E D U C A T I O N Advise from the Internet regarding identity theft

AN ATTORNEY'S ADVICE A corporate attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company. 1. The next time you order checks have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks. 2. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the "For" line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access to F U L L   S T O R Y

P E R S O N A L    L I N E S   Don't get burned using your fireplace

While a fire in the fireplace can be warm and cozy, it can also be deadly. More than 6,000 people end up in emergency rooms as a result of fireplace injuries—most are children under the age of five. Each year, approximately 14,000 house fires start in the fireplace. Some of the most common causes are an overloaded fire, a damaged fireplace and flying sparks. To ensure your fire is safe and enjoyable, here are some tips and reminders.  F U L L   S T O R Y

P E R S O N A L   L I N E S      Homecare Service  Exclusion for HO Policies

Recently, the Tennessee Court of Appeals reviewed a case involving the business pursuit and homecare service exclusions to personal liability coverage in a homeowner’s insurance policy. Mid Century Insurance Company filed a complaint for declaratory judgment seeking a determination that a homeowner’s insurance policy issued to the homeowners did not furnish personal liability coverage for the death of a minor child who died accidentally in their home. The Court of Appeals reversed the Trial Court, and held that the exclusion did apply to the facts in that case.  F U L L   S T O R Y

C O M M E R C I A L  L I N E S  Business Insurance 101

If you own your own business or are a partner in one, you’re probably already familiar with risk. After all, few things in life are riskier than launching and running your own small business. Part of the risk of any small business is the loss of critical tools and property or liability to others. Either of which can cause loss of income or even force you to close your doors. Large companies employ full-time risk managers to keep their risk-taking to a minimum. But chances are that as a small-business operator, you are your company’s risk manager, along with its personnel director, office manager and possibly the entire staff all rolled into one. While juggling all the jobs that need to get done to make your firm a smooth-running and profitable operation, you may already be asking yourself: “Who has time to think about insurance?”  F U L L  S T O R Y

P E R S O N A L     L I N E S   RLI Adjusting Rates Effective 2/1/2005   RLI Corporation announced new rates and a new application for all Personal Umbrella policies effective February 1, 2005. The change in rates and application is mandatory. All applications received after 2/1/05 with a February or beyond effective date will be returned along with a request to have the insured complete the new application.   F U L L  S T O R Y