Protection Worthy of Your Attention

A car was destroyed by the tornado that tore through the capital region Friday.  (Nicole Nivotny)

It can happen.

Horrific events can happen.  Any place! Anywhere! And any way!

The images of the violent storm which swept through the Ottawa and Gatineau regions last Friday depict massive destruction.  

David Brousseau-Lambert said he doesn't recognize his Gatineau neighbourhood after the storm. "There was carnage everywhere. Trees fallen down, cars knocked over. My whole car's damaged too — broken windows and everything and people are just crying and panicking," he said.   

Imagine one minute living life in peace and harmony; and then the next minute being tossed into a pool of chaos and devastation. The five simple words in this profound adage tell us a story:  “Life Can Turn on a Dime.” Life certainly changed for these people within a small space of time. 

Life can change for anyone when they face an unexpected event.  Everything people work towards owning is shown in these photos. Houses. Cars. Household possessions. 

Once people are over the shock, their focus will turn to recovery.  How do you recover from something this catastrophic?  Hopefully, the answer is that they carried home insurance.

Global News answers this question, Does home insurance cover tornado damage?  “The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) says that most home and business policies offer protection from wind and tornado damage, along with compensation for living expenses if there’s a mandatory evacuation order.”

Seeing and understanding the need for insurance is crucial.  Often people pick and choose what to insure.  In previous blogs, we discussed life insurance as well as disability and critical illness insurance.  Today in the aftermath of this tornado, our focus is on property insurance.  It all boils down to risk management.  You run a risk if you choose not to insure your possessions. The reality is without insurance your financial well-being can be severely impacted.  When disaster strikes, the conversation inside your head will go either in one direction or another. “Oh no!” or “Thank goodness!”

Insurance is not limited only to the need to cover natural disasters such as a flood, earthquake, or hurricane, which cause great damage or loss of life.  Insurance is necessary to cover against theft, fire, and accident.  Any of these events will cause your life to turn on a dime financially, mentally, and in some cases, physically.  The cautionary advice is to protect your family and yourself.  

   

Disasters like these can be a wake-up a call for everyone.  My husband and I recently did a complete overhaul on our property insurance.  We literally took the policy apart, examined the coverage, and made necessary changes with the help of our insurance agent. The question is: “When is the last time your insurance policy was reviewed?” Sometimes, insurance premiums can be lowered when you balance the amount of risk you can assume with the remainder covered by the insurance company. I always remember one insurance representative saying, “Some insurance is better than no insurance.”

Below is a checklist found in CIFP’s Financial Planning Practitioners Guide updated in 2017.  The information is of little value if it is not shared with you.  Presenting the information will provide you with a guideline to examine and review your policy with your insurance representative.