Camera Equipment Insurance?

Phatman113 · October 31, 2007

I'm new to the community so I've been trying to work my way through the massive amount of information here and I've seen a couple of posters mention equipment insurance for their bodies and glass...

Is this like, all around insurance? I suspect that homeowners/auto insurance would cover theft or natural disasters, does this mean there are insurance companies out there that will cover you (for a deductible I'm sure) for dropped/broken equipment?

If there really is insurance for this type of thing, does anyone have/use this and what's your recommendation for what to get? I'm a pretty careful guy when it comes to my equipment, especially being fairly new to the photography scene, but I know that accidents happen and I don't want to be the friend who has to tell his friends they can't touch his camera... :rofl

Thanks for sharing your experience and expertise!

Scott_Quier · October 31, 2007

On the basis of recommendations from Shay Stephens (see this thread), I have acquired insurance from Hill & Usher. No claims yet, but the service I received when setting it up can't be beat.

swintonphoto · October 31, 2007

I have my normal renters and auto insurance through state farm. So I just added a personal articles policy to it for my camera gear. It's really cheap. I think I pay somewhere around $20-$30 a year for around $3500 of coverage. That would cover theft, if I dropped something and broke it, etc. Great deal for great coverage. Many insurance companies do that, and they will often give you a deal if you already get some other kind of insurance through them.

Scott_Quier · October 31, 2007

Which way to go has got to be driven by your needs: (1) are you a professional and need Errors & Omission, liability, full replacement - that sort of things, or (2) do you just need replacement at depreciated value.

I checked with a local State Farm agent and found that they didn't cover E&O, dropped or broken equipment, or water damage. Liability insurance was quite expensive. I need all of these, so State Farm turned out to not be an option.

If you are a hobbiest and don't have to worry about liability, E&O, etc, then a rider on a home-owners policy may be the ticket. Will be a lot cheaper then a policy set up for a professional.

On the other hand, if you need a policy that will replace your equipment and not just return to you the depreciated value of the damaged/lost equipment, the you will, almost for sure, need to look to other sources.

ekk_xt · October 31, 2007

i also got mines insured through state farm personal article policy. about $90/year for $6300 worth. im no professional though so its good enough for me. my main thing i worry about is theft since i live in a not so good area

ziggy53 · October 31, 2007

Unless someone has a serious objection, I suspect this thread would be better served from the MYOB forum, and I will move it there shortly.

Phatman113 · October 31, 2007

Thanks for all the input, I've got home/auto insurance through USAA, so I'll see what they say about personal articles and such...

Ziggy,
Thanks for moving, I wasn't sure where this should be put, so I guessed.

I bow to your more thorough forum knowledge.

claudermilk · October 31, 2007

I've also done the homeowner's rider method. I talked with my agent extensively regarding my needs & equipment use (semi-pro I guess you'd call it), so there's no surprises. The coverage is for replacement cost of all gear for anything that happens to it worldwide. That reminds me, I still need to get them some information...:uhoh

Phatman113 · October 31, 2007

Thanks for all the input! I never would have thought about a rider on my homeowner's insurance. They call it "Valuable Items" insurance and it's about $27/year for $2000 coverage. I think it'll follow my homeowners deductible? Haven't checked into that yet, but I'll make sure I do before I sign up. It specifically lists cameras and specifically mentions coverage for personal 'breakage' so I'll check, but it seems like anything could be considered 'breakage' so it should cover it pretty well!

Hopefully this thread will be helpful to other's too!

Scott_Quier · November 1, 2007

Phatman113 wrote:

Thanks for all the input! I never would have thought about a rider on my homeowner's insurance. They call it "Valuable Items" insurance and it's about $27/year for $2000 coverage. I think it'll follow my homeowners deductible? Haven't checked into that yet, but I'll make sure I do before I sign up. It specifically lists cameras and specifically mentions coverage for personal 'breakage' so I'll check, but it seems like anything could be considered 'breakage' so it should cover it pretty well!

Hopefully this thread will be helpful to other's too!

Sounds like a deal. Be sure to ask the question, "What doesn't it cover?" and get the answer in writing if you can.

rwells · February 6, 2008

NOTE: The following should not be construed as insurance advise, but rather an observation. Please consult your insurance agent and or carrier directly with any questions reguarding your insurance coverages.

Also, READ YOUR POLICY!!! -- It's in there...

As a licensed insurance ADJUSTER, I would certainly urge you to very specifically check when adding an endorsement to your homeowners policy concerning your photography equipment.

All of the major carriers that I've dealt with EXCLUDE BUSINESS USE of such equipment from a Homeowners policy. Business use includes giving the option to buy/sell prints.

Anyone got a Smugmug account?

Are pictures for sale on said account?

