insurance

[Don Boyd]

I guess the advantage of losing stuff on the river is that you won't have to provide a police report. I had all of my receipts and all of the gear had been purchased new within 6 months of the trip. I was prepared to give them the names and phone numbers of trip members but they didn't ask for it. It may have helped that Allstate has all of our other insurance and that I had carried this supplemental insurance for a couple of years. One upside is that I had purchased some things specifically for conditions on the river trip - wide angle and macro lenses - and with the insurance money I made different choices when replacing things. Overall, my experience with Allstate was very positive.

[Robert Oliver]

I used to use AAA (automobile club) for Inland / Marine insurance for my sports photography business. Covered my cameras pretty much every where, anytime. However, they didn't write those policies in California so I had to find a new carrier out west.

[Bruce M. Herman]

Members of NANPA and ASMP have access to insurance. I chose NANPA because it aligns more with my interest in landscape photography and costs less. The deductible is $250, I think.

[John Hennessy]

It seems the prior posts cover every thing, but I'll offer this summary. I used to be involved in homeowners' insurance years ago and have been a policy holder all along too.

Except the groups offering policies, I think that the only way to buy insurance is as a rider on your homeowner's (or renter's) policy. It may be priced better if you are an amateur (I think sales in galleries should not disqualify you as an amateur), but don't claim to be an amateur if you're not. The claims adjuster will figure it out, deny your claim and the underwriter will cancel your policy.

There is a major difference in such riders and the underlying policies. An HO policy insures you and your house against "named perils" and nothing else. A rider on the other hand is typically "all risk" no matter what happens, even your own clumsiness (e.g., dropping gear into a river.) You specify what each piece of gear is worth and that's what will be paid for a total loss. But if you fudge the value up, don't expect to be paid a ridiculously over-stated amount. You'd then be considered a "moral hazard" (someone whose greater interest would be dumping gear in a river instead of hanging on to it.) Again, the claims adjuster will figure it out, deny your claim and the underwriter will cancel your policy. Same with saving up small losses below the deductible and claiming them as one incident. The adjuster will know or suspect what you're doing, and an underwriter will decide if all of your business is worth your shenanigans.

You'll save of course with a higher deductible and by keeping the values in line with reality. There is little point in insuring gear you don't take out of you house or office, like darkroom gear or normal printers etc. That stuff is generally already covered under your HO policy at least up to a maximum. But, if you have Imacon scanners or the like you could go over the maximum.