Personal Property Coverage and Your Homeowner's Insurance Policy

This week I'd like to talk to you about homeowners insurance and your personal property coverage. Under your homeowner's insurance or renter’s insurance policy you have coverage for your personal property, which is your contents. Basically this is all of your “stuff”.

However, did you know that there are specific limitations for theft for certain items?

Those items include (but not limited to) silverware, gold ware, jewelry, firearms, and furs.

The reason that there are limitations on those items is because generally as a whole most people have very little of these items. 

So for those customers that have more than the average, then they recommend that you specifically schedule those items.  You can schedule the items on your homeowner’s insurance policy or renter’s insurance policy

Another way to properly insure those items is by purchasing a separate policy to cover those items, which is called a Personal Articles Floater or an Inland Marine Insurance policy.

The reason that this is important to mention is that we have lots of customers that have jewelry that is very expensive or they have many guns because they're hunters.

So, if you have these kind of items, and should these items be stolen, you would be very disappointed with the little amount of coverage that you have under your homeowners or renters policy.

By scheduling these items, it not only gives you the benefit of not having to pay a deductible if those items are stolen, it also gives you generally much broader coverage, including what is called mysterious disappearance.

Mysterious disappearance is when there really wasn't a theft, but the item was there and now it's not. So basically, you do not know how it disappeared, but it is now gone.

Mysterious disappearance is generally not covered by a standard homeowner’s or renters insurance policy, but you've scheduled these items, mysterious disappearance is something that the insurance carriers generally cover you for. 

You can also schedule items that there's not a specific limitation on, like golf clubs, musical instruments, bicycles, and laptops.

A lot of people will schedule these items because they're concerned about the mysterious disappearance exposure.  For example, if you drop off your clubs at the bag drop off area at the golf course, park your car, and your clubs are missing when you return, and no one saw a theft or witnessed anyone walking away with them, then that is considered mysterious disappearance and would most likely not be covered under your home or renters insurance.

This fine coverage point is just another instance of why it's important that you contact your insurance professional here at Huff Insurance.  So we can have a conversation and talk about your hobbies, your interests, and what it is that you collect or what it is that you hold dear to you so that we can make sure that it's got the proper coverage prior to a loss and not finding out until after there's a claim that there's a gap in your coverage.

Huff Insurance is here to help you for all of your personal and business insurance needs give us a call today.

Nancy Nicklow is the owner and President of Huff Insurance, a full service Independent Insurance Agent . We have been dedicated to Protecting Lifestyles™ since 1960.  We offer a full array of Personal Insurance, Commercial Insurance and Life Insurance products.  Call us at 410-647-1111