Soda Soaked Laptop
@ 5:49 am“Accidents, try to change them — it’s impossible. The accidental reveals man.” – Pablo Picasso
When I interviewed Abigail Garner, the author of Families Like Mine, I asked if there was a price attached to activism? Her answer, “The bigger question is what price is attached to being a small business owner, especially in a line of work that is often labeled controversial.”
“I’ve spent ten years without the comforts of traditional employment that someone with a bachelor’s degree is expected to have. I am responsible for my own health care, my computer upgrades and repair, office supplies, legal and accounting fees, any professional development…the list goes on and on. Those are the details that I spell out for younger people who say they want to ‘do what I do.’ They need to get the full picture of the business, not just the fun moments they see at a book signing.”
Running a small business? Hmmm… Garner makes an interesting point. When I have an issue with my laptop, you bet I know how to get a hold of my company’s IT guy / guru. Tech Support is available to me at any time, day or night, in this country or in the 3 others that I travel to on a regular basis.
I often take for granted the resources and support available to me as an employee. What options do the self-employed have? For starters, there’s insurance.
MetLife Auto & Home offers an optional Home Computer Endorsement. Their latest customer newsletter provides the skinny: “Wet Computer? Your soda spilled all over your laptop, which is now making odd noises and won’t reboot. With a deductible of just $50, MetLife will:
- Cover mishaps like an accidental dousing
- Provide coverage beyond your homeowners or renters policy
- Provide as much as $15,000 of coverage
- Replace a laptop stolen while you’re traveling worldwide.”
Insurance is a lifesaver for the self-employed, but of course, Yahoo Tech says, “The best way to prevent damage from a mix of liquid and electronics is to keep them as far apart as possible. Keep your laptop far away from cups of coffee, glasses of water, and cans of soda.”
“But in the real world, stuff happens. If you have a choice of poisons, take the water spill. A hot cup of coffee, a cold glass of soda, or a glass of wine are each bad news; all of them are slightly acidic. Acidic liquids are nastier than nearly neutral water because the acid can corrode metal contacts. And both coffee and soda can become gummy and sticky as they dry.”
They offer a 12-Step recovery program from a spill at the highlighted link. This is a good one to print and save in the Emergencies 101 paper file. As a back-up, call MetLife and get covered.
November 8th, 2006 at 12:20 pm
I’ll point out a post by fellow Queercents’ interviewee Gina Trapani on how to save your electronics from spilled liquid. Of course, this is not a guaranteed solution, so the insurance you mention may still be worthwhile for some folks.
If you really must drink coffee at the keyboard, using a travel mug instead of an open one may reduce the risk.
April 24th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
[…] Sometimes it takes me a while to get out the door in the morning. I’m usually scrambling (in some groggy fashion) to get stuff together that I’ll need for the day, and I’ll check to make sure I haven’t left any appliance on that could cause the apartment to burn down. I come from a long line of worriers, so caution is ingrained in my genes. I don’t worry as much now that I bought renters insurance. I still worry, but within reasonable limits. Everything Zac and I own is now protected from theft, fire and even water damage. Our policy doesn’t cover natural disasters like an earthquake or flood, but renters insurance is still great anyway. One of my co-workers decided to get renters insurance after I talked about it at the water cooler. Here’s the gist of what I told him. First off, all personal belongings are covered at home and away from home. This was a huge selling point for me because I love taking my laptop to coffee shops. There has been a sharp increase in the number of laptops stolen from cafe patrons in San Francisco, and hearing about someone getting stabbed for their laptop isn’t all that uncommon. For a $250 deductible, I can get the replacement value (reimbursement of full cost to replace an item at market value) of my laptop if I just surrender the laptop in a robbery situation and thereby hopefully avoid bodily harm. (For laptop-specific insurance coverage, see this post from Nina.) It’s a great comfort to know your personal belongings are covered anywhere in the world, but think about how much stuff you have at home and how much it all once cost you. With all the weirdos out there, you never really know if all your belongings are safe when you’re away from home. Because I selected replacement value coverage, I can buy new stuff to replace every single damaged or stolen belonging. Experiencing fire or theft is bad enough, but at least renters insurance takes the financial bite out of the misfortune and hassle of having to replace everything. I bought renters insurance from AAA, so I can’t speak for how other insurance agencies would work for the following. Applying for a policy was a lot easier than I expected. I didn’t have to itemize every single thing Zac and I ever bought. I just took a worksheet they gave me and estimated what everything was worth, and AAA based my premium on the coverage amount I requested. It was as simple as that. My policy also includes protection against unforeseen circumstances such as Loss of Use; Personal Liability and Medical Payments coverage. Loss of Use coverage would provide me and Zac money for alternative housing arrangements should our apartment become uninhabitable due to fire or some other covered loss. Personal Liability coverage would pay for losses or damages if we were found liable for a guest’s bodily injury on our property, or for our inadvertent damage to the property itself. We’re even covered for medical payments if some shady character said they were injured on our property. I once worked as an insurance defense paralegal for a brief amount of time, and the one thing I learned from that job is that you should ALWAYS read every word of your policy. I suggest you ask your insurance agent as many questions as needed to clear up any ambiguity. Insurance companies deal with lots of scammers, and they have a vested interest to stay in business by doing whatever it takes to protect their bottom line. All in all, I spent about $265 for one year of renters insurance. That includes a AAA membership, which is nice, but since I don’t really need a car in this crowded city, I’ll have to find creative ways to use AAA discounts and services to make the most out of the membership. $265 for some peace of mind is a bargain though. […]