Quinton Insurance

Are you 100% confident you’re still getting the absolute BEST price and coverage on your insurance???

Most people aren’t - they just haven’t checked!
What are you waiting for?

Go to: https://www.quintoninsurance.com/quote-requests/

For your Free No Hassle quote in minutes!!!!!

If you’re planning to light any fires this summer – whether in a backyard fire pit or at a campsite – here are a few tips to make sure you’re doing so safely.

NOTE: Before you head out for a camping trip or to the backyard fire pit, find out if there are any fire bans in place.

• Aim to keep your fire at least 10 feet away from anything combustible.

• Campfires should be built within a ring of stones. Fire pits should be made from cement, brick, clay, or sheet metal, and covered with a heavy gauge metal screen to keep sparks from flying out.

• Fire pits shouldn’t be used in windy conditions.

• Avoid fueling your fire with anything other than dry wood, charcoal, or fire logs.

• Don’t use gasoline or lighter fluid – to start your fire. Newspaper, wood shavings and twigs, are much safer.

• Keep a fire extinguisher handy at all times. If you don’t have one, a bucket of water, sand, dirt, or gravel will do.

• Never leave children and pets near an open fire.

Know how to put a fire out properly. You don’t want to find yourself responsible for causing a wildfire, or for damage to a neighbor’s property or even your own home!

• Douse the fire with water and then mix the embers around with a stick. Make sure everything gets wet and goes out.
• Pour a bucket of sand or dirt over the fire and mix it around until embers are smothered.

If you’ll be lighting any fires this summer, make sure you, your home, and your belongings are protected in case anything goes wrong.

Go to: https://www.quintoninsurance.com/quote-requests/
to get your free Home Insurance quote in minutes

Are you 100% confident you’re still getting the absolute BEST price and coverage on your insurance???
Most people aren’t - they just haven’t checked!

What are you waiting for?

Go to: https://www.quintoninsurance.com/quote-requests/

For your Free No Hassle quote in minutes!!!!!

The reality is that, as a homeowner, exterior underground service and utility lines on your property are often your responsibility – and breaks in a line or accidents during digging can happen. If you need to repair or replace physically damaged lines or pipes, the cost can be substantial.

DID YOU KNOW...Typical homeowners insurance policies don't provide coverage for damage to these exterior underground service lines or pipes.

• What Service Lines Might Run Under My Property?

Exterior underground service and utility lines include:

Water and Sewer Pipes
Cable, Internet and Electric Wiring
Natural Gas Pipes
Propane Pipes

• How Service Lines Become Damaged

Some of the most common causes include: tree roots, animal interference, an artificial electrical current, the weight of vehicles pressing down on the lines and even corrosion, rust, wear and tear.

Outdoor elements and causes like these can prove detrimental to these service lines and pipes. No matter what the cause, the effects can be costly. Besides repairing the actual service line, a homeowner may have to dig up landscaping, driveways and sidewalks to gain access to the damaged line. Damaged outdoor property — such as trees, shrubs and even walkways — may require repair or replacement as a result of the service line repair or the service line failure itself.

• Good News: Help For Homeowners

The good news is that you can purchase Service Line insurance coverage — additional protection that covers the cost of these service line repairs as well as related excavation costs, outdoor property damage and even loss of use.

Contact us today and we can explain the details and give you a quote on homeowners insurance that includes service line coverage.

As a homeowner, you’ve probably entertained guests who overstayed their welcome. But unlike your in-laws or a former college roommate, an animal that’s made itself at home on your property has no intention of leaving.

Some of the usual suspects include raccoons, opossums, woodchucks, skunks, or the occasional stray cat. And while they’re just looking for a safe place to call home, you’d probably prefer it wasn’t under your porch or shed.
How can I tell if an animal is living under my porch?

Wondering if an animal has decided to move in? Here are some things you should look for:

• Animal sightings: This one’s obvious. But if you see an animal entering and exiting the space below your porch multiple times, there’s a high likelihood it’s not just visiting. Of course, many nuisance animals are nocturnal. So if you want to catch them in the act, think about investing in a motion-sensor trail camera – many models can be found for less than $50 online.
• Damage: One of the reasons animals are worth evicting from around your home is the damage they can do to your home and property. Look for burrow holes, gnawed wood, and eaten vegetation around the area.
• Paw prints: Spread a light dusting of sand or flour around your porch at night, then check for prints in the morning.
• Droppings: We know – ewww. But animal droppings, or s**t, can help you confirm the identity of your newest neighbor.

How can I get the animal to leave?

When evicting an animal near a house, many well-meaning homeowners turn to live traps as a humane solution for removal. But according to experts, the trap-and-release method rarely ends well for captured animals. You could separate a mother from its young, or the animal could have difficulty thriving in the area you choose to release it.

So instead of setting a trap, try to convince the animal to move out on its own. Here are some ways to persuade an animal into finding a new home:

• Noise: Chances are, the animal you’re trying to evict decided to move in because it found a safe, quiet space under your porch. Leaving a radio playing under your porch for a few days can send it searching for a more tranquil home.
• Light: Animals like raccoons, possums, groundhogs, and skunks like dark, quiet spaces. Plugging in a strobe light or some flashing Christmas lights near the problem area can serve as another good deterrent.
• Scents: If you’ve pinpointed the type of animal living under your porch, try buying some granular repellent to spread around the area. You could also try a rag soaked in a strong-smelling (but non-toxic) solution, like apple cider vinegar.
• Call a professional: If you’re not having any luck evicting an animal on your own, consider calling a professional pest removal company. They’ll make sure the animal is removed safely and humanely.

