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FIRST HERITAGE INSURANCE SERVICES
TAMPA BAY - G L O S S A R Y |
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Accident - A sudden fortuitous event.
Actual Cash Value (ACV) - The cost to replace an item of property at the time of loss, less an allowance for depreciation. Often used to determine amount of reimbursement for a loss (Replacement Cost -Depreciation).
Agreed Value - Written with property insurance policies. It waives the Coinsurance clause and requires the insured to carry insurance equal to at least 80% of a signed statement of values filed with the company.
Appraisal Clause - Clause, which provides an appraisal procedure when the insured and the insurer are in disagreement regarding the amount of a loss. Insured and insurer each choose appraisers, who, failing to agree, select an umpire. Agreement of any two of the three will be decisive.
Binder - An oral or written statement providing immediate insurance protection, valid for a specified period. Designed to provide temporary coverage until a policy can be issued or denied.
Bodily Injury - Usually defined to include physical harm, sickness, disease, or death resulting from any of these.
Builder's Risk Coverage Form - Insurance that provides coverage for buildings under construction as well as equipment to service the building, owned materials and supplies, and temporary structures used in construction. Part of the Commercial Property portion of the Commercial Package Policy.
Casualty Insurance - A line of insurance, which historically has included a wide variety of unrelated coverages other than Life and Health. An important coverage in the casualty line is Liability.
Claim - The assertion of a legal right against an insurer that carries with it a demand for appropriate relief.
Coinsurance Clause - A clause that requires an insured to pay part of a loss if the coverage provided under the policy limits is less than a specified percentage of the value of the property at the time of loss.
Collision - A type of physical damage insurance, which covers loss due to the insured object striking another object. Collision may also include upset of the insured object.
Comprehensive Coverage - In automobile insurance, a broad physical damage coverage, which covers all property losses except collision and those perils or property, which are specifically excluded.
Concealment - The withholding of a material fact from the insurance company. May void the policy.
Conditions - The portion of an insurance contract, which sets forth the rights and duties of the insured and the insurance company.
Debris Removal - A coverage provided in many property contracts that reimburses the insured for expenses involved in removing debris produced by a loss from a peril insured against.
Declarations - The section of an insurance contract which shows, who is insured, what property or risk is covered, when and where coverage is effective and how much coverage applies.
Deductible - Usually, a dollar amount the insured must pay on each loss to which the deductible applies. The insurance company pays the remainder of each covered loss up to the policy limits. See also Franchise, Percentage and Straight Deductibles.
Direct Loss - Loss, which is a direct result of a peril. Also includes loss due to efforts to end the peril or unavoidable exposure following a peril.
Endorsement - A document, which is attached to the policy and modifies or changes the original policy in some way.
Exclusions - Section of the insurance policy, which lists property, perils, persons, or situations, which are not covered under the policy.
Financial Responsibility Law - State law that requires owners or operators of autos to provide evidence that they have the funds to pay for automobile losses for which they might become liable. Insurance is the usual method for providing this evidence to the state.
Fraud - A false statement intended to deceive the insurer and induce it to part with something of value or surrender a legal right. May void a policy.
Improvements And Betterments - Permanent alterations which a tenant makes to the rented property, which will not be removed when the tenant leaves.
Inflation Guard - A property insurance option, which provides that the policy limits will increase a certain percentage at regular intervals, for instance, annually.
Insurable Interest - Any actual, lawful and substantial economic interest in the safety or preservation of the subject of the insurance free from loss, destruction or pecuniary damage or impairment. A claim may be paid only when an insurable interest exists.
Insurance - A contract whereby one undertakes to indemnify another or pay or allow a specified amount or a determinable benefit upon determinable contingencies.
Insuring Agreement - The section of an insurance policy, which states which losses will be indemnified, what property is covered, which perils are insured against.
Liability Insurance - Insures the individual for financial losses, which arise out of the person's responsibilities to others imposed by law or contract.
Liberalization Clause - A policy condition found in many standard policies which states that if the insurer adopts a revision that would broaden coverage without additional premium within some period of time prior to the policy period or during the policy period, the insured receives the benefit of such broadened coverage.
