[sfraser]

Hi, this thread  is aimed more towards the Canadian members , but any advice is welcome.  James, if this is too off in left field , please delete.

My wife and I are currently reviewing our home insurance policy and if our coverage is adequate for our dwelling and contents.  The topic of Hifi components came up and we came across some interesting points which we are still trying to get answers from our insurance company. I thought I would pose a few questions and see how other audio fan's are handle insurance coverage on their systems.

1. How many people have there components appraised ? If so how often do you require a re-appraisal?
 
2. How many people have special riders for their components?

3. How many people have "replacement cost" rider for their components?

Any input is welcome, and if you have not done so lately, I highly suggest everyone take a look at their current policy to ensure they are properly covered and there are no hidden limits when it comes to HiFi equipment.

Cheers,

Scott

[Mag]

  Not an expert, but as you say Insurance is pretty vague about Home Audio. A typical audio system doesn't cost thousands like an audiophiles system. So the answer they give you is based on that.
  One thing you need to do is get a camera, take a picture of every component, write the serial number down, price at purchase, etc.. I can also go to my Dealer to get info on a purchased component. Unfortunately I don't think Insurance would cover your music collection, which in my case would cost thousands to replace even though a lot are downloads or copies.

[Jon L]

What I wonder is if the insurance companies find out how expensive your audio equipment is, will they increase the insurance rate or worse yet, not renew your home insurance?

Those living in California and Florida may be more sensitive to this issue, as countless home insurance companies have left/leaving the states, leaving tons of homes scrambling to find new insurance. 

[Mag]

I was told for example if your house burns down. Insurance will cover the house but not your audio equipment as well. So if your stereo was stolen then it would be covered up to the value of your policy. You however have to have your equipment itemized,hence taking pictures of equipment serial numbers invoice, stored in a safe place.

[abk456]

There is almost always a difference between building insurance (pays for you to rebuild if your house burns down) and contents insurance (pays out if contents are stolen or destroyed). Often the two are packaged together with a name like "homeowners insurance". Contents insurance usually has an aggregate limit (everything stolen you get the maximum) and a limit for individual items often not high. Valuable items have to be individually listed and valued otherwise you get the item limit (say $500) for your D'Agostino amp. Obviously if you list individual valuable items, the premium goes up.
Your call.

[sfraser]

There is almost always a difference between building insurance (pays for you to rebuild if your house burns down) and contents insurance (pays out if contents are stolen or destroyed). Often the two are packaged together with a name like "homeowners insurance". Contents insurance usually has an aggregate limit (everything stolen you get the maximum) and a limit for individual items often not high. Valuable items have to be individually listed and valued otherwise you get the item limit (say $500) for your D'Agostino amp. Obviously if you list individual valuable items, the premium goes up.
Your call.

What you mentioned above are some of the questions we are currently trying to get answered with our insurance company.  For instance you may itemize your household contents at $1M to replace on total loss  (for example a fire or tornado) . But what we are finding there might be max. limits on certain item type such as stereo  electronics or depreciation applied.  Can you imagine buying $1M coverage for house contents  thinking you are covered in case of catastrophe,   just to find out later you are only entitled to $400K because of  limits or depreciation ? Another question we have asked is the  depreciation factor and how exactly that works. Lets take a recently recapped 4B amplifier from the mid 1980's. Lets say it was worth $1200 new, a used replacement on Canuckaudiomart is likely the same at the moment. . It has not really depreciated. A new  retail replacement would be the 4B3 at $10K . I would not be happy if they value the lost or stolen 4B at $200.  I have several systems mostly  composed of various vintages of Bryston components hence why I am concerned.  I will post what the insurance companies responses are. And how we are moving forward.

[mnorman2024]

Hello,
I asked this question a few years ago to the company I have house insurance with(in Ontario, Canada). My policy covers contents to an agreed dollar amount. It does not matter what it is. If the total contents do not exceed the agreed amount, you should not have a problem. To avoid issues, have pictures that are stored off-site to assist the process.
Bicycles are the only items I have asked about that are different and have exceptions. Unfortunately, this is due to how often they are stolen.
Cheers,
Mike

[Mariusz Uszynski]

Hi guys, after reading the insurance discussion, I spoke with my insurance broker.He said, to make a pictures of the audio gear, acoustic panels, cables, CD collection, receipts and send it back to the insurance company.Also, he suggetsed to do one big appraisal, so I went to Natural Sound in Kitchener, Ontario, where I purchased most of my equipment and manager told me, to bring all the receipts and pictures and they will appraised everything for free.

Mariusz.

LONG LIVE BRYSTON.

[GrooveControl]

My policy covers contents to an agreed dollar amount. It does not matter what it is. If the total contents do not exceed the agreed amount, you should not have a problem. To avoid issues, have pictures that are stored off-site to assist the process.

I've had a Bryston 3B and 1B stolen from my home in the early eighties.  My experience is what mnorman2024 describes.  Having invoices, serial numbers and pictures will definitely help. It's never too soon to get your camera and spreadsheet going. 

[jobiwon]

Make a video of the contents you want to have insured and upload it to some cloud storage like dropbox and send a copy of the file to you insurance.   Put a copy of it in a safedeposit box.   Put it on thumb drive and give to a relative.   I got a bunch of bikes and only about $30K in audio gear retail but thats what I did.