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Are Your Luxury Valuables Covered by Your Home Insurance?

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#insurance #homegoods #gold #security
Published
09/27/2022

Your home insurance policy is there to cover you when things go wrong. Whether it’s a house fire, natural disaster, flooding, theft, or another type of loss, your home insurance policy helps you repair and replace your personal possessions.

When it comes to luxury possessions, collectibles, and other valuables, a standard home insurance policy simply may not be enough. In some cases, rare and valuable items may not be covered at all. In others, the coverage limit may be too low. Often, items such as jewelry are subject to restrictive limits in a standard policy.

If you have any of these luxury possessions in your home, it may be time to review your insurance policy and get the appropriate coverage.


Collections & Antiques

Some insurance policies are designed to replace personal belongings according to how they have depreciated. This can pose a problem when it comes to items like collectibles or antiques. These have the potential to appreciate in value, and, in fact, that is one of the main incentives to collect them.

If this becomes an issue, consider hiring help. Search for: “insurance lawyer or public adjuster near me” to find out who in your area can take on your insurance case. They can negotiate with your insurer if there’s been a misunderstanding.

However, some policies do not cover collectibles at all, and you may need a collectibles insurance policy. An important part of holding this type of coverage is closely documenting your collection, so you have an accurate list of what you own and what the total value of the items is.

Fine Art

When you have an art collection, you need more than fire insurance to protect it. Art can be destroyed by much more common hazards than the structure of your home, from a glass of red wine to careless company.

Even if your art is damaged by a peril covered by your home insurance, such as fire or smoke damage, most homeowners insurance will list fine art as an exclusion.

Home insurance policies are not sophisticated enough to handle fine art. A specialized insurance policy will likely get better coverage. Insurers who offer them understand how appraisals work and how the value of a piece of art can change.

Jewellery

Gold, diamonds, and other precious metals and stones are another concern when it comes to insurance. Whether it’s an extensive jewellery collection or a single engagement ring, you want to make sure it’s insured against all possibilities.

Unfortunately, your home insurance policy has a surprisingly low limit for valuables, including jewellery and furs.

You may be able to add scheduled jewellery to your home insurance policy rather than taking out specialized coverage.

Gold Bullion

The coverage for gold bars and coins (as well as silver) is even lower in most home insurance policies. If you are keeping gold bars and coins stored at home, a specialized bullion insurance policy is the way to go. Even if you have a reliable home safe, bullion can be damaged and lost in a fire.

Wines & Whiskies

A substantial wine cellar or whisky collection is not just for personal use these days. They can also be unique luxury investments as the global market for them expands.

As more people collect wine and spirits, insurance policies tailored to these unique collections become more available.

A home insurance policy does cover consumables, but a luxury wine collection will likely be considerably over the limit or excluded from coverage. Plus, a specialized wine and spirits insurance policy can cover damage that happens in transit.

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