Limits of Liability - The maximum amount of insurance the insurance company will pay for a particular loss, or for a loss during a period of time.
Loss of Use Coverage - Under the Homeowner's policy, covers the insured's increased cost of living after loss and rental value of any portion of the dwelling, which is rented out.
Misrepresentation - Statement of something that is known to be untrue.
Mortgagee Rights - Rights granted to a mortgagee, under a property contract issued to a mortgagor, by virtue of the mortgagee's financial interest in the property.
Negligence - The failure to exercise that degree of care that the law requires to protect others from an unreasonable risk of harm. The failure to act as a prudent person would have acted under similar circumstances.
No-Fault Insurance - See Personal Injury Protection.
Occurrence - In Liability policies, generally defined to be an accident, including continuous or repeated exposure to substantially the same general harmful conditions.
Peril - The cause of loss. Examples include fire, windstorm or explosion.
Personal Articles Floater - Personal Inland Marine insurance which provides "all risk" coverage on nine optional classes of personal property: jewelry, furs, cameras, musical instruments, silverware, golf equipment, fine arts, stamp collections and coin collections.
Personal Injury Protection - A coverage provided in Auto policies in the state of Florida that provides coverage for the insured's own injuries on a first-party basis, without regard to fault. This is a required coverage and must be carried by all owners of motor vehicles in Florida.
Proof of Loss - (1) The evidence offered by the insured to prove entitlement to collect the amount claimed from the insurer.
(2) The statement, signed and sworn by the insured, setting forth the claim information required by the policy.
Property Damage - A type of loss covered under many liability contracts. Property damage means physical injury to tangible property, including loss of use.
Proximate Cause - A fundamental doctrine in property insurance that holds that when there is an unbroken connection between an occurrence and damage that grows out of the occurrence, then the resulting damage is a part of the occurrence.
Replacement Cost - The cost to replace a damaged or destroyed item of property, without deducting depreciation. May be the basis of reimbursement for loss to buildings, or by endorsement, to personal property.
Replacement Cost Endorsement - An endorsement that can be added to an HO-3 form to provide replacement cost coverage on personal property (with limitations).
Salvage - Damaged property that may be retrieved, reconditioned, and sold to reduce an insured loss.
Scheduled Personal Property Endorsement - An endorsement to the Homeowner's policy that schedules specific amounts of coverage for one or more of several categories of personal property on an "all risks" basis.
SR-22 Filing - A form which must be filed by the insurance company stating that auto liability insurance is in effect for a particular individual. Required when insurance is provided to an individual who was in an accident or was convicted of a traffic offense and was unable to show financial responsibility.
Settlement - An adjustment where the disposition of the claim involves the payment of a sum of money to the insured or third-party claimant.
Split Limits - In Auto Liability insurance, policy limits that apply one limit to each person injured, another for the bodily injury claims of all persons injured in a single accident, and a separate limit for all property damage arising out of a single accident. Split limits are usually written without zeros and separated by slashes, for example, 15/30/10. Also called dual limits.
Subrogation - The transfer to the insurance company of the insured's right to collect for damages.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage - Automobile coverage designed to provide protection for the insured should he or she be in an accident in which the driver at fault has no insurance (or not enough insurance) to cover the loss.
Vacancy - The absence of people and personal property from a building. Property coverage is often restricted when there are long periods of vacancy.
Valued Policy - A policy wherein the insurer agrees, in advance, that the coverage limit applicable to the item will be considered its value.
Valued Policy Law - A statute, which states that if there is a total loss by a covered peril to a building, structure, mobile home or manufactured housing unit, the insurer must pay the amount provided in the policy for which premium has been paid.
Vandalism And Malicious Mischief (VMM) - Protects property against damage caused by vandals. Many property forms contain Vandalism and Malicious Mischief coverage.
Vicarious Liability - Negligence which is not directly attributable to the person claimed against, but which is the negligence of another for whom the person claimed against is in some way responsible. See Contingent Liability.
Waiver - The voluntary or intentional relinquishment of a known right. A waiver may be expressed or implied.
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