Water Damage in my Basement. Is it Covered?

April 27, 2017

Just the other day, a disturbing GoFundMe post showed up on my Facebook newsfeed. Though it could have been, the post wasn’t from a friend or from a client. It was from a desperate father who had a large amount of water damage in his basement. As an agent with thousands of clients who could find themselves in a similar Continue Reading

As an agent with thousands of clients who could find themselves in a similar situation, it caused concern and prompted me to share it with you.

The GoFundMe Page read:

Another sad thing… after 10 days, the poster had no contributions. It was disheartening to read.

What’s the solution you might ask?

In the case of a failed sump pump and water backing up through sewers or drains, almost every homeowner policy has the option of adding an endorsement to cover this type of loss. The endorsement is aptly called “Backup of Sewer & Drains” or simply “Water Backup”.

In most situations, the endorsement may cost somewhere in the $30 range for $5,000 or more in coverage.

Many of our clients may already have this endorsement added to their policy. A quick call to us or an email to jeff@ryanagency.com and we can confirm if coverage is in place for this type of event.

If you don’t have Water Backup coverage in place, we would be happy to quote the additional protection for you and then you can decide if you want to add it to your policy.

Contact us today and we’ll be glad to check this out and/or provide you with options.

If we can help in any other way with your insurance program, please feel free to drop me an email at jeff@ryanagency.com.

Best regards,

Jeff

You can find the GoFundMePage here: https://www.gofundme.com/major-water-damage-to-my-home

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Auto Rates and Finger Prints: Both are Unique to You!

By Jeff Ryan • April 7, 2026

Factors You Can’t Easily Control These factors are built into your profile, but still play a major role: Your location: Claim trends, traffic, and weather patterns where you principally drive. Your age and driving experience: Especially for younger drivers. Other drivers in your household: Their age and driving history. The vehicle you own: Unique to the Year, Make, Model, and Sub-model’s damageability and cost of parts/labor. These factors significantly influence price differences, but they don’t tell the whole story. Factors You Can Control This is where habits and wise decisions can make a real difference: Your driving habits: Minimizing tickets and accidents can have a direct impact. Your coverage choices: Liability limits, deductibles, and optional coverages can vary widely. Your insurance consistency: Avoiding lapses in coverage. Your annual mileage: How much and how often you drive. Discount opportunities: Bundling, pay-in-full, NYS defensive driving course. Your Insurance Score (Yes—You Can Influence It) Insurance companies use a credit-based insurance score as part of their rating process. While it’s based on financial behaviors, it is not permanent—and it can be improved over time. Simple habits like: Paying bills on time Reducing outstanding debt Avoiding excessive credit inquiries… can positively impact your score—and in turn, your insurance rates. Your insurance score is under your control and a worthy mid to long-term project in and of itself. For more information on what you can do to positively influence your score, see: Great 8 Tip #8 - What's Credit Got to Do with Insurance? How Can I Improve My Auto Insurance Score Why Comparing Rates Doesn’t Work When someone says, “I only pay…” , the uniqueness of their fingerprint is missing. What are their: Deductibles Driving history Insurance score Household profile Coverage limits: what they may be giving up in terms of protection. Price without context can be misleading and discouraging.