When you are purchasing expensive items it always helps to know that they are protected by a good insurance policy from damage or theft. Four simple but effective ways you can ensure the protection of your valuable items are: Get tenant or home insurance, choose your policies carefully (consider coverage limits), if you work from home or have business items at home get business insurance, and buy separate insurance for luxury goods that are not covered by the tenant or home insurance. Choose insurance for peace of mind.
Tenant or Home Insurance
The simplest way to protect yourself against the destruction or loss of your possessions is to buy tenant or home insurance, depending on whether you rent or own your home. If the worst happens and you are robbed, or experience a flood, fire, or any other factor that can lead to damage or loss of your personal property, it can make all the difference when you have a good insurance policy that can cover the damages.
Most tenant or homeowner insurance policies include content coverage. This is the repair or replacement value of the items that have been lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed. To avoid the worry of lost or damaged property, visit https://apollocover.com/magazine/what-insurance-protects-the-things-you-own/ to get a quote and buy your insurance online in under five minutes. There are several significant advantages to having a home or tenant’s insurance policy, including coverage of potential legal fees and temporary accommodation in the event you have to leave your home for a period.
Legal Liability
If you, for instance, leave the stove on and cause a fire, or leave the bath running and cause a flood, and the adjacent apartments are also damaged, tenant’s insurance will cover potential legal fees or damage awards if your neighbors sue you for property damage.
Temporary Accommodation
In the event of a flood, it can take a full month to repair all of the damages to your home. Your home or tenant insurance policy will cover the costs of a hotel room or other accommodation, such as Airbnb.
Personal Property Loss
Tenant’s insurance will compensate you for the replacement value of any stolen goods in the event of a break-in.
Car Break-Ins
Most tenant’s insurance policies cover your personal property both inside and outside of the home. For instance, if your car is parked outside your house and someone smashes the windows and takes your phone from inside the car, the insurance can pay for a replacement.
However, some policies expressly exclude thefts outside of the home or only cover theft of personal property from a vehicle when the car is parked in the driveway or garage. It is best to thoroughly read your tenant’s insurance policy and talk to an expert if you have any doubts about whether or not you are covered in specific scenarios.
Remember that tenant’s insurance will not pay for any damage to your car, such as the broken window. Car damage is the business of car insurance. Another example is if someone steals your car, your tenant’s insurance policy can cover the losses of items that were in the car, but not the car itself.
Choose Your Policy Carefully
You should read your home or tenant’s insurance policy thoroughly and make sure you know what your policy covers and where the holes are.
Policy Coverage Limit
Make sure your policy coverage limit is high enough. It is highly recommended that you take inventory of your belongings to calculate a rough value for them. This will help you decide how much your home or tenant’s insurance policy should cover. Beyond the policy’s coverage limit, of for instance $10,000, expenses come out of your pocket. A worst-case scenario would be losing or experiencing damage to all your personal property only to realize the replacement value is beyond your policy limit.
Identity Document Theft
Identity theft is generally not covered by a tenant’s insurance policy. Say your passport, driver’s license or other identifying documents are stolen from your car, your basic home or tenant’s insurance probably will not cover services such as credit monitoring and replacement identity document fees that result from the theft.
Open Peril and Named Peril Policies
Open peril policies, also known as all perils policies, cover you for any situation that damages or results in the loss of your personal property, unless the policy expressly excludes it. For instance, your policy may say it covers you for everything except damage as a result of a flood, in which case you must pay a premium in the form of a separate policy or rider to cover flood damage costs.
Named peril policies, by contrast, cover you only for incidents specifically named in the policy. It is vital to read your tenant or home insurance policy thoroughly so you know what is and is not covered. This will allow you to make an informed decision on what additional insurance you may wish to purchase.
Business Insurance
If you run a business from home or keep your small business computer or other expensive work equipment at home, you should consider getting business insurance. Business equipment is generally not covered by the contents portion of your tenant or homeowner insurance, as this covers personal property, and your work equipment can be deemed a business asset.
Separate Insurance For Luxury Goods
Another potential gap in your tenant or home insurance is coverage for your luxury goods. Valuable items like very expensive bags, a designer watch, or fine art will require separate insurance policies. Due to their high value, they are a specific target of theft, meaning the insurer has a higher risk of having to pay out, as these items are more likely to be stolen.
Choose A Policy That Suits Your Needs
This has been a brief and simple guide to choosing the right insurance policies to protect your expensive items. When investing in valuable personal property, business equipment, or luxury goods, you want the peace of mind of knowing they are protected against theft, loss, damage or destruction.
By choosing to purchase tenant or home insurance, business insurance and special insurance policies for your luxury items you are making the sensible, logical and most financially-sound decision. Just remember to read your policy thoroughly, ensure it covers an amount at least equal to the value of your items, make sure you know what is and is not covered, and fill any gaps in the policy with additional coverage.