Atlantic Mutual Expert Advises: Avoid "Toxic Garage,"
Make Spring Cleaning a "Safety Sweep"

Company Offers Free Safety Newsletter

NEW YORK, NY, April 6, 2005 -- Homeowners should avoid the "toxic garage" -- and use spring cleaning as an opportunity to make sure their garage is as safe as possible, advises an expert from Atlantic Mutual.

That's one of the tips in the company’s free "SafetyWise" newsletter, which offers practical ways for individuals to protect their family, home, and other valuable assets. The newsletter is available through the independent insurance agents who represent Atlantic Mutual and on the company's Web site: www.AtlanticMutual.com.

Bill Bernecker, Atlantic Mutual's vice president of claims, noted that 10 million emergency room visits each year in the U.S. result from unintentional injuries at home, according to Home Safety Council estimates. "Many injuries and losses to the home occur in the garage," Bernecker pointed out.

"Our advice: Conduct a safety sweep while you're doing your spring cleaning – especially in the garage." Many fluids stored in garages – paint, gas, anti-freeze, fertilizer – can do harm as well as good. They can poison, burn or blind a child or pet. They can ignite and burn down the house. They can leak and damage the environment.

Atlantic Mutual's spring newsletter includes tips on garage safety as well as other safety and asset protection ideas, including:

  1. Lock up, raise up, or dispose. Homeowners should safely cap and lock up (or put on a shelf out of reach of children and pets) dangerous materials, including oil-based paints and primers; cleaning solvents; gasoline or other fuels; motor oil and automobile products; and fertilizer and insecticides. Take advantage of local household-waste programs to dispose of unwanted hazardous liquids and the rags and drop cloths soaked with them.
  2. Cut through the clutter. A garage can be an exit when there's a fire, and an entry for emergency personnel. Make sure there's at least one safe, clear pathway—even with vehicles in the garage.
  3. Clean out -- then inventory what's left. After spring cleaning, Bernecker advises homeowners to document the contents of their home with a video camera and written list, spreadsheet, or inventory software. The inventory can speed claims settlement in the event of a loss. (The SafetyWise newsletter has information on a free home-inventory software program.)

About The Atlantic Companies

The Atlantic Companies, also known as Atlantic Mutual, is a group of diversified financial services companies with a Wall Street heritage dating back to 1842. The group is widely known for the Atlantic Master Plan insurance program, which is designed specifically for affluent individuals and sold through a select group of independent agents. The Atlantic Companies acts as a property-casualty insurer, manages claims for commercial insurance, and helps other business partners target profitable niches in the insurance marketplace. Additional information about The Atlantic Companies and the Atlantic Master Plan can be found at www.atlanticmasterplan.com.


Contact: Peter G. Scott
Corporate Marketing & Communications
973-408-6044