2022 Insurance Pro Tip #3

First, this coverage can be either written as Replacement Cost or Actual Cash Value (ACV). Again, ACV is when the policy pays for your content after a peril but only after factoring in depreciation. EVERY content claim, regardless of ACV or RCV coverage, will pay out at ACV. It is then up to the insured to provided receipts, etc. to get recoverable depreciation (full RCV) & reimbursement. Due to this factor alone, many customers pay additional premium for RCV coverage on their content but at claim time may not take all steps necessary to get the RCV settlement they paid the premium for. Just food for thought.

Second, and more importantly, the misunderstanding of "scheduled property". We often ask insureds "why to you have $135,000 in content coverage?" The reply...."oh, my husband has over $25,000 in guns in the house and I have my late grandmothers jewelry in my bedroom that's worth about $40,000." When we ask "Is it scheduled?" they have this glossed over look. Oh boy!!! Are high value items such as guns, jewelry, furs, fine china, and rare collectibles scattered all through your home? Every policy's "contents coverage" limits coverage on these items between $1,500 and $2,500 for each category unless there is a special endorsement covering these items. Scheduled property is handled differently by every company. Some won't schedule contents like these at all; others will but to a certain threshold. Sometimes, customers have to be placed with a special policy just for these items. Scheduling personal property can be time consuming and tedious. In most cases, an appraisal, a serialized inventory and photographs are required for these items as well. Bottom line: when discussing contents coverage with your agent, if you have high value items in your home, ask the question about how to insure your higher valued items against theft, fire damage or other perils!! Don't be surprised at claim time when your $15,000 gun collection that is stolen from your home sees a settlement of $1,500 because a gun endorsement or gun schedule was not a part of your policy.