How do I keep an animal from returning?

Once you’re sure the animal has moved out, it’s time to keep it out for good. Similar to preventing smaller creatures like bats and squirrels from entering your home, you should start by sealing off the area. For decks and porches, you can use decorative lattice with some wire mesh behind it. Just be sure to bury the bottom of the barrier so animals are unable to sneak underneath it. For sheds and other buildings, fill in any burrow holes with dirt, then spread animal repellent in the area a few times each year.

Does my homeowners insurance cover animal damage?

Generally speaking, damage from animals is not covered by your homeowners insurance. That’s because it’s considered a home maintenance issue, since the damage is gradual – as opposed to a sudden event, like your neighbor’s tree falling on your roof. Give us a call and we can help you understand what your insurance does (and doesn’t) cover.

As we gather with family and friends this weekend, Please take a few moments of quiet reflection to honor the true meaning of Memorial Day. We are forever indebted to the heroes who gave everything for our nation and the life we all enjoy. 🇺🇸

The weekend is nearly here and there is plenty to do to help your yard recover from Winter. Here are a few tips...

• Check for damaged patches of lawn. Salt, plows and disease can do a number on your grass, so use a metal rake to remove any dead or damaged patches.
• Don’t mow too early. Grass needs a chance to reestablish itself, so let it grow reasonably tall before mowing. For the first mow, use the high setting to keep the grass strong. Be sure to take a walk through your lawn beforehand as well, and clean up any branches or debris that blew into your yard during the winter storms.
• Overseed your lawn. Overseeding is the process of planting grass seeds directly into the existing turf. This leads to denser grass with more color variation. Though best done in the fall, you can still get great results by overseeding in the spring. Slit-seeder machines can do the work for you; ask a home supply store specialist for help choosing one.
• Switch to a new grass alternative. If you’ve been debating abandoning the traditional grass lawn for something with less maintenance and a littler greener, spring and fall are typically the best times to start.
• Prune trees and shrubs. Using a pruner, trim trees and shrubs back to their live stems. (For any branches thicker than ½ inch, use a handsaw.)
• Clean up the area around plants. Rake up any leaves, uproot any dead annuals and remove existing mulch a little at a time as the temperatures warm. (Wait until the soil warms up in mid- to late-spring before applying a new layer of mulch. If you put it down too early, it will slow the warming process.) While in your garden, cut back flowering perennials to a height of four or five inches to allow space for new growth.
• Restore your walkway. Rake any errant gravel back into place. If you have flagstones, fill new sand or stone dust into the cracks.

You work hard to make your home and yard beautiful...let us help you protect it. Give us a call to review your home insurance policy.

In order to honor Memorial Day, our office will be closed Monday May 25th. We will be open bright and early on May 26th at 8:30am to serve you.

If you need more insurance information or a quote on this long weekend...Please visit our website at:
www.QuintonInsurance.com

Have a Safe Memorial Long weekend.

Here are a few suggestion to help you celebrate Mother’s day this Sunday (May 10th)

1. Cook Mom a nice breakfast or dinner, or set up a brunch date.
• Breakfast in bed is always a classic and appreciated! Something simple is fine for this, such as toast or a croissant with jam or fruit and a cup of coffee or tea.
• If you’re not with mom in person, how about a virtual brunch date? Zoom with the entire family!
• Bake a cake! Traditionally, children in England always baked a cake for Mother’s Day.

2. Offer garden services.
• If you live close to your Mom, give her a “gift certificate” for you to do garden work. Put the “certificate” in a flower pot with spring-planted bulbs which flower in summer.
• If you’re not local, how about a arranging a lawn care company to take care of the lawn this year.

3. Decorate your mom’s door or give flowers!
• Have fun decorating your mom’s front door with streamers, special signs, a wreath, and flowers! If you have kids, get them involved! Mom or grandma will love the surprise.

4. Watch a movie or show together, side by side.
• If you’re all at home in one place, have a movie that night, complete with theater treats.
• If you’re in separate locations, watch the same movie on your computers at the same time. Or, start a marathon of your favorite TV series while indulging in a glass of wine or cup of tea.

5. Get creative: Make Mom a video, a music playlist, or a piece of art!
• Record a video from all of the children. They can each say “Happy Mother’s Day” and why they appreciate her.
• Or, make a music playlist. You could gather her very favorite songs from the era that she loves most.
• How about a special work of art for Mom? For example, paint the outside of a terra-cotta flower pot and fill it with garden seeds and a card. Or, make a beautiful photo frame with your family photo inside. You can find many ideas on Pinterest and elsewhere on the Web.

6. Get outside! Go for a stroll in the park or how about packing mom a picnic?
• Fresh air always lifts the spirit. Spring is a wonderful time to visit a park and look for all those lovely spring flowers.
• How about packing a simple picnic or pack a cooler for a beautiful drive through the countryside.

7. Travel virtually to a museum or garden!
• Even if you’re not together, the wonders of technology make so much possible today. More and more museums are opening up their “walls” to offer virtual tours!

8. Make your own card.
• Remember as a child you would make Mom a homemade card and she would LOVE it? Well, nothing has changed...she will still love it.
• Wondering what to write in the card? Share a funny story or happy memory of you and your mom? It will make her smile!