Insuring 2nd hand camera equipment - how do you guys do it?

[pixelatedscraps]

I was just thinking about what would happen if on the next trip I took I managed to lose or have my camera bag stolen - with all or some of my cherished gear inside. Has this ever happened to anyone before?

I then began to think about how one would go about insuring 2nd hand equipment. Let's think, for the majority of old, classic cameras, having things that are normally used in an insurance claim such as receipts, box packaging and instructions manuals (is this last part true?) aren't always a given.

Out of the cameras in my sig, I don't have one single manual, original proof of invoice/receipt, or original box for it - so how would I insure and then claim for an amount which is indicative of its value? Is it judged on its 2nd hand value or its original - and then adjusted for inflation? How does this work?

I travel a lot - maybe 4-5 trips per year. Usually, I'm off to places like Japan, China, Cambodia and around SE Asia with the odd trip to UK and France, etc, and I've always had travel insurance - along with home contents, etc, but I've never had to claim for anything while travelling except for a Nokia 6600 which I lost on a plane to Thailand once - and for which I did have the original receipt.

What do you guys do / suggest?

 

[Papa Smurf]

Home owner's insurance

Home owner's insurance

Hi, My home owner's insurance underwriter will allow me to submit a list of my equipment with all pertinent data including estimated value. All that I have to do then is have an agent verify that the equipment exists and I am good to go. Keep in mind that just because the insurance company takes your premium and says that you are covered is not a guarantee that they would ever pay off if you submitted a claim. They can and have suddenly produced exclusions/exceptions that they did not mention and you did not notice, after all they are in the insurance business to make money not pay claims. Your best bet is to guard your most valued items like they were the family jewels! 😉

 

[acall]

Hi, My home owner's insurance underwriter will allow me to submit a list of my equipment with all pertinent data including estimated value. All that I have to do then is have an agent verify that the equipment exists and I am good to go. Keep in mind that just because the insurance company takes your premium and says that you are covered is not a guarantee that they would ever pay off if you submitted a claim. They can and have suddenly produced exclusions/exceptions that they did not mention and you did not notice, after all they are in the insurance business to make money not pay claims. Your best bet is to guard your most valued items like they were the family jewels! 😉

My insurance company does the same thing... they call it a "Camera Equipment Rider". I have to update the list annually, and it adds a few bucks to the annual premiums. I have never had to make a claim against it, so I am just going on good faith that they will cover the claimed value 🙂

Alan

 

[coelacanth]

I'm interested in this topic, especially the tips from non-homeowners. Anyone use renter's insurance for this?

I don't get to travel much, but when I do, add premium protection from Amex. Other similar insurances like from Expedia and such have very low "per article" cap which is no where close to the cost of my gear. I took my MP to France in January with Amex's insurance. MP is still in production and MSRP is still widely available. I got mine used and the cap for the protection was about the same as the used market price of an MP.

 

[pixelatedscraps]

Home contents I can see it working - and will ask my insurance agent tomorrow during working hours about it.

I'm concerned still with travel insurance - because as far as I'm aware, my travel insurance is independent from my home contents one - one is HSBC and the other is AIA. With no receipts or instruction manuals, what else can I do to prove their worth? (eBay receipts? - which I also didn't keep)

Can I take photos and have them date & time stamped showing them in my possession? But then they could easily be anyone's.

Still confused.