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What Is Valuable Items Insurance and Do You Need It?

Imagine the following scenario: You want to spend some quality time with your spouse and kids, so you take them out for a nice dinner at a local restaurant. You have a wonderful time and drive back in high spirits. But as soon as you get home, you realize something terrible has happened — you’ve had a break-in. You call the police, who respond immediately and make sure there are no intruders in your home anymore before you can assess the damage. At first glance, nothing appears to be missing — until you realize that your safe has been cracked and cleaned out. Several pieces of valuable jewelry that have been in your family for generations have been stolen — and the chances of them ever being returned to you are slim to none.

Unfortunately, situations like this happen all too often to those without the backing of an insurance agency in Los Angeles. When burglars strike, they look for the most valuable items they can find, whether that’s jewelry, antiques, art, expensive electronics, furs, silverware or costly sports equipment. And what’s so important to understand is that your homeowners insurance policy might not offer sufficient coverage for these types of valuables. According to the Insurance Information Institute, a standard insurance policy generally has a low liability limit for theft — approximately $1,500. That means that if your valuables are worth more than $1,500, you need to take action to obtain coverage for the full value of your possessions.

So what can you do to ensure you have sufficient coverage?

The first option is to raise the liability limits on your policy. For example, you could specify $2,000 for an individual item and up to $5,000 overall. However, while this is the more affordable option, it might still not offer you sufficient coverage.
The second option is to purchase valuable items insurance. This is a type of coverage that covers not only losses due to theft, but also due to accidental losses — such as losing a piece of jewelry — and damage. In addition, unlike your regular homeowners insurance, valuable items insurance generally doesn’t have a deductible, so you’ll be reimbursed for your possessions’ market value once your insurance company has approved the claim.

When you purchase valuable items insurance, you’ll need to validate the value of the items you want to insure so you and your insurance agency in Los Angeles can determine a reasonable coverage limit. In some cases, you’ll be asked to hire a professional appraiser who can objectively and accurately appraise your possessions and put a reasonable price on them. In other cases, a representative from the insurance company will come to your home and appraise the items. Then you can choose between listing the items individually in the policy or applying a blanket limit for your entire collection.

The loss of one or more valuable items can be very upsetting — especially if it’s due to a break-in. By purchasing valuable items insurance, you might not be able to recover the emotional value of your lost possessions, but at least you’ll be able to replace them with the payout you receive from your insurance agency in Los Angeles.

Sources

https://www.travelers.com/tools-resources/home/insuring/5-tips-to-protect-your-possessions-with-a-valuable-items-insurance-rider

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-the-best-way-to-insure-your-valuables-2016-03-01

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