As the holidays approach, it's likely that your customers are making plans to travel and celebrate with loved ones. MetLife Auto & Home® would like to provide the following safety tips for you to share with your customers as they prepare for the fall and winter months:

Inclement Weather Maintenance for Your Vehicles

• Install new, winter-grade, wiper blades at the beginning of the season and replace fluids.
• Tires should be inspected to make sure they are in good condition. Be sure to check for uneven wear. 
• Place an ice scraper and snow brush in your vehicle.
• Give yourself extra time to get to your destination.
• Use caution driving in snow and icy conditions. Make gradual movements, brake more slowly and drive slower than usual.
• Keep a blanket, gloves and snacks in the vehicle.
• Be mindful of parking under tree branches—winter conditions can lead to falling branches.
• Have window chips repaired now. As the winter months approach, the cold weather can cause these to spread.
  

Holiday Shopping Tips for Your Auto

• Be conscious of where you park.
• Always lock your vehicle.
• To minimize break-ins, do not leave items visible in the vehicle. 
• Be aware of other drivers in parking lots when opening doors and backing out of parking spaces. 

Inside Your Home

Before the excitement of the holidays begins, it's a good time to prepare your home for the season. Below are some tips to ensure a safe and peaceful holiday season.

• Have your fireplace, woodstove or other heating options professionally inspected and cleaned before use.
• Replace smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector batteries.
• Keep an unexpired, wet chemical fire extinguisher readily available and easily accessible.
• Before stringing your holiday lights, check all strands for frayed ends and cracked bulbs. Turn off holiday lights before leaving for the evening or before going to bed. Never leave burning candles unattended.
• If traveling, have a neighbor check your home regularly. Keep doors locked and holiday gifts out of sight and away from windows. Never post travel plans on social media.
• Put a light or lamp on a timer.
• Locate the main water shutoff valve in your home and know how to operate it.
• In extremely cold weather conditions keep your heat set to a minimum of 65 degrees to help prevent pipes from freezing.

Outside Your Home

• Disconnect all hoses and turn off the water line to outside spigots to prevent pipes from freezing.
• Remove all leaves and debris from gutters to allow free flow of water and preventing water from seeping into your house.
• Trim and remove dead tree branches to prevent damage from falling branches due to snow, ice or wind.
• Keep sidewalks and entryways free of snow and ice to prevent anyone from slipping and falling.
  

MetLife Auto & Home is one of the nation's leading personal lines property and casualty insurance companies. In the event of an unforeseen occurrence, MetLife Auto & Home is ready to quickly step in and demonstrate our unwavering commitment to customers when they need us most by acting as a personal guide through the claims process. Some of the ways we support our customer include:

1) Simplifying the claims process.

• One-call resolution for simple claims
• Seamless rental process
• Rapid payment via electronic funds transfer
• Specialized major loss claim servicing to support rapid recovery
• 24/7 emergency onsite assistance for home customers experiencing a fire, smoke, or water loss

2) Investing in technology.

• Use of aerial certified piloted drones to conduct safer home inspections

• Enhanced communications using two-way texting between the customer and MetLife Auto & Home about existing claims
• Personalized auto claims video notifications to provide updates on the claims process

3) Responding to COVID-19.

The health of our customers and associates remains our highest priority. Our claims adjusters may use alternative contactless approaches to help settle claims, reducing person-to-person contact as well as individuals' concerns during these times.

We wish you and your customers a very happy and safe holiday season. Visit MetLife Auto & Home if you're interested in learning more about an appointment.