Diamond Necklaces, New Cameras... These Are A Few Of Our Favorite Things (To Schedule)
Are you dreaming of the beautiful diamond necklace that you asked for, for Christmas?
[well... Isn't this beautiful?]
Or maybe, you’re into photography and you bought yourself a brand new $3,000 camera.
[that isn't expensive or anything...] 
Now, you’re probably very excited you have these brand new, shiny, wonderful things now… right? That's totally fine! But do us a huge favor and when your local independent insurance agency opens back up from the holiday reach out to them to let them know about your new toy(s)! It will take no more then 5 minutes to get them the info they need so they can give you the best possible advice on how to properly protect your new favorite gift. Depending on the value your agent will likely advise you to schedule it on your home insurance policy. Here is why:
Imagine someone breaks into your house and steals not only your new diamond necklace (that your spouse is afraid to tell you the price of) but also your new $3,000 camera. Most basic homeowner’s insurance policies only cover $1,000-2,000 for unscheduled jewelry and $1,000-2,000 for equipment such as computers, cameras, musical instruments and more. I know what your thinking... my nice new necklace is worth way more than that!
Under these limits, your necklace and your camera might not be fully replaced in the event of a covered loss. So what can you do to remedy this situation? Well… there is this beautiful little thing called… SCHEDULED ITEMS. You would bring your appraised value for both your camera and necklace to your agent who would then add this to your homeowners policy. This would place a specific value on your high valued items so when there is a loss, they can be replaced.
Now even though break ins and theft happen it might be a bit of an extreme example so lets give a more frequent one: You decide to wear that beautiful new necklace out on New Years eve and have a great time. At some point in the night the necklace falls off and you don't realize until you get home. It could be anywhere! Well if you have it scheduled to your home insurance policy you would pick up coverage for mysterious disappearance and could get it replaced. Without it being scheduled though you might find yourself out of luck!
Here are some items you may want to consider scheduling on your homeowners insurance policy:
- Jewelry
- Fine art
- Musical instruments
- Cameras and equipment
- Firearms
- Coins and other collectibles
These are a few examples, but the idea is that if an item you have has sentimental value, high value or could increase in value over the years, it would be smart to schedule the items on your insurance policy.
There is nothing worse then something that means so much to you being stolen, lost or damaged and you find yourself scrambling to figure out how you’re going to replace it. Set your mind at ease and contact your independent insurance agency
Before the holidays arrive, give your agent a call and have that discussion with them. The cost of scheduling these items on your policy is a small fraction compared to the loss you'd face if something happen to them. It just is not worth it. If you are looking for more information, don't hesitate to reach out!