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Archive 2014 · Insurance; curious policies

  
 
Jason_Brook
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Insurance; curious policies


I'm finally looking to insure all my gear as a hobbyist; I make no money from doing this. I reached out to State Farm and got interesting proposals as quoted below.

How is accidental damage NOT covered but "oops, I lost it" is Does this seem right to anyone else? This is a quote for $14k worth of gear.

To insure all of the equipment with a 0 dollar deductible, the cost will be around 118.00 a year. If you are interested in moving forward, I will need the serial numbers of all the items.

It’s much like your homeowner’s policy, except it includes mysterious disappearance, which a homeowner’s policy does not cover. That would just mean that you lost the item. The other covered losses would include:



Theft, fire or lightening, windstorm or hail, smoke, power surge, vandalism.



In the case of a camera falling into water or you dropping and damaging it, that would not be covered. But if you lose the equipment, you would have coverage. If you were to file a claim for any of the above reasons, you would pay nothing out of pocket, because the deducible is zero.



Sep 10, 2014 at 02:07 PM
craig_k
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Insurance; curious policies


I believe personally I would seriously consider getting a policy with a deductible you believe is reasonable in your eyes....one that covers any sort of damages.....common sense says zero deductibles will always be a trade off for something, higher the deductibles= lower the premium


Sep 10, 2014 at 03:03 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Insurance; curious policies


Jason_Brook wrote:
...In the case of a camera falling into water or you dropping and damaging it, that would not be covered. But if you lose the equipment, you would have coverage...


IOW, if it falls in the water, don't pick it up. Just say that it got swept away.

P.S. right or wrong, you only have to decide if you'll accept their terms, or not.




Sep 10, 2014 at 03:08 PM
Jason_Brook
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Insurance; curious policies


Update, she was wrong. They policy would cover accidental damage. Still wondering what the catch is since it's so cheap and zero deductible.


Sep 10, 2014 at 05:27 PM
S_anthony
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Insurance; curious policies


I am an hobbyist too. I was thinking about get PPA insurance which is $323 per year
https://www.ppa.com/membership/content.cfm?ItemNumber=1620&RDtoken=23027&userID=

Other than equipment insurance I don't need any of their other benefits. Your quote of $118 seems great (not sure of fine print). Any other suggestions on equipment insurance options



Sep 10, 2014 at 05:52 PM
Jason_Brook
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Insurance; curious policies


I'm going to town asking questions to find the catch. I'll probably drive her nuts by tomorrow

I have an acquaintance who has the same policy with State Farm and I believe he has used it. I don't think there were any issues.



Sep 10, 2014 at 06:13 PM
rscheffler
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Insurance; curious policies


Do you travel much? Is coverage regional/national/international? I would assume it would be OK in the US. If you travel out of the country, you'll want to be sure you're covered. Also check on theft from a vehicle. Some insurers won't cover theft from a car, or the deductible increases significantly.

Also, don't understate the replacement value, and keep on top of price increases. I don't remember the term used, but some insurers will decrease the payout if the replacement values were understated or out of date. I saw this a few times back when I worked in photo retail.

For that amount of gear, I think the premium is pretty reasonable, especially for zero deductible. That said, were you to lose a $200 lens, I'd wonder if it would be worth claiming and how it might affect future coverage?



Sep 10, 2014 at 07:21 PM
Jason_Brook
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Insurance; curious policies


Right now, the coverage is looking really good. I just need to get paperwork in hand to read the fine print. I was also sure to communicate almost exclusively through email for a record of their answers to my questions. I also went with State Farm so the policy is in no way size shape or form connected to my Progressive home owner's incase I need to make a claim.


Sep 10, 2014 at 07:33 PM
sivrajbm
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Insurance; curious policies


If you file a claim with SF, Progressive will get the info and raise your rates. Just call (Progressive) them and ask them about it. Good luck...


Sep 10, 2014 at 07:43 PM
EGrav
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Insurance; curious policies


I have SF and the catch is that SF will replace your lost lens (camera, etc.) with a refurbished unit. You don't get any $ and it looks like they have their own supplier. If your loss has been discontinued, they will give the closest replacement.
E



Sep 10, 2014 at 07:57 PM
Andrew J
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Insurance; curious policies


That doesn't sound too bad.


Sep 11, 2014 at 09:57 AM
Pavel
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Insurance; curious policies


there are a myriad of potential gotcha's with that. I speak from experience. For example, if under my rider I have the car run over the equipment then all is good. They honer the terms and raise your rates - on everything ... not just the extra rider. If for example however the equipment was in the car and got water damaged - no coverage.

