Introduction Everyone has heard the statement "Your Mileage May Vary" when you are talking about miles per gallon based on how you drive your car.
Well, for your home insurance, "Your Coverage May Vary" is also a valid statement and most people do not realize this. Most people think they have coverage for all of their contents but few realize that there are many items that have special limits or are not covered at all.
Jewelry Every home, condo, co-op or apartment policy, regardless of the company (including Chubb, Fireman's Fund and AIG) have limits on jewelry coverage. Some companies may be as little as $500 in coverage, it may be $5,000 in coverage, but you are limited. The reason for this is not everyone has a lot of jewelry and jewelry is relatively expensive to insure compared to other items.
First you should check your policy or call your broker to determine the coverage you have. If you have more jewelry than coverage you should discuss adding additional coverage to your policy. There are two ways coverage can be added to your policy, depending on your insurance company, Blanket or Scheduled. Both ways are normally the same price. If you keep Jewelry items in a bank vault and only take them out a few times a year for special occasions you may receive a large discount on the premium of those items.
If you have a safe at your home you may also receive a discount if it is to the insurance company specifications and your jewelry limit is high enough. Never tell anyone, even a friend, that you have a safe!
Blanket Coverage You tell the insurance company how much coverage you want in total. There is normally a per piece maximum that may be $5,000 or $10,000. You would not need to list individual items.
Scheduled Coverage You would provide the insurance company a list of the items you want covered including a detailed description of the item and the value. The insurance company normally requires appraisals on the items so the descriptions and values are accurate. Those items would be listed on your policy and in the event of the claim the value would be predetermined. We believe listed is great for larger items and blanket is good for the lower value items. You can have a combination of both.
Fine Art, Antiques and Collectibles Some companies do not have a limit or exclusion on these items. Some companies will exclude Replacement Cost, limit coverage or not provide any coverage at all if the age, notoriety or history of an item increases its value. These items can also be covered, like jewelry, with Blanket or Scheduled coverage. They are also much less expensive to insure as they rarely leave the house, unlike jewelry. Without knowing the coverage you have on your policy you could have a real problem at claim time. This is when most people discover the gaps in their coverage. Fine Art and Antiques are pretty easy to think about, but Collectibles? This could range from a coin or stamp collection to Hummels, Swarovski, dolls, sports memorabilia, western collection, wine and many other items. Yes, Wine is a collectible item and can be insured (not against you drinking it).
Silver and Furs These items also have limited coverage on a home policy. Furs are easy to spot and realize if you want to insure them. Silver on the other hand hides in many places. You have your silver service for holiday dinners, then you may have a silver tea service, then there are silver serving trays or bowls and the sliver candle holders that sit on the mantel or bookcase that you forgot about, did you remember your silver napkin ring holders. Do you have any silver picture frames? Well you get the idea. These items can add up quickly.
We Can Help This is just a short list of items that have limited coverage. You should review your policy with your broker to determine if you need to add coverage of this type onto your policy. Additional items that can be scheduled are sports equipment (bikes, skis, golf clubs etc), camera equipment and computers. Also items used for business have limited or no coverage on a home policy.
For more information on how we can help you, or to discuss The Personal Protection Review, for yourself or your key people, please contact: Brian P. Boak, CLU, LUTCF, at 201-837-1100 or Brian.Boak@SingerNelson.com.
This information is for general knowledge and does not replace any terms and/or conditions of any policy. Please read your policy to confirm exact coverage.
