As a native Tennessean, I’ve been watching with awe as Gatlinburg has regrouped and rebuilt in the wake of the late-2016 wildfires. Tennesseans are tough and resilient and inclined to pitch in and help each other, and that catastrophe put that into the foreground once again.

Months later, we’re seeing a more clear picture of the damage that occurred as those wildfires moved through 16,000 acres around the Great Smoky Mountains.

The most heartbreaking: 14 lives lost. The fires also damaged or destroyed more than 2,400 structures, and led to upwards of $1 billion in damages. Fighting the fire cost more than $8.8 million, and in just the month of December, tourism revenue in the area was off by $19 million.

Some Gatlinburg residents and business owners still face extra struggles, too, because of uninsured or under-insured properties.

Every part of that is heartbreaking to me, but the latter is where I think I can be of some help, in sharing information about getting adequate insurance, and helping my neighbors in Nashville understand (and get) the coverage they need.

I wrote a post recently about how focused small-business insurance options are available for just about every industry you can imagine.

One of the industries that I have a lot of personal love for — and which has some of the most complex insurance needs: craft breweries.

A lot can go right when you open a craft brewery in Nashville, and that’s been especially clear over the past decade or so.

I’ve read more than my share of news stories claiming the insurance industry hasn’t changed much. And there’s a little truth to that — the fundamental function and approach, calculating risk and charging customers based on that risk — is pretty similar to the plans that protected London homeowners back in the mid-1600s.

That said, our industry, like every industry, is shifting and changing with technology. It’s often in really cool ways, too — ways that are directly beneficial to both insurers and insurees. I think that’s only going to become more true in the years to come.

Chronicling all the ways technology is changing (and improving) insurance would take a fairly lengthy book. So here, I’ll share just a few things that have grabbed my attention, and that I think are worth keeping an eye on.

It’s already proving to be a busy year for car thieves here in Nashville — by mid-June, we’d seen an astonishing 87 percent jump in the number of stolen cars, year-to-date.

The rising car-theft rates have been consistent across all of Metro Nashville’s police precincts in 2017, with the biggest jumps in Madison (168 percent) and Hermitage (128 percent).

I bring all this up not to bum my neighbors out, but to bring up something important: A surprising majority of vehicle thefts happen because we make it way too easy for thieves.

Across every business and every industry, all entrepreneurs have something in common: We’re human. We err. We err personally, and we err professionally.

The former is complicated enough; the latter brings the possibility of a lawsuit.

As diligent a professional as we all might be, we have to accept that oversights and unintended mistakes can happen, and that we need to protect ourselves against that possibility. That means Errors and Omissions Insurance.

A useful entrepreneurship tidbit to know: Across the United States, independent business growth is in a good place. From the 2017 Kauffman Index of Startup Activity:

“In 2013 the Startup Activity Index was at its lowest point in the last 20 years. Today it has gone up three years in a row, reaching close to the peak before the Great Recession drop.”

As an independent insurance agent/small businessperson, that’s a factoid I’m happy to see. Unfortunately, here at home in Nashville, figures are a little less sunny.

Nashville, disappointingly, was on a downswing in Kauffman’s Metro Rankings, dropping from from a city rank of 16 in 2016 to 29 in 2017. We were one of the biggest drops among the cities cited.

I certainly can’t pinpoint what’s making the startup rate in Nashville stall, but I do know one thing: Starting a business is difficult, and complicated, with a grab bag of different pieces that need to be in place for things to start, stabilize, grow and thrive.

Having the right small business insurance in place is, to me, one of the most important parts of entrepreneurial housekeeping.

I like to read insurance-industry studies — in part out of curiosity, but more so I can understand what my insurance clients in Nashville do and don’t understand, where their assumptions lie, and what they want from an independent insurance agent like me.

A few I read recently really opened my eyes. Largely to the fact that insurance brokers like me, in Nashville and everywhere else, need to do more to dispel false assumptions about life insurance.

Life insurance is valuable, and if you have a family, a business or considerable assets, I’d call it a must. But a lot of Americans are apparently skipping it, based on assumptions that are out of date, off-base or simply not true.

So I’d like to clarify a few things, and hopefully make getting life insurance in Nashville seem more approachable. 

If there are two key things I want to try and drill into my Nashville neighbors’ minds, it’s this:

— It’s worth it to shop for and compare insurance policies.

— Don’t just set and forget your insurance — you need to keep things updated.

On the latter point: Let’s talk about home insurance.

I can’t tell you how many homeowners I’ve met in Nashville who find a home insurance policy when they purchase their home, then ignore it forever, unless they have to make a claim.

There are a bunch of reasons that’s not the best idea. First, you could be missing out on better rates by not shopping around. But more importantly, you could be leaving yourself with inadequate coverage that doesn’t reflect your home or your situation anymore.

This week, I read a story from Nashville’s NewsChannel 5: “Why a fender bender can total your old car.” It’s a car-insurance story I’ve heard plenty of times before, and I know I’ll hear again and again.

The crux, in case you don’t feel like reading the whole story: A Nashville driver with an older car gets in a wreck, and has his dented-but-functional vehicle totaled. Which leaves him with a problem: The blue-book value payout isn’t enough for a reasonable replacement, but getting a “salvage” title and repairing the old car isn’t financially ideal either.

I really feel for the guy. The biggest bummer with all this: There’s no perfect solution, insurance-wise.

Although spring tends to be the peak season for major storms here in Tennessee, we’re still getting a healthy share in Nashville now that summer’s rolling in. And the steady parade of downed trees in my neighborhood keeps that in the front of my mind.

Also at the front of my mind when winds are howling and thunder’s rolling: how these major storms affect my clients.

There’s good reason for someone in my line of work to be thinking about that, since weather leads to the bulk of homeowners insurance claims — 51 percent of all losses are traced to weather-related damage.

Are you clear on what is/isn’t covered at your place, and with your policy? Just in case, here’s a quick rundown of the most common stuff.

Nashville is a unique place to live for a lot of reasons, not the least of which being our healthy congregation of professional musicians, songwriters, photographers and other creatives.

Even those of us with straight-laced jobs know how hard of a slog it is to stabilize a creative career, and I have immense respect for neighbors who make it happen, and appreciation for a city that supports the hustle.

A funny, frustrating thing about creative jobs like these, though: It’s necessary to amass loads of expensive equipment, and usually just as necessary to haul it around to less-than-locked-down locations, like dark rock clubs, open parks and Motel 6 parking lots.

The kicker:

Creative professionals tend to be chronically under-insured, and people in my industry don’t reach out to musicians and artists enough to change that.

Whether you buy a single-family home or a condo in Nashville, you’re a homeowner, pure and simple. But that doesn’t mean your experiences and needs are the same.

As a single-family homeowner, your responsibilities run from the roof to the foundation, so your insurance coverage needs to be just as broad.

Condo owners are a little different. Everything inside your unit is yours to maintain and repair, but the shared parts of the property — anything from the lobby to the plumbing that runs from the street — fall under the HOA’s purview.

That means you need a more specific home-insurance option, tailored to what a condo owner needs to protect. 

On rare occasions, it really is best to put all your eggs in one basket. Exhibit A: insurance coverage.

This shouldn’t be news to any homeowner, renter or driver in Nashville, but: Bundling several insurance policies with the same provider almost always benefits you, in a number of different ways.

Here's a look at what's in it for you when you bundle...

If I could see into the future… well, I’d probably be in pretty high demand in the insurance industry. Since I can’t, I rely on studies and data to try and understand trends, and pass information along to my clients.

One thing I get asked a lot lately: “Why does it seem like car insurance rates keep going up?” The short answer: Because car insurance rates keep going up.

