insurance advice

[jfrebel]

being now in the possession of a nice mandolin, the gibson f5g, that even after using up all my tax return, will take me three years to pay off, the last thing I need to have it stolen. I don't have alot of money so it'd be years before I could get another one.

so I'm thinking of having it insured. but I've seen insurance companies screw people too many times.

I'm sorry sir but if you had read the 200 pages of fine print you would see we only cover theft in july on a full moon, and 17 witnesses. LOL

I don't want to be paying a monthly premium, have it stolen or burned in a house fire or whatever, only then get screwed a second time by some shady insurance company using fine print to weasel out of covering me when that time came despite happily taking my premiums up till then.

I figure this is a good place to get advice on this. companies to consider and things to watch out for. Thanks!

[multidon]

There are two ways to go. You can add a special rider onto your homeowner's policy, or you can buy a special policy from a company that specializes in musical instruments and equipment. Professional musicians who travel around with lots of stuff need it but they will sell a policy to anyone. Your homeowners coverage is limited to theft, fire, and such, while musical instrument insurance can be bought to cover any risk, such as oops I dropped it. Your typical homeowners does not cover that. I use MusicPro. You can buy a policy online and I found out about them through ASCAP. There are other similar companies. Others will chime in with their favorites. With MusicPro, I estimate a 1 year policy against all risks for your Gibson would probably cost around 60-70 dollars per year. Good luck. In the interest of full disclosure, I have never had to test them with a claim. So I don't know if they walk the talk or not.

[slk]

I have a rider added to my homeowners. It is for the "Agreed Value" of the instrument. You have to have that...You tell them what it is worth and that is the amount you get if something were to happen.

Steve

[fatt-dad]

you will hear of Clarion and Heritage. These are (likely) good insurance companies, but their minimum premium is $250/yr. The rider on my homeowners (four guitars and three mandolins) is less than $100/yr.

f-d

[nickster60]

I used Anderson and it $125.00 a year for up $25000 with of instruments per year.

[jfrebel]

I don't travel much and if I was and had concerns, I'd bring my kentucky and leave the gibson at home. so the apartment insurance might be worth considering.


my main fears is being burglarized, hit by a tornado, or my apartment burning down.


but I once had renters insurance. nothing happened but I found out later they would only pay me if I could show them pictures and receipts and such after the fire or whatever disaster happens.

great. because that stuff would be burned up too along with the mandolin, computer, martin, etc. so I'd be hosed. thats when I canceled them.

I've also dealt with insurance companies when trying to get a payment. my dad had a wreck and to get his insurance company to pay my medical bills I had to get a lawyer and threaten to take them to court. then suddenly they played ball.

I hate insurance companies. LOL but if I can get signed on with a legit one and rest easy, that'll sure be nice. I don't trust them though.

so now to figure out who to use for renters insurance. any advice and info on this welcome.

[darylcrisp]

we have a Heritage policy, excellent folks to deal with, and the coverage is full and no hassle-riding in a car damage, stolen, etc.
my policy is $250 a year, but its covering $40,000+ of mandolin/guitar/banjo/dulcimer/north American flutes. a nice addition is if I sell an instrument they will cover it insured so I don't have to buy insurance from the carrier.

we just recently picked this up, but already having shipped two mandolins, its paid for half my yearly policy by not having to buy insurance to ship.

I took a few base pictures of each instrument, along with interior paper label/serial # and sent those to heritage so they have that info on file in case our home gets destroyed with the records/invoices/instruments.

our homeowners had too many gray areas for comfort.

the other factor of me wheeling/dealing a lot, a policy of this sort helps and makes sense.

d

[jfrebel]

if 250 a year covered 40,000 dollars with of stuff, I wonder if mine would be much cheaper. it'd just be covering my gibson, a martin guitar and a decent fiddle.


also have you had something stolen or whatever and had them meet their end of the bargain without suddenly looking for ways to weasel out of paying you?

[Cornett]

The topic of insuring valuable instruments pops up on occasion on musical forums.

If I understand it correctly (and someone please correct me if I'm wrong), the difference between Heritage insurance, and say your local State Farm company, is that Heritage will pay "diminished value"

For example, let's say you drop your $200,000 original LL mandolin and break the neck. Typically, your home insurer will say "Have it repaired and we'll pay for it". Well, that's not NEARLY the whole issue. You now have a "non-original" vintage instrument that is not worth $200K, regardless of the repair.

Heritage will reimburse you for the dollar amount of how much less valuable the instrument is. BIG DIFFERENCE!

Additionally, if you're playing a gig for money and your instrument is stolen, that's a whole different ballgame and a Homeowner's policy may not pay.

As I said, this is my understanding of how the company does business. If it's different, please let me know.

