Margareth, Gregory, & I at the swearing-in ceremony in Delaware.

Margareth and I recently attended the swearing-in ceremony of our son Gregory Hauswirth before the Supreme Court of the state of Delaware.

Gregory is a practicing bankruptcy attorney in Pittsburgh at the law firm of Thorp, Reed and Armstrong.  Last year,  Greg’s firm asked him to take the bar exam for the state of Delaware. Gregory explained to me that this was probably the hardest test in the country and he is already licensed in the state of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. In addition to passing the bar exam, Gregory was required to spend five months living and working in the state of Delaware prior to being admitted to the Delaware Bar. He commuted from his apartment in Wilmington back home in Pittsburgh on weekends.

We were very excited as we walked into the courthouse and found several plaques on the wall indicating the names of every man or woman that has been admitted to practice law in Delaware going back to the 1700’s where the first attorney was Caesar Rodney, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Since that time every attorney who has been admitted to practice law in Delaware has been given a consecutive number. On January 25, 2011, Gregory William Hauswirth was given the number of 5678. This means that since the early 1700s there has only been 5,678 attorneys to practice law in Delaware.

While Delaware is our smallest state, they stand very tall and proud with some of the finest corporate attorneys in the country and now our son is one of them.

We are giving away a FREE Apple iPad 2 to the winner of our end-of-the-year Facebook Contest. The rules are simple and it’s so easy to win. PLUS, at the end of December, we will send a check in the amount of the total number of Facebook likes to the Lacey Township Food Bank!!

There are two simple steps to enter:

1. Hit the “Like” button at the top of the Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants Page on Facebook
2. Leave us a comment on our wall (we’re looking for testimonials about our agency, staff, services, newsletter, anything)

That’s it — it’s that easy! Once you complete those two steps you’re automatically entered to win. Plus, if you already like us on Facebook, you’re halfway there!

Tell your friends and family how to enter – they can win too! This contest is open to everyone; you do not need to be a client to enter and there is no purchase necessary to win. This offer is not in connection with, or inducement to buy any insurance product from Hauswirth & Sons Insurance.

The contest starts November 15th and ends December 15th. Don’t wait until the last minute — complete the two easy steps (Like & Comment here) and enter to win today!

If you’re still not convinced, stay tuned for some more reasons why you should like us on Facebook!

Rich Hauswirth - Agent for Plymouth Rock Assurance Co.

Plymouth Rock Assurance Company (formerly Palisades Insurance) has added a new feature for all of their personal auto insurance policyholders.

The Get Home Safe Program is a new addition to their policies at no cost to the policy holder. In short, policyholders may be reimbursed up to $50 for cab service fees when utilized for transportation if they find themselves in a situation where it would be unsafe to operate their vehicle.  This will be a free service that can be used once per year for a cab ride up to a maximum of $50.  The policyholder must have a written receipt for the expense.

Many times, you may find yourself in a situation where you just don’t feel up to driving and this free service for Plymouth Rock customers will give you that extra option to not get behind the wheel of the car.

We’re proud to be agents for Plymouth Rock (formally Palisades) and if you’re not a Plymouth Rock customer, why not stop by our web site or call our office (877-329-3261) and let us show you what other great services we have to offer!

It comes from the tribal wisdom of the Dakota Indians (passed on from generation to generation) that says:

“When you discover that you are riding a dead horse, its best to dismount.”

However, in our government, education, and in corporate America, more advanced strategies are more often employed when dealing with a dead horse….. such as:

1. Buying a bigger/stronger whip.

2. Changing riders.

3. Appointing a committee to study the horse.

4. Arranging to visit other countries to see how other cultures ride dead horses.

5. Lowering the standards so that dead horses can be included.

6. Reclassifying the dead horse as living-impaired.

7. Hiring outside contractors to ride the dead horse.

8. Harnessing several dead horses together to increase speed.

9. Providing additional funding and/or training to increase dead horse’s performance.

10. Doing a productivity study to see if lighter riders would improve the dead horse’s performance.

11. Declaring that as the dead horse does not have to be fed, it is less costly, carries lower overhead and therefore contributes substantially more to the bottom line of the economy than do some other horses.

12. Rewriting the expected performance requirements for all horses.

. . . and of course . . .

13. Promoting the dead horse to a supervisory position.

I only hope that our Congress and the White House come to the conclusion that it’s time to stop dealing with that poor dead horse and start dealing with more pressing issues!

Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants proudly represents Plymouth Rock Assurance Company

Palisades Insurance Company has announced their name will be changing to Plymouth Rock Assurance Company within the next week. Palisades and their sister company, High Point Insurance, are both owned by the parent company, Plymouth Rock Insurance of Massachusetts. The plan to consolidate the two companies here in New Jersey has been in the works for two years.

We want to assure all our customers that the responsive and efficient service you currently receive from Palisades will continue.  While certain back office operations are being consolidated with the name change; their employees, products, and services will remain the same.

We expect a couple of months for the name change to fully transition from Palisades Insurance Company to Plymouth Rock Assurance Company. During this time,  our customers will receive materials displaying one or both names. All of us at Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants can assure you nothing else will change.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at 609-693-3123.

