May accolades

I do not usually respond to magazines about content, but Icannot help but advise you that I received the May issue ofAA&B yesterday and have read it from cover to cover. Ifind it to a very informative vehicle and this issue in particularwas the best. Chris Amrhein was my instructor years ago and I willnever forget his stories about red tennis shoes. The article thatreally caught my attention was “Breakout of the box,” by Fritz Koehler. He drove home a point, whichas a manager for 45 years, I have been sharing with every agent whowill listen. I will not bore you with life experiences but justthank you, both for the wisdom of his article and for your printingit. I look forward to your magazine each month.
Bill Williamson
Sihle Insurance Group
Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Interesting article from Chris Amrhein (“Homeownerquery gets squirrelly“). Some years ago I had a client who hada deer jump right through the living room window into the house.Blood was everywhere before the deer made its escape the same way.Yes, it was covered on the HO-5 for damage to the living roomfurniture, as well as the walls, drapes and window.
Alan V Bakke
Sherman Insurance Agency
Forest Lake, Minn.

Truth is stranger than fiction! Chris Amhrein's squirrel articlemade me laugh and reminded me of a claim that I had paid for aclient who did in fact have the HO-5 endorsement; actually the verygood Encompass Elite policy. Her critter was not a squirrel, but aslightly smellier one. You guessed it: Unbeknownst to her, a skunkhad taken up residence under her back porch. Her dog was introducedto it first and then she promptly followed when he was let backinto the house. As soon as it registered with her what had happenedto the dog, she put him back outside (not realizing that the skunkwas under the porch) and Mr. LePew promptly released his scentagain, which wafted up through the floorboards and the screen door.This went on for several more times during the morning before sherealized he was still in her yard. By now the house, drapes,clothes, carpets, everything, thoroughly stunk! Long story short,Encompass paid more than $4,000 and covered it as “biologicalcontamination of a skunk upon home and contents of the insured.”They initially tried to deny under the “animal exclusion” that youcite in the article.
John Swartz
Hamilton Insurance Agencies
Lyndhurst, Ohio