From Forbes: “Since about 2012, rates to insure vehicles have gone up in all states and for all drivers, even including those with spotless driving records and no claims.”

I know that’s not fun and/or reassuring, but I think it’s worth at least knowing why things are trending in that direction, how we can work with it, and what we can expect from the future.

Earlier this year, I wrote a little about renters insurance in Nashville — what it covers, what it usually costs. I think the post is well worth a read if you rent a home or apartment in Nashville, whether you’re a young professional just getting your footing or a retiree feeling out whether or not you’d like to buy a home here.

While I covered the “what” and the “how” about renters insurance pretty thoroughly there, the “why” could probably use a little more explanation. Because “why” might be the most important part of renters insurance, and I don’t think people in the insurance industry are getting it across effectively.

Stats that lead me to that conclusion: While 95 percent of homeowners in the U.S. had homeowners insurance, according to a 2016 poll, only 41 percent of renters had renters insurance.

Mortgage requirements notwithstanding, that 59 percent of uninsured renters is disheartening to me, considering how cheap and simple renters insurance is and how much protection it provides.

People I meet from out of town often ask me, “What are the car insurance rates like in Nashville?” “How do home insurance rates in Tennessee compare?”

They’re funny questions, honestly, because I can’t answer them. At least not accurately.

If you want numbers that mean anything, we’d need to get a little deeper, and talk about insurance rates based on risk levels. Which is something worth talking about, if you’re shopping for insurance in Nashville. A lot of people don’t realize it, but if you’re considered a “preferred risk,” you have a serious bargaining chip that you can and should be making smart use of.   

There are lots of insurance options most of us have no need to learn about. Prize indemnity insurance. Political risk insurance. Equine Liability Insurance.

But if you’re shopping for insurance in Nashville, and you don’t already know the ins and outs of umbrella policies, I’d definitely encourage you to brush up a little (and I’m glad to help you do so).

It’s not complicated, just lesser-known to many Nashvillians (many Americans, really). And it can be significantly valuable, while not being significantly expensive.

No one ever really wants to talk about life insurance, which is understandable. But no one talking about life insurance is also why there tends to be a steep learning curve related to it.

When I talk to someone who’s shopping for life insurance in Nashville, more often than not, they’re coming into the process confused by premiums and options, and a little intimidated.

Here’s the good news: Getting your head around the best life insurance options for you and your family isn’t that hard, with some basic information and a little guidance. I’m glad to provide both (just call/email me).

If you’d like to skim the surface before you talk to an independent insurance agent in Nashville, I’m happy to help there too.

I do a lot of different things, as an independent Nashville insurance agent. I give advice. I research coverage options. And often enough, I fix insurance mistakes.

There are some I can’t fix — like not having the coverage you need and trying to address it after you need to make a claim. On the front end, though, if we sit down and go over your total picture, I can point out the places where you’re paying too much for insurance, or you’re under-covered, or putting yourself at unnecessary risk to save a few bucks.

I breathe insurance day in and day out, so whipping your insurance situation into shape is both a job and a joy for me. I legitimately love helping clients find better coverage at better prices.

If you’d like to sit down and chat about your insurance needs, reach out and let me know. In the meantime, if you’re curious about whether your insurance coverage has some hidden mishaps, here are a few of the most common insurance mistakes I see people make. They might give you perspective on where your car insurance, home insurance, renters insurance, life insurance, etc. needs attention.

Here on the blog, I’m going to try to tackle a few Nashville insurance questions that I get asked routinely by clients and prospective clients. One of the most common: When should I take my grown kids off my car insurance policy, and push them to get their own?

The answer, in my opinion, is like most answers when it comes to insurance: It depends.

There’s no across-the-board “best” approach, here, but there probably is an approach that’s best for your situation, and your child’s. By and large, you need to weigh out a few key factors to make this decision.

Here’s what I’d think about, and where I’d start a pros/cons list: