#BNformed, stay informed

  Life doesn’t stand still. Neither do your life insurance needs. If you have a quote or policy and haven’t reviewed it lately, you may be surprised to discover that what worked for you then may not not meet your needs now. Luckily, going over your life and matching it with your life insurance just takes a bit of thinking. And a little math. Here is how to do a quick review to know what you need: DIME  - Use the DIME method to figure out your life insurance needs. Add  D ebt, ten years of  I ncome,  M ortgage payoff amount, and the cost of your children’s college  E ducation. Type of Life Insurance  - Do you need term life insurance (life for a fixed amount of time), or whole life insurance, a policy that lasts your whole life? Cost of Life Insurance  - The price of a policy depends on your age, health, and the amount of coverage in the policy. There are many online calculators that can help. These methods will give you a rough idea of what you need. But nothing can replace speaking wi

  We all know a person who acts as the "face" of their company. Many times they are the business and without them we'd certainly feel a change in the day to day operations. But what would you do if that person left, became disabled or passed away? If your business relied on them to be financially successful, how would you recover? How long would it take to find a train a replacement? How much revenue loss would occur in that time frame? If you have ever grappled any of these questions, it is probably a good idea to purchase Key Person Insurance. Key Person coverage uses Life Insurance and/or Disability Insurance, to protect businesses from financial loss should a key employee or owner die or become disabled. The majority of the time, the business pays for the insurance and is the beneficiary of the policy; but sharing the premium payments and benefit with the key person is also acceptable. This enables the company to use the proceeds from the life insurance to pay debts,

  Most people don’t start a business thinking about how it will end, but you should. Without a clear path of transfer or an exit plan, you could be leaving your employees and the business in limbo. Depending on the type of entity, there are various tax and legal implications if an owner passes away or divorces without preparing the entity. You or your partners, could now be forced into business with people you don’t know, or worse, don’t like.   So how can you prevent befalling this fate? Well one of the most important things you can do is draft a buy-sell agreement (BSA). A BSA can assist in the transfer of ownership interests and determine how involuntarily acquired shares/assets can be sold back to the company. Most BSAs are set up using Life Insurance to provide the funds needed for buy outs and buys backs upon the death or disability of an owner.     For example, Tom, a 56 year old man owns a law firm with his partner John, 62. John suffers a heart attack and passes away, leaving

  Dear valued  clients , As 2022 draws to a close, Everett and I wanted to take a moment to pause and reflect on how grateful we are to have amazing clients like you. We take great pride in helping businesses obtain personalized coverage backed by expert guidance, and will continue those efforts as we always have.   Like many business in recent years, Brock-Norton is navigating new challenges but also seizing new opportunities for growth. As of January 1, 2023, we will be acquiring American Insurance Agency and with it, a presence in Fredericksburg Virginia. We warmly welcome the clients and staff as we consolidate these great organizations. We also will be expanding our service offerings to include Life Insurance in the new year! If you would like to learn more about these policies, please visit the website or schedule a time to discuss with one of our licensed staff members. With so many new and exciting

  We said it last year and we will say it again. There will be mail delays as the holidays approach. There’s been a ton of news surrounding the new first-class service standards that, for some addresses, add 2-3 days to the delivery timeline. These delays continue to affect insurance customers who send their payments by mail.  Many don’t even receive their bills until AFTER the payment is due.  Mailed payments are taking over a week to get to the right place.  When a payment deadline is missed, insurance companies asses late fees and send cancellation notices.  For this reason, we recommend paying your insurance bills online or by phone.  Most carriers offer these options, and we encourage our clients to take advantage of them.    If you are billed directly by your company, go to their website or go to  our BILLING page  to find the right link.  Check their sites for information on online billing options.  We can provide your policy number or any other information needed to assist you

  High water is in the news for all the wrong reasons. We like to pretend flooding is someone else’s problem. But flooding can hit anyone, anywhere, even if you think your home is high and dry. Check out these inundating facts about a huge problem: We’re Number One!  Flooding is the most common natural disaster in the world. All Are Welcome!  Flooding can hit anywhere—25% of floods happen in low to mid-risk areas. Rising Tide Lifts All Boats!  Current predictions anticipate damage from flooding to rise by 67% in the next 30 years. It might be a great time to check out flood insurance if you haven’t done so already. Flooding is a big concern and will only become more common in the future. But with a little protection, you can ride out the storm.