After the time I lost about $4000 dollars worth of stuff because it was in the trunk and the car got flooded I went in and wanted to read through the terms. It seems like it takes a legal expert and in any case is defined by the adjuster and is mostly fine ... but there are strange exclusions where you'd never think. I think that a specific policy, though always more money may be less of a gamble than a rider as you seem to have.

Years ago I was in the insurance biz (life) for a while. As a general rule of thumb a deductible is a good idea, and in balance favorable to the customer.



Sep 14, 2014 at 01:26 PM
socaltyger
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Insurance; curious policies


I have the State Farm personal articles policy. Dropped a lens once, d700 another time. Both instances, no hassle. Gear was sent to nikon for estimates, State Farm reimbursed the cost of repair both times, $200-300.Have yet to file a lost or stolen claim yet.


Sep 17, 2014 at 02:01 AM
Jason_Brook
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Insurance; curious policies


socaltyger wrote:
I have the State Farm personal articles policy. Dropped a lens once, d700 another time. Both instances, no hassle. Gear was sent to nikon for estimates, State Farm reimbursed the cost of repair both times, $200-300.Have yet to file a lost or stolen claim yet.


Yup, that's what this is.

It's been sent to the underwriter for "approval". The underwriter has only asked one stupid question so far.



Sep 17, 2014 at 09:24 AM
Dustin Gent
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Insurance; curious policies


I have progressive and have my D600 + 14-24 on there as a separate policy. They cover what I paid for the gear if it needs replacement (stolen, dropped in water, etc). I think I pay $9 a month or something. They wanted serial numbers and pictures for their records - and I think receipts, but I cannot recall.


Sep 17, 2014 at 09:52 PM
wordfool
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Insurance; curious policies


Jason_Brook wrote:
Update, she was wrong. They policy would cover accidental damage. Still wondering what the catch is since it's so cheap and zero deductible.


I've always wondered what the catch is with such cheap state farm personal articles policies, but have yet to hear a horror story.

I currently have one for my camera gear and laptop. Had to give them receipts, photos and serial numbers, which at least suggests any claims will be replacement value (though I've not made any claim yet).



Sep 18, 2014 at 10:02 AM
shworl
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Insurance; curious policies


I have a USAA policy covering many personal items including photo gear. Each item has to be listed separately in certain categories. I had a breakage claim recently and it was reimbursed with no hassle. If you are eligible for USAA, I highly recommend it.


Sep 21, 2014 at 11:08 AM
ggOk
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Insurance; curious policies


I also have USAA as a hobbyist. I only covered $36K worth of photo gear (highly doubt I'll get it stolen all at once but I did claim some natural disaster damage couple of years ago. Annual premium is $350.

/r
Andy



Sep 22, 2014 at 09:56 AM
Jman13
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Insurance; curious policies


I too have USAA - $175 a year (this includes all my photo gear, our jewelry and musical instruments)...full replacement cost for theft, loss or accidental breakage with $0 deductible. It's fantastic. We've only had to use the policy once, when the diamond from my wife's engagment ring got jarred loose and lost. Got the price appraisal from the jeweler for replacement and had the money in our account the next day. They are simply a phenomenal company, so if you, your spouse or your parents served, you should be able to join. Frankly, it's one of the very best perks from my military service.


Sep 22, 2014 at 11:28 AM
Methodical
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Insurance; curious policies


Jason_Brook wrote:
Update, she was wrong. They policy would cover accidental damage. Still wondering what the catch is since it's so cheap and zero deductible.


There's no catch. Read the the terms and conditions and do not rely solely on the agent's word, email or any other communication; the policy is governed only by the terms and conditions and not the agents interpretation of it.. Glad she corrected herself because I have/had the same policy and it covers everything except normal wear and tear. Get it and go into the world free. I would self insure the less cost items.

As far as value, they will insure what you tell them the value is for the equipment. So be smart about the value and don't underestimate it.

The worst thing you can do is a Rider insurance. Get a stand alone policy that separate and distinct from any other insurance policy. There are benefits, such as no deductibles or limits, no claims against more important policies, such as a home owner policy.

Also, has anyone here heard of a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE Report); it shows all insurance claims, which is used by the insurance industry as one would imagine to determine your risk.



Edited on Oct 20, 2014 at 08:00 PM · View previous versions



Oct 20, 2014 at 07:13 PM
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