Larsen Insurance Agency

06/16/2026

What Roswell Park Doctors Have Hidden Gaps at Home!
You get there at 6:00 am, say hello to Kim & Michelle, as they arrive for their work in the Radiology department. You smile as you go to grab a coffee, as you head to your research department, as VP of Oncology development.
David and you grab a bit to eat at 10:30 because you haven’t had anything to eat yet. Talked about the Sabres run in the playoffs and the kids activity the past weekend.
It’s now 8:00 pm as you pull in your driveway after a 14 hour shift, exhausted. Hungry due to an empty stomach, you think I should have stopped off for that Chinese food but I was too tired. What leftovers are in the fridge? Maybe I’ll just pop-in a lean cusine into the microwave, as I see what is on TV.
The first thing is and ad from one of those awful insurance TV commercials. You’ve seen it a hundred time “save 15%”, “only pay what you need”. Then you think “I just got my $16,147 tax bill, I need to cut expenses somewhere”. Maybe you open up your phone to check out what you might save on car insurance. Maybe I should start there?
Meanwhile, the very next commercial is the attorney stating “Don’t let those bad insurance companies lowball you on your claim!”
As you continue to eat your dinner, you keep thinking, “I need to start saving money somewhere” and do call that insurance TV ad. They will gladly sell you what you need – the New York minimum coverage of $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident and $10,000 of property damage. It sounds so good, that saved me $478 a year, pretty smart (or so I thought).
Two months later, as you are driving home at 7:49 pm, you miss a stop sign and T-Bone the other car. Bad accident where the other driver with the broken bones, ends up in the hospital for 9 days. You just know they are calling that TV lawyer with the repeatable number!
Seventeen days later, the lawsuit papers arrive at your very nice suburban home on the culdisac. As you rip open the letter it say you are being sued for $3,000,000! Wow, I didn’t see that coming, you say, I’ll turn it over to my insurance company.
That is when you find out you have only $50,000 to pay the injured party and only $10,000 property damage to repair their $44,000 Ford Explorer! Oh no you think, what did I do here to leave myself so open to this accident?
When everything is settled in court, the judgement rendered is for $789,000. While you are thinking, “where will I get the money”, that judgement will then attach to you nice, suburban home you so love. Nobody ever told you that a judgement in New York attaches to real estate – like your home! And a wage garnish of 10% of your salary is send to Roswell Park to start deducting that 10%.
“Why did I ever listen to that dumb TV auto insurance commercial” you say to yourself.
When you don’t have the proper guidance on everything you’ve built and everything you own with an insurance professional, the above is very, very real. It happens more than you know.

06/12/2026

Pizza insurance done the right way, when you have 8 insurance companies that want your business! When it comes to choice of insurance companies in Buffalo, NY and where to go, look no further than here.

When 8 insurance companies say "Send us all the pizza shops you got" we will find the best rate for YOUR pizza shop!

Call us today!

06/10/2026

This is how we do business - when YOU are ready, not us!

06/09/2026

Tom's Tuesday Tip:

Jack called yesterday (a client) to ask:

Q: What is involved in a roof claim (he owns several rental properties)?

A: Was it sudden and accidental, like a wind storm or hail damage? Or has it just deteriorated over time? If it was due to wind or hail, the insurance company will look at the date you said it happened and see what that weather report was for that day.

Jack: Oh the roofing company said they could get me a new roof for free!

A: of course they say, that, the reason...put it through your insurance! Not so simple as that because of what I stated above, it needs to be an event that was sudden & accidental. Just because it is and older roof doesn't qualify.

Jack: It has 3 layers of roofing on it now.

A: For sure it is a tear-off job now, Jack, with the 3 layers! So even if it was due to an insurance related issue, shingles now missing due to wind, you maybe getting $5,000 for a claim. But that tear-off will cost you $20,000! Anyway and insurance won't be covering tearing off 3 layers of roofing!

Contractors should NOT be telling homeowners or landlords they can get them a Free Roof - it doesn't work that way! A 60 mph wind storm came though and destroyed half your shingles, OK!

But 3 layers of roofing, that has seen better days and a few missing shingles due to aging, I don't think so Mr. Contractor!

Got an insurance question for me?
DM me here, I answer them all.
Call our office (716) 684-3203
Email me Tom at Larsen Insurance

06/08/2026

I wrote an article over on LinkedIn about what those TV ads for auto insurance don't tell you!

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/your-at-fault-auto-accident-can-cost-you-tom-larsen-5ctyc

Or read here: What is the True Cost of "Cheap" Auto Insurance for Homeowners?
If you own a home, you’ve undoubtedly seen the TV commercials promising to save you 15% on your auto insurance. What these ads don't tell you is how they achieve those savings—and how "paying only for what you need" can put your greatest financial assets in serious jeopardy. Ironically, the commercial that plays right after that insurance ad is often a personal injury attorney looking to represent the driver of the car you just hit.

When you are a homeowner, choosing an insurance policy shouldn't just be about finding the lowest premium. It’s about determining who you can trust to protect everything you own.

Here is a real conversation I recently had with a client that perfectly illustrates this trap:

The Client: "I called a number from one of those TV insurance ads, and they told me they could save me $450 a year compared to my current policy with you. Why is that?"
The Hidden Dangers of State-Minimum Coverage
Saving $450 a year sounds fantastic until you look at the massive financial vulnerabilities it creates. Here is what happens when you drop to minimum coverage:

Inadequate Property Damage Limits: The $10,000 limit in that quote is for property damage. If you total someone else's vehicle, $10,000 will rarely cover the cost of a modern car.
Automatic Liens on Your Home: If your insurance can't cover the damages and a judgment is ruled against you, that unpaid judgment automatically becomes a lien on your home in New York state.
Wage Garnishment: An unpaid judgment can also result in a 10% garnishment of your wages.
Lost Bundle Discounts: By moving your auto policy, you lose the bundle discount on your homeowner’s insurance. In my client's case, she lost a 20% discount, instantly wiping out $225 of her supposed "savings."

The Umbrella Policy Trap
For this specific client, the risk was even higher because she carried an umbrella policy.

Her umbrella policy requires her to carry a $300,000 underlying limit on her auto insurance. By switching to the "cheap" TV policy, her auto limit dropped to $25,000. This created a massive coverage gap. If she were sued, she would essentially have a $275,000 deductible to pay out of her own pocket before her umbrella policy would even kick in.

Where does an average homeowner come up with a quarter of a million dollars?

The Bottom Line: It All Ties Together
Saving $450 a year sounds great—until you realize you are risking a $489,000 home to do it. Consumers often view auto insurance as a simple commodity where price is the only factor. But the more you have to lose—whether you own a $300,000 home or a $1,000,000+ estate—the more critical it becomes to view your auto insurance as a vital part of your overall financial planning.

Insurance policies are interconnected. A shortcut on your car insurance can leave your home, your salary, and your savings completely exposed.

At Larsen Insurance Agency, we are advisors, not policy pushers. We don't rely on hard sells or TV gimmicks; we provide independent, honest advice to help you decide how best to protect your family and your investments. If you have put down roots and bought a home, find an independent advisor you can trust—don't take financial advice from a television commercial.

About the Author: Tom Larsen is an Insurance Advisor, Author, and President of Larsen Insurance Agency. Based in Buffalo, NY, the agency is licensed by the State of New York and provides independent insurance advice to help families protect their investments. Visit them at www.larseninsurance.com.

06/04/2026

Tom's Thursday Thought:

John asks:
Q- *Can I use home insurance payout the want I want (i.e., use personal property payout toward dwelling)?

A - John, the first payment is for actual cash value, even if you have replacement cost. Then when you prove you replaced the items, you get a second check.

If you never replace those items, then you don't get the second check. So you can spend the money how you want, just don't expect a second check payment!

06/02/2026

Tom's Tuesday Tip:

Sunni asks:

Q: there was a small gas leak at my restaurant and subsequent grill fire, how is this covered by my businessowners insurance policy?

Cheryl asked a (sort of) similar questions:

Q: My toilet supply line broke and water poured downstairs, soaking the walls and the floors. Does homeowners insurance cover this?

A: In both cases the result of the incident is covered by your insurance. For the restaurant owner, that repair to the gas line is maintenance, so on your dime. But the resulting damage is covered by your insurance policy.

For Cheryl, very similar result - the repair to your toilet is a homeowner maintenance issue, but the resulting damage is covered by homeowners insurance.

For you homeowners, if that leak was a constant drip over time, might not be covered because it wasn't "sudden & accidental" but you let it go over time. Insurance is for those "sudden & accidental" occurrences that you could not control. A slight drip over time, you can control and there in lies the difference!

Tom

06/01/2026

05/29/2026

A story about what happens when your professional self, doesn't use professional help, when it comes to everything you've built and everything you own. Read on:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-478-savings-became-789000-problem-tom-larsen-i6eye

05/26/2026

The Hidden Gap Roswell Park Doctors Have at Home!

Read in the first comment: