View Single Post
  #5  
Old 2010-03-16, 3:19pm
Lorraine Chandler's Avatar
Lorraine Chandler Lorraine Chandler is offline
Salt Box Beads
 
Join Date: Oct 23, 2005
Location: Heading to Paradise
Posts: 4,161
Default

One of the reason that I am doing this is because of a conversation I had with my inurance agent a few days ago..I talked with her for hours and really dug into my policy to see exactly what coverage I had.

1. It seems that a lot of the time people think they are automatically covered by their home owners insurance. That couldn't be further from the truth.

2. People seem to think the agent knows all, that also couldn't be further from the truth. It is the underwriters that know all and I find that most agents know very little about lampworking/studio insurance.

3. Most homeowners policies will be CANCELED the minute they find out you have a torch or kiln or metalsmithing in the house or garage.

4. Most homeowners policies cover only "normal house hold and garage goods'.

5. Most people think they are covered for the insured amount they pay monthly for if they are burglarized..not true. You will only receive your "sublimit". Mine is 1500.00 which won't even cover my wedding ring.

6. If you have guns, or coins or stamps or jewelry or hobby stuff they have to be covered with additional insurance after you have had them appraised, photographed and the receipts all kept in a safety deposit box or? so you can prove what was in the house.

Just to add 1 piece of jewelry to my policy increased my insurance more than I could afford. Individual items are mega bucks to insure!!

7. The only way you get the full insured amount is if your house burns to the ground, so you get the house and contents. Or maybe a hurricane or flood etc. Otherwise it is the dreaded sublimit.

8. So in order for me to have the huge amount of investment I have in lampworking, jewelry making, metalsmithing covered for replacement values, I have to have it under one roof and totally separate from the house with a business policy because...ready for #9???

9. If the insurance company finds out you have sold just $1.00 worth of your hobby, you are a business in their eyes for all intents and purposes).
The government, the city, the county all have different views on what is a business. Getting a policy for the business in the house along with the house policy was not an option, it just doesn't work that way because our hobby is high risk. Therefore you cannot have it in your home or the garage.

People have told me they called their inurance agent and they told them No problem your covered...I would bet on the ponies you are NOT covered because they never put specific questions to the underwriters or they know you have a very small sublimit and are not worried about paying because of the wonderful grey area.

I hope that this post and thread may help some others to know their insurance policies.

I have made a decision to gather the jewelry room in the bedroom, the metalsmithing area in the garage and the horsetrailer studio all into one studio building in the back yard just so I can have peace of mind by insuring the whole thing as a business.

Or I just might sell everything and go to Hawaaii for a long vacation!!!

Lorraine

Last edited by Lorraine Chandler; 2010-03-16 at 4:28pm.
Reply With Quote