Every month at Paradiso Insurance, we make sure to deliver helpful content to our customers, friends, and community to educate them about our insurance products or address any common questions we hear through our podcast – Covering Your Community.
In this episode, Chris Paradiso, owner of Paradiso Insurance, and Joe Estey, our Marketing Director at Paradiso Insurance, sit down to our claims process and how our mobile app can help you in multiple situations.
Chris: Welcome! Welcome back, we appreciate having you back, and today I have Joe Estey here with me, and we’re gonna be talking about the importance of when you have a claim, what to do.
We all buy insurance, hopefully, not to have a claim but unfortunately, most of us who drive an automobile will have a claim. We hope that you don’t ever have a claim on a home because that’s always uh very difficult to handle, especially if your house burns down. We’ve had numerous claims through the years, and uh it’s just important to really understand the claims process. So, here at Paradiso Insurance, what we really want to do is really explain to you if you’re a client of ours, if you’re not a client of ours that’s okay, um I still think that the claims information is hugely important that we educate the public with what happens during a claim. Well, what we highly recommend is if you’re insured with us is to call us, call our office. We have a claim specialist, Dori Wilson, here in our office and her job is going to be to take the information um date and time, all the important information that we’re gonna have to need in order to file your claim.
Number 2, we’re gonna speak with you with getting back to you with the claims process, so we’re gonna report everything to an insurance company. Now, obviously this is during office hours. Our office hours here are 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM, Monday through Friday, and Saturdays, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, but we’re also gonna get into our agency app, which going to helps process your claim, and help you during the claims process after hours or hours that we’re not open on Sunday. So, if you call our office, you give us the information, you’d gonna talk to Dori Wilson.
The next step is, is we’re gonna call you back with a claims number and hopefully, a claims person, name, and phone number, and during that process it’s gonna be very important that you deal with your independent insurance agent. So, hopefully you do business with an independent insurance agent. It’s our responsibility to be a part of the process because, as you know, a claim comes in, it gets reported to the carrier, the carrier then deals with you directly, but here at Paradiso Insurance, and whether you’re doing business with another independent agent, it’s very important to keep them in the loop. It’s important that we’re here understanding your process. Why is that? Because unfortunately, at times, you get into a car accident and the claim comes in at $6,000. That’s what the claims adjuster says, and we have to dispute it because the people who are doing repairs to your car say it’s worth $6,700, that’s what it’s gonna take to repair. Well, during that dispute it’s our job to be in the middle of this to help fill in the blanks, or help fill out and fill in with the communication of the carrier and the adjuster because it’s our responsibility to make sure that we’re repairing and getting that car repaired and make you whole.
If it costs $6,700, it’s our responsibility to be involved and help you through the process. The other thing during the claims process that’s huge is understanding what your deductible is. So, if it’s not your fault, and it’s an auto accident, we here at Paradiso Insurance are gonna communicate with the other insurance company. It’s our job to reach out to the other carrier of the person who hit you because it was not your fault, and that will help you in 2 ways.
It’s gonna help you in your renewal premium because what’s gonna happen is if we report it to your carrier and then have to go to get your insurance company with us to get the money back from the other insurance company who had hit you, that could take a process, and usually takes about a year and a half. That’s what we’re seeing, especially in bad claims, and during that year and a half you’re gonna have rate increases because that claim sits upon your policy until the money comes back and is cleared. So, I will tell you, the great thing about that is we’re here to help. That’s what an independent agency does, and it’s our job to hopefully go after the other insurance company, and have them have a good process in filling you in, and getting your car fixed, getting you a rental car, and making you whole, that’s the job. So, during the claims process, please, please, please remember to reach out to your insurance agent. It is important to keep us informed. During work hours, we want you to call our office. We wanna be the point person to help you, and if it’s not during office hours, Joe’s gonna explain to you in a couple of minutes the importance of the agency app, and how easy it is.
It is free, the job is to really help you file a claim, and take pictures and things of that sort. So, Joe wanna step in?
Joe: Absolutely-
Chris: And take it over from here?
Joe: Absolutely. So, if our agency is closed, whether it’s after hours what have you, our agency’s app is read to go on the move with you wherever you go. It’s very easy to download, all you’re gonna do is either go to the Google Play or the Apple App Store and look for Insurance Agent. You’ll find a little icon that is a blue “I”, that is the app you’re looking for, and once you install the app, all you you have to do is select Paradiso Insurance from the list of nearby agencies, and after that it will ask you for your email address, and a quick password to set up your account, and you’ll be good to go.
With our app there’s many great features that will help you out on the road, including you’ll be able to be connected with your agent, whether that’s through email, phone call, our address, our website, and our social media networks, it’s always loaded right into the app on the home screen. You can also load your property into the app, so you can actually have your Renters Insurance or your Homeowners Insurance in the app, and include a list of valuables. You can create a home inventory right in the app, so in case of the event of a claim, we can properly reimburse you for your valuables.
Chris: The other key thing, excuse me Joe, the other key thing on that is if they so choose, that they don’t wanna share that with the agency, they can store that in the cloud on their phone, and if they lose their phone, they just put in the email address and their password, and download the app again and all of those photos stay private with you, the customer. So, you don’t have to share them with us, but it is date stamped and time stamped, and you can keep it private if you so chose.
Joe: Absolutely, and since we’re focusing on claims here, you can also load your auto policy into the app. You can take pictures of your car, take pictures of your ID cards, and have digital ID cards on the go in case you forget them at home, or if they’re lost or stolen.
When you get into an accident, there’s actually a tab dedicated to helping out with people who have claims or accidents. It will remind you of all the important steps to take because we know it can be a nerve-wracking situation. We wanna help you out, so it will ave 3 steps for calling 911- don’t leave the scene, create an accident report, things of that nature, and you can also report claims directly through our app, and take date and time stamped pictures of the location and everything that happened.
So that way if you have to refer to them in a court of law, it can really save you in the end.
Chris: Hugely important, here in the state of Connecticut and multiple stats, if you’re on private property, like for example, you’re here local and you’re in a plaza, say the Big-Y plaza, and somebody backs into you, well it’s your word versus their word. The important thing that we highly recommend because it is on private property, you call the police, the police will not come unless someone leaves the scene of an accident and there is a crime committed because it is private property. Hugely important to take a picture of the other person’s license plate, and take a picture of the damage, and like Joe had just said, it is time stamped and location stamped. So, somebody can’t say well I wasn’t there. So, it is hugely important. We’ve seen our clients being protected by the app, the app is 100% free. We feel that it’s hugely important to you, to help protect you, and the other thing that’s great about the app is the quick you file a claim, the quicker things are gonna be resolved.
So, if you’re in an auto accident or you do have a home claim, don’t wait. If we’re closed, please go through the app, file that claim. The quicker we can get those claims recorded, the better it is for you, and the better it is for us to be able to help you get that process, and get you your check, and make you whole as soon as possible.
Joe: Absolutely.
Chris: So, with that being said, we hope that if you have questions about claims, we do here at our office, belong to the Professional Insurance Association. What’s good about that is we have insurance attorneys that in case of a claim that’s not being covered, we will take your policy, send it to an insurance attorney, have them review it, and have them review what paperwork that you get back from the insurance company stating that you weren’t covered to come up, and hopefully resolved the problem.
We have had multiple occasions that they have helped us out enough to make sure that the claim did get covered which is huge. That is just an added bonus of doing business here at Paradiso Insurance, and hopefully, doing business with an independent insurance agent.
So, with that being said, I’d like to move on to uh what’s going on in our community. Um, awesome time at the Easter Egg Hunt a couple of weeks ago. It was a little chilly but kids came out, families came out, a great day for our community. When we see families together, to me our town wins, and it’s all about bringing our community together, bringing families together and kids. Thank you Mad Tents, thank you to the Fire Department who showed up in multiples. I can’t tell you how many. I mean, if we don’t thank your Fire Department here locally, who volunteer their time, and these guys and girls, they are everywhere doing everything on their own time for the benefit of our community.
The local police do an awesome job. They show up, what do they do? They support, they’re meeting kids, and just doing a great job. We don’t realize how lucky we are in community to have great, local police officers, and a great Fire Department, and I don’t say that lightly. Unbelievable job, can’t thank you enough. It’s because of both of you that you make our community even better than what it already is.
We would like to talk Paws in the Park, uh Rye Street Park in South Windsor, bring your dog to the park on May 5th, at 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM for activities, food, contest, prizes, that is Paws in the Park, it’s at Rye Street Park in South Windsor, May 5th, 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM.
Stafford in 1935 Movie at the Stafford Senior Center is coming up, put on by the Stafford Historical Society who does a great job, and you wanna learn more about the town of Stafford, the Historical Society has amazing pictures and amazing content that is going to be held on May 8th from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Once again, Stafford in 1935, they actually created a movie, it’s gonna be held at the Stafford Senior Center, put on by the Stafford Historical Society on May 8th. It’s from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM, and we here at Paradiso Insurance, we’d like to invite you on Flag Day. If you don’t know when Flag Day is, it’s June 14th. Joe and Aleesha, you’ve been here last year, you’ve been here for two years I think. June 14th from 11:30 AM to 2:00 PM, what do you think people can expect?
Joe: Pretty much and awesome get together for our whole town, we’re gonna be putting on some burgers, hot dogs, sausages, all sorts of great food, we’re gonna be handing out some patriotic t-shirts for everyone that shows up that day. We also have replacement American flags coming in, if you have an old American flag that you need to get rid of we will properly dispose of it within-
Chris: Please bring it. A proper disposal ceremony, and we can give you a brand new one in its place, and really it is an awesome day for the community to come together. We’re gonna hoist a 60 foot flag with the Fire Department in front of the agency, and it’s a really awesome day for the community to show their support, and really thank the troops and things. You have a classic car, we want you to come down. We want you to show it off, it’s about a day for our community, it’s a day to give thanks to our veterans and to pay respect to our flag, and everybody who’s fought for that flag.
Because as we know, all gave some, but some gave all, and at the end of the day it’s a day of respect. It’s a day of respect, and a great day for our community.
Joe: I will say!
Chris: There’s a huge event up at Stafford Fish and Game this weekend on Sunday. It’s gonna be the Fishing Game Derby, please show up. There’s gonna be fishing, everybody wins a prize, enormous.
I think 500 kids showed up last year, I grew up going to it. I know I’m old, but I actually grew up going to it. I am now bringing my kids, and families from all over the place. It’s really a Stafford event, but families come from all over, and they come and go fishing. They win events, there’s for the first fish, for the largest fish, they win prizes, but everybody wins a prize, and everybody leaves pretty happy. There are hot dogs, hamburgers, coffee, free bait, so you don’t even have to bring bait. I mean, it’s an amazing event put on by an amazing club. Stafford Fish & Game doing an awful lot for our community, for our kids.
Rob Wilson and his family do an amazing job, they run it every year. Big shout out to Robert for what he does for the community. The following weekend after that, Rob and his wife also will have the Son-Mother Dance. We will get into the next episode, but please show up this Sunday. I believe it starts at 8:30 AM and ends at 1:00 PM at the Stafford Fish & Game Club, bring your children, bring your fishing poles, and everything else is on the Stafford Fish & Game Club. We hope to see you there.