Rich Hauswirth - Hard at work on his 1911 Typewriter

Now one of the benefits of being middle aged, is that I have totally no interest in video games.  I need information I go to my PC.  It took me a while to get used to my Kindle and find out how to turn a page.  Then came the IPad and the touch screen.  That I like.  I can go from CNN to The Weather Channel to Bloomberg News faster than a speeding bullet.

I can do all of that on secured lines in my internet and wireless adapter.  All of the service providers have serious encrypted entry points.  But even then, I take no chances.  I use a credit card that actually has less than a $1,000 line of credit.  If I get hacked, I may loose $1,000 and that’s it.

But to give Sony credit card information for an on-line gaming system?  Then to find out they were hacked and the thieves stole $1,225 in gaming points?  By the way I have no idea what a gaming point is or what you would do with it.  But this second attack, the gaming points attack, comes after they were hacked last month and personal information of some 100 million users was stolen.

The good news about this second attack, (per the Wall Street Journal) is that Sony has not found any data leakage of names and birth dates or phone numbers.  The bad news is that Sony’s experts have admitted that their networks remain vulnerable to future attack.

It’s a whole new world out there and our office is selling cyber liability to protect businesses who conduct e-commerce over the internet, but I believe the consumer should also think twice before distributing personal information over a network that admits they cannot control data leakage!

How about you just send the kids outside for a friendly game of baseball.

Enter our Facebook Contest to WIN an iPad 2!

Win an iPad 2 in our First Ever Facebook Contest!

We are giving away a FREE iPad 2 to the winner of our first ever Facebook Contest. The rules are simple and it is so easy to win. The iPad 2 is the latest product from Apple and we want to give one away for FREE!

THE RULES:

1. Like the Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants Page on Facebook.

2. Leave  a comment on our wall. We’re looking for testimonials about our agency, staff, services, anything. Your name will then be entered into the famous fishbowl.

The contest starts May 1st and ends May 31st. The lucky winner will be announced Friday, June 3rd.

Remember there are two simple steps – Like & Comment!

This contest is open to everyone, meaning you do not need to be a client of Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants. There is absolutely no purchase necessary to enter the contest. This offer is not in connection with, or inducement to buy any insurance product from Hauswirth & Sons Insurance.

Click here to visit our Facebook!

Susan Brennan Wins Amazon Kindle

Congratulations to Susan Brennan of Waretown, NJ! She is the WINNER of our First Quarterly Drawing for an Amazon Kindle.

Have you heard about our Referral Program?

Tell a friend, a relative, an acquaintance or whoever about Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants.  Have them contact us at 877-329-3261 and make sure you tell them to mention your name. For each referral you win a $10 gas card! That’s right for every referral we will give you a $10 gas card.

Your name will then be entered into our Monthly Drawing and our Quarterly Drawing. The winner of the monthly drawing will receive a $50 gift card. Each Quarter, the winner receives a brand new Amazon Kindle.  Your name will also be mentioned in our newsletter! Start referring today, you could be the next winner of an Amazon Kindle!

App Available for Droid

The Hauswirth & Sons Insurance smart Phone Application is now available for download in both the iTunes Apple Store and the Android Market.  Whether you have an iPhone or an Android-Based Smart Phone, simply search Hauswirth and download. This is a free download in both stores that gives unlimited access to the resources at Hauswirth & Sons Insurance Consultants. This is a great way to always be connected to our office in any case of emergency. In less than a minute, you can report a claim on the spot that includes the exact date, time, location and a picture that sends directly to our office.

As A reminder, we now have 24/7 phone service dedicated to our clients.  That means even after hours you will get to talk to a live person and no recording device.

When you’re unsure about what to do after an accident or disaster with your home, you can instantly turn to the Hauswirth phone application for the next steps to take in filing a claim. For current customers of Hauswirth, easily request a policy review by sending us a message through the phone app or request a quote for another policy.  If you’re currently shopping for insurance providers, download our app and meet our team. You’ll find that our Protection Team has the expertise to help you find the right policy. New customers can also request a quote, call us directly, or locate us and stop in for a visit all through the Hauswirth Smart Phone App that is free to download today!

Visit the  app store today to Download your Hauswirth Insurance App – http://itunes.apple.com/sn/app/hauswirth-sons-insurance-consultants/id426368714?mt=8

Or Visit the Market for Android-Based Smart Phones  – http://bit.ly/gnoZND

Most cases of water damage in homes are due to damaged or broken laundry machine hoses.  Cold (!) water can leave the hoses stiff and porous, which may cause dangerous leaks. A 5/8” supply line for a washing machine pumps 12 gallons per minute – that can add up to 17,000 gallons in 24 hours – the equivalent of a small swimming pool!

Think about replacing your laundry machine hoses every few years to protect your home from water damage.  Laundry machine hoses are standardized.  So for customers of Hauswirth & Sons Insurance (and with the help of Bob Concia, owner of Bob’s Square Deal Hardware of Forked River) we have some washing machine hoses available in our office.  Pick yours up FREE at our office! (For a limited time only – as long as supplies last.)