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You may have heard of the recent uptick in thefts of Kia and Hyundai models after a hack was published on Tik Tok demonstrating how to steal certain models. In response to the increase in thefts, both Hyundai and Kia have developed theft deterrent software and will provide it to vehicle owners at no cost.
If you own a KIA or Hyundai model years 2011-2021 with a twist to start ignition system, I urge you to contact Kia and/or Hyundai to install the available security updates as soon as possible.
​Helpful Contact information:

• Hyundai toll-free: 800-633-5151
• Kia toll-free: 800-333-4542

Stay Safe out there.

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Whether your goal is to be financially independent, purchase a home, or start a business, money is required to fulfill all of these. Earning money through jobs or side hustles is just one part of the process, the other part is developing a healthy money mindset allowing you to make sound financial decisions and achieve your life goals. In this article by Catherine Workman, we’ll explore some practical ways to develop a positive money mindset and tips on increasing your earning capacity.
 
Understand and Overcome Negative Biases
 
Understanding the psychology of money is key to overcoming biases that negatively affect financial outcomes. This is because having more or less money than one desires can lead to a host of problems if not managed properly. Let’s dive deeper into some common biases you should understand and overcome:
 

• Chasing Instant Gratification: Purchasing new clothes, and eating out are common impulsive decisions made by individuals when their salary hits the bank account. While treating yourself is great for mental health, pursuing instant gratification for the long term is bound to become a major problem. For instance, rather than spending $500 each month eating out, you should consider investing it toward your retirement fund or stock market portfolio. While these do not provide instant gratification, it sets you up for long-term financial success.

 

• Fear of Taking Risks: Social media is flooded with news of financial scams and frauds. Such news can scare new investors from investing their money owing to the fear of losses. However, not investing money is a much greater risk, as each year inflation eats into your savings and consistently reduces purchasing power. The right way to approach this challenge is to use certified resources to educate yourself on the risks and rewards of various types of investments and make an informed decision.

 
Learn to Save More than You Spend
 
Regardless of what your financial goal is, learning how to save will play a major role in achieving it. Here are a few ways to save more starting today:
 

• Create a Budget: A monthly financial budget is a great tool to forecast expenses and keep spending in check, according to Invested Wallet. Additionally, it will help you find areas of overspending owing to chasing instant gratification and make sustained changes in spending habits.

 

• Minimize Debt: Credit card companies often entice customers to use their cards as much as possible to ultimately charge high-interest rates on unpaid dues. By keeping your credit spending in check and making timely payments, you’ll potentially save hundreds of dollars annually.

 
Increase Your Earning Capacity
 
Following the above-mentioned strategies will help you develop a positive money mindset as you’ll be able to cut through the noise and make sound financial decisions. A great addition to this learning will be working towards increasing your earning capacity in the following ways:
 

• Pursue an In-Demand Degree: According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the demand for IT professionals is expected to increase by 15% between 2022 and 2031, higher than all other occupations. Making a career switch to this industry by pursuing an online degree in IT will help you earn a higher income and increase your savings. To learn about the best degrees to pursue, check this out for more info.

 

• Start a Side Hustle: Whether you love writing, painting, making music, or more, you can convert your hobby into a lucrative side hustle. On average, one can earn upwards of $500 each month through this hustle. This money can directly be invested towards retirement savings or creating a healthy emergency fund.

 
Now that you know about common negative biases and the best strategies to earn and manage money, it's time to put your knowledge to use. Creating a monthly budget will be a good first step which can be followed by planning to go back to school to make a career switching to a higher-paying industry.

Always dream of starting a business in your neighborhood? When you know what you're doing, it doesn’t need to be a challenge.
Establishing a business in your community allows you to not only give back to those around you but also establish yourself as a leader as you work to connect with local folks. A community leader can become a prominent figure, creating lifelong friendships and connections with other community leaders.
Discover how to set up your business, how to market your new business, and how to use SEO to reach hundreds of new customers in your area. D Winters Insurance Services shares some tried and tested methods.
Registering an LLC

Creating a Limited Liability Company could not be easier! Someone wishing to get started quickly without a lot of hassle can simply file “articles of organization” (also known as “certificate of organization”, or “certificate of formation” in other states) with the business division of their states. They can then simply pay the filing fees and be quickly approved.
Articles of organization can be as simple as one page to an entire document depending on how many people are applying to be a part of the LLC and what the LLC is for. Unlike other formats, a simplistic LLC can be applied for within under an hour.
Although the very essence of an LLC is limited liability, your business assets should be insured. So reach out to an experienced and knowledgeable agency like D Winters Insurance Services to get signed up for business insurance.
How to Market Your Business
 
As soon as you have an idea that will help your clients get what they want, you will need to find a way for them to find out about and purchase your products. Successful marketing helps connect you with the heart of your business, the consumer in your local community.
Investopedia explains that marketing allows your products or services to be discovered by customers. As you collect wealth, you'll be able to expand or improve the business as you see fit. Successful businesses aren't only market leaders in their fields, but also in their communities.
The easiest way to boost your marketing efforts is to design a great logo for your business, notes Wix. It makes a good first impression, makes you stand out from your competitors, and helps create repeat business through brand recognition.
If you don't want to spend a lot of money on a designer, you can create your own logo using affordable software. These programs allow you to pick the style, icon, color scheme, and text you want to put on the logo.
Don’t Neglect SEO
 
Credibility is one of the most important components of having a successful business. A website or business that performs well on Google and other search engines is more likely to be chosen and is also considered more reliable.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can increase your standing through the search algorithm. You might even discover opportunities that you did not know you had. The customers and companies that visit your website will seek out your products, information, and possibly even collaborate with you. The more interaction you have, the higher your website will rank. Using SEO can create traffic that will help you grow your business. To start, work with reputable local SEO services to craft a solid campaign for your business.
Beef Up Your Skill Set
If you still have reservations about launching your business right now, another way you can move your entrepreneurial dreams forward is by going back to school for a master's degree such as an MBA. Fortunately, online degree programs make it easy to achieve your diploma while still working full-time or tending to family obligations. When looking for an online school, ensure it's accredited and that it offers competitive tuition rates.
The process of launching a local business can be immensely rewarding, but there are a few things to keep in mind. By starting an LLC, focusing on marketing, and using SEO, you’ll set yourself up for success. So, what are you waiting for?
 
D Winters Insurance Services is able to present you with a range of options in a no-pressure environment that ensures you get precisely the coverage you need at a price your budget can support. Contact us today for more info! (612) 325-3516 or (612) 430-9170
​Image via Pexels

Forbes is expecting a wedding boom in 2022. They cite a new survey from The Knot that estimates 2.6 million weddings this year alone. Getting engaged is a beautiful moment for a couple which is sure to be the source of many stories in their future. It also triggers an essential conversation between you and your agent to ensure you're appropriately covered as you are prepared to say "I do."

• Ring Coverage: The story often starts with at least one ring. Providing coverage for the ring provides coverage for that moment in time when someone said "yes" to forever.
• Event Coverage: Martha Stewart Weddings estimates planning a wedding takes 10-18 months. A lot can happen in that time. Things like venues and caterers are booked far in advance and subject to potential losses. Why worry if these service providers have enough coverage and are there when you need them. Provide yourself with some peace of mind; purchase Wedding Event Coverage; work with a good wedding planner, like Availed Wedding and Event Planning
• Talking about the correct form of property coverage and the benefits of combining auto insurance seems more natural than ever before. ( Combining Insurance: At one time living with your significant other before marriage was taboo—times have changed. According to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research, in the years between 1965 and 1974 only 11% of couples lived together before their first marriage. That number increased to 69% between 2010 and 2013.

If you have questions about Wedding or Event Insurance, please reach out to us.

One of the most common types of personal lawsuits involves defective products--and the number of cases filed continues to grow.
In September 2021, the number of civil lawsuits filed in federal court ticked upward to more than 32,000, the highest number since December 2020, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRACs), a data gathering, data research and distribution organization at Syracuse University. This number was driven largely by the number of personal injury product liability cases, TRACs said.
But why would a small business or a home-based business need product liability or product recall insurance?
“Small business doesn't mean small exposure," says Darryl Holmes, vice president, corporate underwriting, Selective Insurance. “A lot of people look at a small business and compare them to larger businesses but do not understand the level of exposure. Every business producing a product needs product liability, even small businesses."
Half a million new businesses started in January 2021 alone, according to Salesforce.com. The majority of these new small businesses were business-to-consumer (B2C) endeavors selling everything from physical products, such as retail goods, face masks, and Etsy-style crafts and clothing, to software apps and in-person and remote services.
When it comes to “home-based businesses, the discussion becomes even more complex because a lot of them may be going bare—they may not have any product liability insurance," Holmes says. “For agents, it is really important to try to educate a startup business about the importance of product liability, about the importance of having the right literature that provides labels and warnings and how to use the product because small businesses are extremely vulnerable."

Despite the hard work and the good intentions that small businesses put in to manufacturing high-quality products, there is always the chance that products could fail to work properly and cause harm to a consumer. 
Additionally, if an insured is buying product liability coverage, they should be buying product recall coverage as well—“the two go hand in hand," says Alex Marti, product recall focus group leader - U.S., Beazley.
“The product liability is going to pick up the bodily injury and property damages a product causes, while a recall policy is also going to pick up an insured's financial loss from having to remove a product from the stream of commerce, which is a costly endeavor," Marti says. “Without a recall policy they are going to be on the hook for those costs on their own." 
The impact of social media influencers can be hugely beneficial for a small business operating on tight margins. However, “if they have a relationship with the business and it's contractual, then that is a bigger issue than if they're just trying to influence on their own," Holmes says. “If an influencer is connected with the company, there's some vulnerability in terms of the representation. That's a verbal representation that someone can actually use against them."
“One of the craziest things about product liability is a business has to anticipate how someone might misuse the product," Holmes continues. “As a product manufacturer, you have to anticipate, for example, that a detergent pod could be an attraction to children—it makes the product liability space very complex for business owners, insurers and for manufacturers as a result."
Of course, when it comes to growth, an influencer can have a positive or negative impact on a business, bringing with it additional considerations for business owners. “If an insured looks like they could scale very quickly, they could see a very large additional premium charge at the time of audit," says TJ Collins, senior vice president, Amwins Brokerage of the Midwest. “I would suggest agents address this while negotiating terms with carriers, asking for free growth and tiered rating structures to help soften the blow of large growth."
Selling a defective product can cause big trouble for businesses, whether big or small.

credit to: Olivia Overman is IA content editor.

How do you retire at age 65 when you are burdened by Student Loan Debt.
See the information below about a resource for you.
Having student loans at age 65 or close to it can be incredibly stressful, but it's also surprisingly common. Education Loan Finance Inc. (Elfi)  recently created a guide to help retirement-aged individuals navigate their student loan debt repayment options. Please take a look: https://www.elfi.com/how-many-seniors-have-student-loan-debt-and-where-can-they-find-help/

I hope this helps you.
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I was talking to a client today about his new Landlord Policy. He had recently purchased a new house and converted his Condo to a Rental Property. He wanted to know why the Landlord Policy was more expensive than his Condo H06 Policy.

I explained to him there are many reasons why the Landlord, or Dwelling Fire Policy, is more expensive.
1) Renters will come and go; some will be respectful, some may not. The insurance company has vetted the homeowner and knows they will reside in the house and maintain and take good care of it. The Insurance company doesn't know who will be there.
2) If you find a water leak, you will probably take care of it right away; a tenant may not want to bother you and not say anything until mold starts to show and floors start to buckle.
My insured then asked, " I require my tenant to have Renters Insurance, won't that protect my house?"
I explained that the Renters policy covers the Tenant's Liability and Personal Property, not the structure. The renter does not have an INSURABLE INTEREST in the property. You can not insure what you do not own.
However, if the Tenant is negligent and causes damage, the landlord can certainly go after the Tenant through a Liability claim, but that may take a while to settle. Use your insurance to cover the loss and the file on the renter's policy.