does not come with trade offs however. Florida has the most metropolitan areas of any state that come at risk of hurricane damage. Furthermore, the majority of Florida is at risk for all three types of hurricane damage; severe wind damage, tidal surge, and the inland flooding of lakes and rivers, (remember flood is not covered by the homeowners policy). Miami and Tampa Bay are two of the top three worst places a storm could hit in the country!

When it comes to water make sure you have at least one gallon per person per day. The best recommendation is to purchase five gallon bottles of bottled water and leave them in the original containers.

Make sure you plan and discuss the following items with your family to insure the best chance against the storm and to minimize confusion.

• Escape routes.
• Caring for animals.
• Family communications.
• Utility shut-off and safety.
• Insurance and vital records.

Stock up on supplies before the storm hits and when stores will be strained to meet demand. Develop your hurricane checklist no later than April each year and make sure you have the basics. The list below is directly from FEMA’s website:

• Cash and coins.
• First aid kit and manual.
• Flashlight and extra batteries.
• Matches and waterproof container.
• Three-day supply of non-perishable food.
• Photocopies of credit and identification cards.
• Portable, battery-powered radio or television and extra batteries.
• Sanitation and hygiene items (moist towelettes and toilet paper).
• Items for infants, such as formula, diapers, bottles, and pacifiers.
• Kitchen accessories and cooking utensils, including a can opener.
• Three-day supply of water - one gallon of water per person, per day.
• Special needs items, such as prescription medications, eye glasses, contact lens solutions, and hearing aid batteries

• Education, training, and support. The genesis of Crosslet was from Diana Fink’s, (a nationally recognized insurance educator with over 38 year’s experience), vision to create a better way for the independents agents to exist and compete in a tightening marketplace. At our core we have always been and will always be educators, so everything we do is accomplished with the highest attention to detail for reporting, customer service, ease of business, and controlling errors and omissions exposure. We use multiple training mediums including on site trainers that will assist your team, webinars and streaming videos, and all of our training is recorded and available via our website so it is accessible when it is convenient for your staff to review.
  
  
• Markets to compete with. We offer standard and excess/surplus markets in both personal and commercial lines to agents who would find it difficult to access otherwise. These markets include blue chip carriers in all lines of business. While many organizations offer access to markets, we offer the knowledge and experience to utilize these markets effectively in the dynamic Florida market place.
  
  
• A flexible business plan. Our plan allows for an agent to build up to their ultimate goal of being a Crosslet while using our Policy Warehousing or to immediately open their own turnkey agency. Crosslet is able to provide valuable support at any point along this spectrum, giving your Crosslet the chance to grow into a full lines agency at the speed your comfortable with.
  
  
• A virtual back office of specialists. Crosslet gives you the back office support to never have to turn away business again. Our commercial specialists have experience in all lines and can handle all aspects of the process including initial analysis, underwriting, quoting, selling, and servicing. Some of our current risks we insure are in excess of $1,000,000 in premium per year.
  
  
• Ownership and Perpetuation. We would remind you that your book of business is 100% yours. Never should an owner give up the core value of their business, their existing clients. Crosslet enables you to establish, control and own this equity. With options to retire, pass it on to family or staff, or to sell the book of business.
  
  

Crosslet offers more than just the chance to open an agency, we offer Policy Warehousing, (an advanced referral mechanism) which would allow you to build equity in the referrals you have probably just given away up to this point. We offer this for not only personal but also commercial lines. You have probably helped build other people’s agencies for them with the referrals that have come from your years of hard work. You should be able to enjoy that equity now, when you retire, or both. The idea for many agents is to build a book of business which can become the foundation of their Crosslet when they are ready to open their doors.

Please call to get a quote. (727) 471-8018