Cyber Insurance: A Necessity in 2017

With over 91 million security events per year, Cyber Liability Insurance is becoming a necessity for any company’s risk management plan.

No matter the type of business you’re in, scammers and hackers always seem to be knocking at the door. Whether an email attachment caused a breach in your firewall or a hacker leaked confidential information, Cyber Liability Insurance provides coverage for the services needed to regain your customers’ and the public’s trust.

Why Cyber Insurance?

Flashback 20 years to during the age of the Internet. Technology coverage was brand new and was covered under a company’s Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance. At this point in time, company’s were concerned with the spreading of computer viruses that would bring down the company’s network.

Today, company’s are fighting a whole new battle. Forbes has cited Anthem Health Insurance’s breach as the largest in 2015. The breach exposed 80 million patient and employee names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, home addresses, email addresses, and more.

Anthem is not the only company to suffer. In 2016, we saw the likes of Yahoo!, Cisco, LinkedIn, and the U.S. Department of Justice join the hacked list. There is only so much a company can do to prevent a cyber breach, which is why Cyber Liability Insurance is becoming a necessity for risk management.

What is Cyber Liability Insurance?

The Cyber Liability Insurance of today is more often than not compromised of the four following coverages: Errors and Omissions, Media Liability, Network Security, and Privacy.

Errors and Omissions

E&O coverage protects your business from claims resulting from negligence or the failure to perform a service. An example of this type of negligence would be if you sell used office equipment and forget to wipe a hard drive before you sell the used product.

E&O insurance is a necessity for any business that provides a service for or product to a customer for a fee.

Media Liability

Media Liability is very similar to Errors and Omissions in that it too protects against negligence. Such negligence would include infringement upon another’s intellectual property, copyright or trademark, or engaging in libel or slander.

Network Security

A failure in network security is too blame for a lot of data breaches. Therefore, it is important that every business has this type of coverage, especially since it is becoming a matter of when a company will have a breach and not if a company will have a breach in network security.

Privacy

A privacy breach is not always related to a network security failure. Privacy Liability coverage protects against any breach of private information. For example, pretend your company collects private client information through an online form. If an employee were to print off the information and not properly destroy the document, your company would be liable if the information were distributed.

The MacKenzie Agency works with its business clients to tailor a policy that will suit their various insurance needs. To learn more about Cyber Liability Insurance or out other insurance offerings, contact a MacKenzie agent today.

New Year, New Business

If your New Year’s resolution was to start a new business, this post has all the information you need to make sure it’s properly insured.

Congratulations, you’ve survived the first month of 2017! Did your resolution?

If you resolved to finally start the new venture you’ve been dreaming about, we can help you. If you have a solid idea about what product or service you’re going to provide, this post will help you determine which types of insurance you’ll need.

General Liability Insurance

General liability acts as a catch-all insurance option for businesses. It can be tailored to include as much, or as little, add-ons as you’d like.

Every business, even if home-based, should have liability insurance. It will provide both defenses and damages if you, your employees or your products or services are involved in a lawsuit. An example would be if you sold a faulty toy that injured the consumer.

Property Insurance

Property insurance isn’t just for those who own commercial real estate. Those choosing to run a business out of their home should double-check their homeowners’ policy, as a home-run business is not always covered.

Property insurance is what is going to protect your assets, equipment, fixtures,and furniture from damage caused by fire, flood, vandalism, theft, etc.

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance is needed most by those who provide advice for a living (i.e., tax or financial advice); not to say other types of business don’t need it. It will protect you against any errors or omissions in the advice you provide to a client, providing coverage where your general liability insurance does not.

Many states also require physicians to carry medical malpractice insurance, a form of professional liability. More information about this specific type of insurance can be found here.

Worker’s Compensation

Worker’s compensation does exactly what it says—it compensates employees who are injured on the job. So when someone on your staff slips on a spill or trips on a sprinkler head, workers’ compensation will cover the multiple levels of care that employee may need.

It should be noted that all states require worker’s compensation if you have W2 employees.

The MacKenzie Agency specializes in providing Minnesota families and businesses with tailored insurance policies to suit their various needs. For more information about our insurance offering, contact a MacKenzie agent today.

The Importance of Water Heater Maintenance

Here are some tips to prevent your water heater from turning your basement into a skating rink this winter.

There is nothing like a water heater failure to ruin the holidays.

In fact, water heater failure is one of the top five sources of residential water damage, according to the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).

Here are some tips from The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company on how to prevent your water heater from turning your basement into a skating rink this winter.

How to Maintain Your Water Heater

  1. Track the age. Water heaters that are close to 7 years or older should be regularly checked for corrosion.
  2. Periodic draining. Releasing a small bit of water from your tank can help slow down corrosion.
  3. Check the anode rod. Water heaters have a built-in rust protector: the anode rod. This should be checked regularly, as it is the most important component inside your tank.
  4. Regular maintenance. Try to have a plumbing professional familiar with water heater tanks inspect your system bi-annually.
  5. Reduce failure potential. Even with regular maintenance, water heaters can fail without warning. Therefore, it is always a good idea to create a channel for small leaks and install an automatic shut off.

The MacKenzie Agency provides Minnesota individuals and businesses with a wide variety of insurance coverages, including flood insurance. Contact one of our agents today!