Slip & Slide At-Fault Accident? Appeal!

Have you been found “at-fault” in an auto accident?

Have you received the MA surcharge notice?

If so, this means the insurance company found you more than 50% at-fault and paid out more than $500 in damages.

Less than $2,000 in damages results in a 3 point (minor accident) surcharge, more than $2,000 results in a 4 point (major accident) surcharge.

If you believe you were not more than 50% at-fault in the accident, then we recommend you appeal the surcharge.

Unlike insurance companies, the Board of Appeal takes into account contributing factors, such as: road condition (icy, wet, snow-covered), visibility, other vehicle erratic driving, etc.

The Board of Appeal tells us it is presently taking about 9 months before consumers receive the hearing date. The cost to appeal is a non-refundable $50.

Once the hearing date is received you can: appear in person, submit a written statement, or select someone to appear on your behalf.

Appeal hearings are scheduled in: Boston, Brockton, Peabody, Plymouth, Somerville, Springfield, Waltham, or Worcester.

Call us or e-mail us to discuss.

Vanity Plates

According to Mass.gov, the official website of Massachusetts, one of the most requested topics is ordering vanity license plates.

By using the following Registry of Motor Vehicles search tool, you can check to see if the vanity plate you want is available:

http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/rmv/VanityPlateRequirements.aspx

Ordering Vanity Plates

Vanity plates may be ordered in person.

In Person: Go to any full service Registry Branch and complete the Application for Vanity Plates  Up to three plate requests can be made on one application. Payment must be made at the time of ordering.

Process: Within twelve to fourteen (12-14) weeks after your payment is received, you will receive a letter telling you the plates are ready and instructions on where to pick them up. The plates generally arrive at the branch within one week of the date of this letter.

To pick up your vanity plates at the branch you will be required to:

  • Submit an RMV-3, stamped by your insurance company.
  • Surrender your old plate(s).
  • Pay a swap fee.

Vanity plates must be picked up within 90 days.

Discount Double Check: Give Us A Call!

I like State Farm’s Discount Double Check ad campaign.

The ads feature Green Bay Packer quarterback, Aaron Rodgers & his signature touchdown, “hands circling his belt” move.

Everyone in the commercial recognizes the move instead, as State Farm’s Discount Double Check move.

The reason I like the ad is because, as your Massachusetts agency, that’s what we do. We rate, re-rate, check for discounts, and double check for discounts.

We discount double check.

This afternoon a longtime client called to let us know her daughter got a speeding ticket and to warn us of her insurance surcharge.

As her agent, I asked if we could take a moment to review coverage & discounts together.

Within minutes, we removed $30 per day substitute transportation coverage (in her view: unnecessarily on 2 of their 4 vehicles), included additional mileage, good student, and away at school credits.

The result? A -$395 credit to their policy!

I am also happy to report: this will more than make up for the surcharge for the speeding ticket.

Call us:  781-224-0909 (or send us an e-mail)

For your Discount Double Check!

Advanced Driver Training

Johnson & Rohan recommends In Control – Crash Prevention Training.

As a parent, one of our biggest worries is when our teen driver gets their license.

In Control – Crash Prevention Training is a program that puts drivers in controlled, high risk driving situations, designed to significantly reduce the risks associated with being a new driver.

In Control offers a half-day hands-on course developed by professionally trained race car drivers who also train police, firefighters, and emergency response drivers.

Drivers learn: how to control skids, how to effectively use ABS brakes, dangers of tailgating, problems with backing up, how to manage emergency lane changes, and the effects of speed on driving control.

In Control offers a 10% discount to Johnson & Rohan clients. The present cost of the program is $299 per student with additional family members costing $200.

In addition, Safety Insurance offers this program to our clients for $75.

They are also provide a 5% discount on auto insurance for drivers that have completed this course.

We are very excited about this program and the skills that it teaches. Reviews of this program have been excellent.

Please call or click us to learn more.

Did you know …

 

Did you know when you insure with Johnson & Rohan Insurance you utilize the power of the Massachusetts Independent Insurance Agent?

We rate auto insurance with seven companies (and even more companies for home, business, and life insurance) to find you the best rates.

