Insurance (Page 2): I have USAA Homeowners insurance. I bought a Personal effects policy from them for my photo equipment. For USAA if you generate any income from your equipment, even...

photoman43

I have USAA Homeowners insurance. I bought a Personal effects policy from them for my photo equipment. For USAA if you generate any income from your equipment, even $1.00, the policy is null and void. Other insurance companies may have similar clauses but with different restrictions and $ limits. If you are a pro, you may need another policy.

TonyBot

photoman43 wrote:

I have USAA Homeowners insurance. I bought a Personal effects policy from them for my photo equipment. For USAA if you generate any income from your equipment, even $1.00, the policy is null and void. Other insurance companies may have similar clauses but with different restrictions and $ limits. If you are a pro, you may need another policy.

Very true!

If all you have is H.O. insurance and you generate *any* income from the use of your gear and your insurance company finds out: Claim Denied!
And, if you put in a claim for a lot of equipment, say your kit with 2 bodies and 5 lenses plus flash, etc. is taken from your car, they *will* check.

TucsonDave Loc: Tucson, Arizona

rob7789 wrote:

I'm looking to insure my photographic equipment in a separate policy from my home owners policy. Any suggestions?
Thanks.

I have a rider attached to my Home Owners policy with Farmers. It specifies full replacement cost reinbursement.

Wayne93 Loc: Montrose, Colorado

The problem with home owners is the deductible involved. If your home is insured for 300,000 your deductible will be substantially high before you collect a dime on the loss. I've checked it out.

NickGee Loc: Pacific Northwest

Wayne93 wrote:

The problem with home owners is the deductible involved. If your home is insured for 300,000 your deductible will be substantially high before you collect a dime on the loss. I've checked it out.

Agreed. Like other respondents, I have a "personal articles policy" with State Farm that covers all of my equipment (~$8000 worth), no deductible, replacement (i.e., "new") value. For this I pay about $70 per year.

I was advised not to rely on home owners policy, which has deductibles as well as not necessarily providing replacement values. I should add, however, that such policies are offered for amateurs -- that is, any income generated from photography nullifies the policy. Pros handle this completely differently.

Wayne93 Loc: Montrose, Colorado

True! I just paid my annual premium coverage for 18,000and it ran 239.00 for the year.

JFCoupe Loc: Kent, Washington

rcorne001 wrote:

I use State Farm. It offers a personal property p... (show quote)

I also use a State Farm rider. Changes are easy to make. So far, I have not had a claim so I can't comment of claim service.

rbest77701

If you just want to insure your equipment, then probably a HO rider will work. For me, I show at Art & Craft shows under a DBA, so my HO won't cover liabilty or stuff like that. I have a separate Business Insurance that runs like $135 a quarter thru a local company. Covers me for liability, in case something happens in my booth or a gust of wind caused my booth to damage someone else's property, plus it covers all my equipment, printed photos, printer, computer, etc.

jstampa

USAA is the cheapest if you can use it otherwise State Farm is the second cheapest.
I’ve got $29,000 of replacement cost for about $270 a year. No questions asked. They pay what I listed it for. I added expensive filters and extra batteries as well as tripod and camera bag. It’s all covered as long as your not a pro.

State Farm does the same but it’s a little more expensive.
Home owners policies in Florida are a joke and most won’t add a rider.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

If you are a photo hobbyist, never shoot professionally, it is possible and probably best to get a rider on your homeowners (or renters) insurance.

If you ever get paid for your photography, even if it's not your primary source of income, you are a professional and cannot rely upon a homeowner/renter insurance rider. You need a separate policy. One possibility is to get it through PPA or other orgs.

There are actually several types of insurance: One is coverage for your gear against damage, theft, etc. Another type that may be necessary for pro shooters is liability insurance, such as if in a sporting event you are responsible for causing an accident or someone trips over a power cord in your studio. A third type is error and omission where you make a mistake that costs someone money... such as a wedding shoot that goes bad and everything has to be redone.

James May

I joined PPA and got the insurance tru them. the memberships include up to $15,000 of insurance.

stevemdr

Many homeowner camera policies don't pay off if they deem you a "Professional." PPA is the best source of coverage if you can be called a pro.

jzett

In today’s times of escalating prices, it would be wise to insure for replacement. Even on home insurance, if not insured for replacement value and suffer significant damage, you most likely will be on the hook for quite a large amount to make of the difference. Just look at the price of a sheet of plywood today compared to just a few years ago.

jzett

In today’s times of escalating prices, it would be wise to insure for replacement. Even on home insurance, if not insured for replacement value and suffer significant damage, you most likely will be on the hook for quite a large amount to make of the difference. Just look at the price of a sheet of plywood today compared to just. Few years ago.

RTCreed Loc: Forest Park, IL

Just ask your agent to get you a "floater" addition to your homeowners. I have one for the more expensive jewelry we own, and a separate one for the more expensive Nikon Z stuff I have. There is no deductible, and it is all risk replacement cost coverage. A very inexpensive alternative to buying an Inland Marine floater. If your homeowner's carrier doesn't want to provide one, you may wish to reconsider where your coverage is.