Insurance - Home Contents?

[hampshire3321]

Hi All,

As over the past year or so i have invested in a fair amount of gear , I currently have a couple of 40d bodies and a 20d plus a a fair bit of L glass as well as flash's, filters, batteries and laptop ect, so i feel i should look into insurance.

Would contents insurance cover me like they would if my TV was stolen?

Im currently working away on a project so dont have my details to speak to my insurance company, but just thought id see what other people did and if they have any recommendations of companys to use (im with Halifax at the moment) and if they have a limit set by their insurance companies that they would cover for camera equipment.

Cheers, Andy

 

[AliB]

House insurance normally has an individual maximum amount.

Best to invest in some specific camera insurance, you can normally get public liability insurance rolled in too just in case anyone throws themselves bodily over your gear.

 

[admirable]

All my stuff is insured through Marks & Sparks home insurance (Aviva).

I specifically told them about the value/type of the equiptment and I am covered for any one item up to the value of £4000 in house or anywhere in the world.

It cost me an extra £90 and I think there is a £200 ex on the camera equipt.

 

[hampshire3321]

Thanks for the quick reply, Can you recomend any good company's? I have seen plenty of company's out their but would rather go on referals rather than a glossy leaflet. Having my gear covered in my car would proberly be a good idea too.

Cheers, Andy

 

[hampshire3321]

All my stuff is insured through Marks & Sparks home insurance (Aviva).

I specifically told them about the value/type of the equiptment and I am covered for any one item up to the value of £4000 in house or anywhere in the world.

It cost me an extra £90 and I think there is a £200 ex on the camera equipt.

Doesnt sound too bad - I dont have any item worth more than £4k but the total of my gear is probely over that.

Will have to see what the Halifax do when im home - Im just sat here in a hotel looking at all my gear and thought i should look into getting it covered.

Andy

 

[admirable]

I have no single item over £4K but collectively it's a fair bit. When I looked at specific camera ins, the clauses about getting stuff knicked from the boot were unrealistic so that put me off straight away.

A related note; I have piccys of all my gear showing serial numbers etc.

 

[NorthernNikon]

House insurance normally has an individual maximum amount.

Best to invest in some specific camera insurance, you can normally get public liability insurance rolled in too just in case anyone throws themselves bodily over your gear.

I'm sorry Ali but that's poor advice.

Some insurance companies class photographic equipment as 'Valuable' items and therefore there fore be a single article limit on each item and a total sum insured limit for valuable items, but the many insurers don't and photograpahic equipment will be treated the same as any other item except that to cover it for accidental damage (even in the home) you will need to have Personal Possession cover (sometimes called All Risk). You should take this out anyway as this gives you cover away from the home.

Having said that, if you don't have Personal Possession cover don't presume that you are not covered away from the house i.e. if your kit bagged is forcibly stolen from you or it is stolen from a locked hotel room many policies will cover it.

Finally, all good home contents policies give you public liability cover provided you don't injure someone/damage something during the course of business i.e if someone tripped over you tripod while you were shooting a landscape for you own pleasure it would cover you, but not it you were doing a professional shoot.

I would avoid specialist insurers unless you are a pro. Household cover is often better than the specialists and remember, a £2,000 claim to a large insurer is a lot less than to a specialist. Claims processes through the major companies tend to be be quicker, involve less paperwork (it's all cost to them) and easier to negotiate with. Finally, the additional premium you pay to cover any personal possession is usaully less than a specialist would insure just your gear for.

Usual limits for [Personal Possession] cover are a total of £2500 for all items, with a single article limit fo about £1000-£1500. however insure with Barclays because they automatically offer £5000 total with a SAL of £2500. You can of course specify any items over these amounts for additional premium.