We offer a choice of insurance plans and programs. We are value hunters looking to find you the best combination of price, coverage and service.

We will help if you have a billing problem, assist with a claim, and consult with you to determine your insurance needs.

We promise to treat you like a person and not just another number.

Customer satisfaction is the key to growing our business.

Thank you for your business & your referrals.

Happy New Year!

From all of us at Johnson & Rohan Insurance:

Thank You For Making 2012 Our Best Year Ever!

Should Old Acquaintance be forgot,
and never thought upon;
The flames of Love extinguished,
and fully past and gone:
Is thy sweet Heart now grown so cold,
that loving Breast of thine;
That thou canst never once reflect
On Old long syne.

We are committed to providing the very best in insurance services. Our client base and insurance markets continue to expand. We are now rating auto insurance with seven companies, and even more, home, life and commercial insurance companies.

Happy New Year! Happy 2013!

Calender Time!

They seem to sneak up on us every year.

It’s hard to believe the Holidays and New Year are here!

At Johnson & Rohan Insurance this means: It’s calender time …

If you, or any of your friends, would like one of our 2013 New England calenders, please send us an e-mail.

From all of us at Johnson & Rohan Insurance:

We wish you the very best happy, healthy & hopeful 2013!

 

Home Heating Tips To Save You Money:

With heating oil and natural gas prices projected to be even higher this winter than they were last, we offer the following tips to save you money.

Maximize Efficiency:
Check your heating system before you turn it on for the winter. Keeping your furnace clean, lubricated, and properly adjusted can save about 5 percent on your heating bill

Consider replacing an old furnace. Today’s furnaces are about 25 percent more efficient than they were in the 1980s

Minimize Heat Loss:
Seal up the leaks. Sealing and insulating duct systems can cut heating costs by as much as 40 percent.

Add insulation to your home’s attic. Even if your attic floor already has a couple of inches of insulation, another six inches can help.
Wrap an insulation blanket around your hot water pipes and tank. This is especially valuable for older water heaters and can save up to 10 percent on water-heating costs.
Don’t use an open-hearth fireplace for heat. The heated air that’s drawn from your home and up the chimney offsets almost all the warmth that a fire provides.

Keep your fireplace damper closed when you don’t have a fire burning. This will prevent up to 8 percent of your furnace-heated air from going up the chimney
home for free.

Conserve Heat:
Turn down the thermostat a little. For every two degrees you lower the thermostat, you’ll save about 4 percent on heating bills.
Consider a programmable thermostat. One of these can help you cut heating costs as much as 20%.
Reduce hot water temperature. Save 7 to 11 percent of water-heating costs by keeping your water heater at the “normal” setting or 120º.
Shorten showers. Showers account for two-thirds of your water-heating costs, so even shaving off a few minutes can help.

Don’t Let Your MA Inspection Sticker Lapse!

Perhaps the cruelest and most frustrating of all surcharge points on the MA personal auto policy is the one for an ”expired inspection sticker.”

A ticket for an expired vehicle inspection sticker is the equivalent, in auto insurance surcharge points, to a moving violation.

According to the MA Department of Insurance:

Surcharge points are incurred if you:

  • cause an at-fault accident
  • are convicted of or pay a fine for a traffic law violation
  • are assigned to an alcohol education program

An expired inspection sticker is considered “pay(ing) a fine for a traffic law violation.”

A $40 ticket results in increased insurance costs for 6 years! About 20% increase the first three years, diminshing the following three .

So remember:  Check your MA Inspection Sticker & don’t let it lapse!

Happy Thanksgiving

Johnson & Rohan Insurance is thankful for having you as a client.

Our goal, as independent agency owners is to provide added value to our clients. We understand there are many places to buy your insurance.

So everyday we ask ourselves: “where do we add value?”

Value is saving you money and maximizing different companies’ discount programs.

Value is at claim time when you understand the coverage you’ve spent all this money on over the years.

Value is when you call our office and get a friendly & responsive voice.

Value is having an independent, insurance professional reviewing your coverage, shopping your insurance, and offering your trusted advice at claim time.

At Johnson & Rohan Insurance: we appreciate your business.

Thank you for insuring with us.

Happy Thanksgiving!