[Pick&Grin]

My homeowner's policy is though Celina, and I was able to cover all of my instruments for a song!
Had read warnings about homeowners, but talked through the fine details with them, read the fine print, and I'm covered for loss or damage, including fire, stolen, and damage while at gigs. Now, the caveat is that I don't make anything beyond beer money, so even though I make a bit, from time to time, they said that that wouldn't be counted as professional. This company has really had my back with other claims, so I feel good about this arrangement. Hope you find what you're looking for!

[Steve Ostrander]

I was advised by my insurance agent some years ago to video or photo every room in your house with contents. He said that if disaster strikes you will not be able to remember everything you owned and the photos will help you remember. I have done this, but I also took individual shots of my instruments. I hope I never need them.

[darylcrisp]

if 250 a year covered 40,000 dollars with of stuff, I wonder if mine would be much cheaper. it'd just be covering my gibson, a martin guitar and a decent fiddle.


also have you had something stolen or whatever and had them meet their end of the bargain without suddenly looking for ways to weasel out of paying you?

I've never had a claim of any insurance coverage other than an auto fender bender in 1987-so I cannot answer your question thru personal experience regarding Heritage. I do know a few folks who have had Heritage coverage, filed a claim, and it was taken care of quickly and fairly.

[Tom Sanderson]

we just recently picked this up, but already having shipped two mandolins, its paid for half my yearly policy by not having to buy insurance to ship. d

You better read your policy over, I have a policy with Heritage too. They do not cover instruments shipped (UPS, FedEX, etc.) You used to be able to have them covered for an extra charge if you contacted them prior to shipping and bought the extra coverage each time you ship, but I just got my renewal policy and that has changed. Now they won't cover them being shipped at all. Also another change, they aren't covered if you check them as baggage when flying, only if you carry them on.

[dschonbrun]

We have a personal property policy attached to our homeowners. The policy provides replacement value, which may be more than what you originally paid, given inflation. It protects against theft, or damage (very wide range, cause doesn't matter unless there is gross negligence). We have our jewelry, instruments, artwork, all on the same policy.

[darylcrisp]

You better read your policy over, I have a policy with Heritage too. They do not cover instruments shipped (UPS, FedEX, etc.) You used to be able to have them covered for an extra charge if you contacted them prior to shipping and bought the extra coverage each time you ship, but I just got my renewal policy and that has changed. Now they won't cover them being shipped at all. Also another change, they aren't covered if you check them as baggage when flying, only if you carry them on.

Tom
I emailed my agent at Heritage and she confirmed coverage with an email before I shipped them out, otherwise I would not have shipped them without some sort of insurance. I am a new client, so maybe these two were courtesy coverage, I have no idea. I did just receive my paper policy and have it at work and will definitely check into that aspect, thanks for the heads up.

d

[fatt-dad]

Heritage (and I think Clarion too) have a minimum premium. Below that premium it doesn't matter whether it's one or a dozen instruments. When I called them that minimum premium was $250/yr. My homeowner's insurance (USAA) personal articles floater (PAF) has a premium for each item and no minimum. It covers instruments in transit. So, on transactions that require 48-hour approval periods, the instrument remains mine until delivery to the prospective buyer's approval and it's covered in transit.

I've called and confirmed all sort of scenarios.

I've never filed a claim, so who really knows. . ? I've always found USAA trustworthy though.

I'm sure I have over $25,000 in instruments insured and my premium is less than a hundred bucks a year.

f-d

[Brad Little]

you will hear of Clarion and Heritage. These are (likely) good insurance companies, but their minimum premium is $250/yr. The rider on my homeowners (four guitars and three mandolins) is less than $100/yr.

f-d

Some home owner riders do not cover professional use, and they have a broad definition of professional. If you play at a benefit for a homeless shelter that charges admission and you don't pay, it can be considered professional and your instrument won't be covered. You have to check thoroughly with you company to make sure of all situations it covers.
Brad

[JeffD]

One issue with using homeowners is, at least in the cases I have looked into, is that they will consider your instrument a professional tool, not covered, if you ever got any money for playing it. Even pass the hat. Even a buck and a half gas money from playing as part of a pick up band for a dance. Even, for example, getting dinner for free because you played music, at an event where the general public has to pay for dinner.

You don't have to be a professional musician, you don't have to make money at it, you only have to have benefited in a measurable monetary way for your instruments to be excluded as professional tools.

[Ivan Kelsall]

We changed our home insurers last year, from one company to another. As part of our home contents insurance,i had all my instruments insured against damage / fire or theft for their full retail value. I sat down with the insurance agent & went through the finer details with her to make sure that I understood the policy & to make sure they were going to give me what i was paying for. I did ask about insurance for 'playing out',but that's a whole new issue & most likely far too expensive,
Ivan

[Dale Ludewig]

To enhance a little bit on what Jeff said, some homeowner's insurance or riders will not cover any of your instruments if you have played out. You have been branded as a greater risk. Ivan, I'd ask the agent to put specifically into writing that your concerns are addressed.