If you collect fine art, antiques or sports memorabilia, you know your items are often irreplaceable. That’s why making sure they are properly protected is of utmost importance.
Most homeowners’ policies only cover collectibles up to about $2,000. After suffering a loss, collectors often find their homeowners insurance lacks coverage for accidental breakage, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, water damage and mysterious disappearances. In addition, many homeowners policies pay claims based on depreciated value, even though collections often maintain their value or increase in value over time.
Specialized coverage options
Protect your special collection with a specialized endorsement, rider or floater policy. These policies can be written to cover your collection for its full value, whether you keep it at home or travel with it.
A collectibles policy protects your collection in the following ways:
- Provides agreed-value coverage for the full collector value of items (including accessories such as packaging), without depreciation.
- Coverage can be extended via endorsement to apply to items while they’re in transit and even if they’re only used occasionally (such as an antique harp or china collection).
- Provides automatic increases in insurance value for scheduled items on a periodic basis.
- Can cover one or more collections. For example, you can insure a basement room full of sports memorabilia and a figurine collection with one contract.
- Covers a broader set of risks, including water damage.
Coverage options vary depending on the size and value of your collection. If your collection is small or only worth a few thousand dollars, you can cover it via a rider on your homeowners policy.
Blanket coverage is often the best choice for collections with many items. One example is a baseball card collection in which individual pieces may not be highly valuable but the collection as a whole is.
Some policies require you to schedule, or appraise and document, each item. These are usually purchased for more expensive collections. Carriers also offer the option to mix and match a blanket policy with higher-value items scheduled separately.
Not all policies are alike and depending on the value of your collectibles, you may have many insurance options. It’s critical to talk with your insurance broker and discuss the best coverage for your unique collection.