Be very careful here folks...

evoryware · February 8, 2008

rwells wrote:

NOTE: The following should not be construed as insurance advise, but rather an observation. Please consult your insurance agent and or carrier directly with any questions reguarding your insurance coverages.

Also, READ YOUR POLICY!!! -- It's in there...

As a licensed insurance ADJUSTER, I would certainly urge you to very specifically check when adding an endorsement to your homeowners policy concerning your photography equipment.

All of the major carriers that I've dealt with EXCLUDE BUSINESS USE of such equipment from a Homeowners policy. Business use includes giving the option to buy/sell prints.

Anyone got a Smugmug account?

Are pictures for sale on said account?

Be very careful here folks...

Thanks for this post. I'm in a gray area. I'm not yet doing it for business, but, yes, I plan to. While I'm in the gray area, I can not afford to have grands worth of equipment un-insured.

Pittspilot · February 10, 2008

rwells wrote:

NOTE: The following should not be construed as insurance advise, but rather an observation. Please consult your insurance agent and or carrier directly with any questions reguarding your insurance coverages.

Also, READ YOUR POLICY!!! -- It's in there...

As a licensed insurance ADJUSTER, I would certainly urge you to very specifically check when adding an endorsement to your homeowners policy concerning your photography equipment.

All of the major carriers that I've dealt with EXCLUDE BUSINESS USE of such equipment from a Homeowners policy. Business use includes giving the option to buy/sell prints.

Anyone got a Smugmug account?

Are pictures for sale on said account?

Be very careful here folks...

Timely! I was just about to ask how 'transparent' people were being in order to get this on a homeowner policy! I couldn't - I was very clear about what equipment i have and how I use it and the agent wriggled!
That was enough for me, I want to be able to get paid out on a clim if and when it is necessary, without argument and hassle.

I went with the insurance available through PPA (www.ppa.com) and though it isn't cheap it does seem comprehensive and covers equipment in my studio and when traveling.

Cheers

ChatKat · February 11, 2008

Travel and trip and fall too
I have my insurance through PPA for gear but I also have a business package. The PPA coverage is for stated gear and covers me internationally. It covers my little bitty things like memory (I asked for it) as well as my computer. The Business package covers me for things like shooting on location, liability for both errors and omissions and for injury (what if someone fell over my tripod or lights or camera bag!). PPA membership also covers me for assistance with copyright violations or cards that have corrupted. We live in a wacky world and while insurance is a good thing to have for lost or stolen gear, we might need protection from the outside world too.

Shima · February 11, 2008

So this got me curious and I emailed my State Farm rep who said for 225 a year I could get "business" level protection of my estimated 4,000 worth of equipment... and that would also cover photos and liability surrounding photos.... and random accidents are covered w/ business protection.

And yes, to confirm what was said above, State Farm will not cover your photography stuff if you make money from it and are trying to add it on to your home owners insurance. You need the separate business coverage if you make money off your photography.

Now if I actually made decent money off my photography, I would totally go for that. But I'm not quite there yet, so I'm personally going to hold off until I start bringing in more than just pocket change here and there for my photography.

ChatKat · February 12, 2008

Shima wrote:

State Farm will not cover your photography stuff if you make money from it and are trying to add it on to your home owners insurance. You need the separate business coverage if you make money off your photography.

Now if I actually made decent money off my photography, I would totally go for that. But I'm not quite there yet, so I'm personally going to hold off until I start bringing in more than just pocket change here and there for my photography.

Shima - just know that if you have ANY photography for sale, your gear is not covered nor if someone was hurt by your equipment, would you have any coverage. To me, the peace of mind of $225 is worth it. Also, your gear may not be covered if you have more than $2500 on homeowner's policy (the amount may be less than that) and if it's not at home.

mercphoto · February 12, 2008

Shima wrote:

So this got me curious and I emailed my State Farm rep who said for 225 a year I could get "business" level protection of my estimated 4,000 worth of equipment... and that would also cover photos and liability surrounding photos.... and random accidents are covered w/ business protection.

Is that liability coverage in addition to theft or damage to your equipment? For example, you are photographing for a client and a person trips and falls, or a light stand knocks someone in the head? If so I need to call my agent...

erikGrammer · February 12, 2008

I have USAA for homeowners but have a photography business so I can't just do a rider on my homeowner's policy. They now offer business coverage through Hartord but it isn't specific to photography and has some holes.

I ended up going with Tom C. Pickard & Co. Insurance out here in SoCal. Offers specific coverage for photographers including liability and rental... worldwide. Their service has been good so far and I'm getting 2mil in Liability, 2mil in errors and omissions and $30,000 in equipment coverage for just under $1000.00 a year.

Hope that's useful!
-erik

Camera Equipment Insurance?

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