Insuring Your Possessions with Online Homeowners Insurance Quotes Policies
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Know
what kind of a homeowners insurance quotes policy you're buying
In some cases, it makes more sense to
buy a homeowners insurance quotes policy that's been especially designed for people with
a taste for expensive goods. The Chubb Group, for example, offers
homeowners insurance with more jewelry coverage than most, but
there are still limitations on coverage. To secure the broadest
coverage available, you can purchase a Valuable Articles coverage
and have your jewelry "scheduled," with each piece described
and individually valued. Chubb's Valuable Articles coverage
is "all-risk" and covers most causes of loss. With this agreed-value
approach, you get the scheduled amount with no deductible or
depreciation in the event of a total covered loss.
If you have a collection of fine items
of less-substantial value, it might make sense to take out a
blanket coverage rider on them. Categories for blanket coverage
vary, but generally include jewelry, fine art, silverware, cameras,
musical instruments, furs, wine, stamps, coins and collectibles.
Provided that no one piece of your collection is worth more
than $2,500, blanket coverage may be the way to go.
Chubb gives its customers the choice
of listing valuable items separately or lumping together
possessions that fall into a single category, such as jewelry
or a wine collection. If you want to insure something valued
at more than $50,000, you'll have to hire an appraiser to document
its value. Listing valuables separately will effectively settle
the loss before it occurs. If the homeowners insurance company has documentation
proving that your antique armoire was worth $55,000 and the
armoire burns in a fire, your dollar figure is already set and
you'll avoid haggling with claims adjusters.
If you want to list items separately
that fall below the $50,000 threshold, then it's simply a matter
of describing them and estimating their worth. Some homeowners insurance insurers
might not require a bill of sale to document the value of items
worth less than $50,000, but other insurers may have more stringent
requirements.
Regardless of how you decide to insure
your treasures, you should make sure you know about any cases
in which the homeowners insurance quotes policy will not
pay out. In general, policies and riders for fine valuables
give pretty broad coverage, including losses resulting from
just about any peril you can think of, except nuclear explosion,
war, or intentional acts of destruction. Other things most homeowners insurance quotes policies
of this type will not cover are musical instruments or cameras
used for profit -- similar to the common exclusion of laptop
computers used for business purposes.
Also, most regular homeowners insurance quotes policies
will not pay to replace what some insurance companies call "items
of antiquity." In some cases, that means anything more than
25 years old, but the definition can vary depending on your
company. That's another reason to take out a special rider on
any antiques you own. |
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