Hi Folks,
I had a conversation with my insurance agent the other day he was here (at my home) to do a “home policy review” when the subject of insuring my personal fishing rods came up. After he looked them over, inquired about the cost of each he told me he would have to go to the underwriters to get some idea of cost for a rider to cover them if damaged or stolen. Seems they are not really covered at replacement value as things stand now. My question is has anyone else checked into this and if so what you found out.

If you have boat insurance you are covered to a larger degree than if you don't. Riders are generally not very expensive. I put an excess liability blanket rider ($1,000,000) on my properties (homes, cars, boat) and it cost $300/year. At least let him give you the quote. Insurance agents are very good at selling insurance, however - be sure you don't end up cash poor and insurance rich.

I do not see why your regular home owners insurance would not cover them. Do you need a special rider for your computer or sofa?

That would depend on the value of the items in question. If you look at your policy you should find a section dealing with "special limits of liability" it should detail there what dollar amount is included for selected items (gun, camerss, jewelry, computers ect.)

If you do not check you may end up with a rider policy on your home owners that is only about $1,500.00 that same on your boat insurance. many times they may replace the boat but only have $1,500.00 on equipment including your electronics

The one thing I do know about insurance and Claims if to have detailed data and pictures of your rods, reels, guns etc. I have been involved in several claims for customers over the years and found it to be invaluable. When I make a custom rod for a customer I fill out a registration slip on each that is recorded and 3 sheet of paper showing cost of parts and every thing that is done to build the rod for the customer. It has save people a lot of hastle with the insurance thing not only in damage but theft.

Go with Doc. My only experience along those line. I made a custom rod for a friend. (Steelhead rod) Iused a number one ,Fuji casting sic guides #1 cork rings for custom grips that had burel inlays. Anyway the rod got burned in car fire nothing could be saved. The insurance compay wanteded to replace the rod with a manuctured rod. Thank the lord I took pictures of the rod and and had a cost sheet made out . I even had a list on how I made the grips and how long it took me to make them. I even had to go to the AGENT TO EXPLAIN THE DIFFERNTS BETWWEN A FACTORY ROD AND A CUSTOM ROD or what I did to make it a custom rod. What was in our favor was that the agent was into custom cars. So document everything.
Good Wraps Bob

now you are in my realm. i am in the insurance business as an agent for a LARGE homeowners insurer. the issue is that there is coverage and there is coverage. this is one of those areas where people get all kinds of bad advice from folks who know little or nothing about insurance. if you have the typical homeowners or renters policy it covers your rods in a limited way. they will be covered against all of the same perils that your other personal property is covered against. there are many perils but what most people experience is a fire or a theft. if the policy has replacement cost coverage on contents your rods will be covered against theft and fire and lots of other perils for their replacement value at todays cost new. the problem that fishermen face is breakage. you step on a rod. you jam it into a tree. slam it in your car door. generally if it is your negligence it won't be covered on your home policy. you can however cover your rods on a personal articles policy. they will be covered against accidental breakage, theft, fire, flood (not covered on your homeowners or renters insurance ) even agianst mysterious disappearance or if you drop it overboard. much broader coverage. what won't be covered is "inherant vice and latent defect". not sure how they figure that out. you can have a personal artricles policy with no deductible, whereas your homeowners or renters policy can have a $500 or $1000 deductible.

bob is correct. if you insure under a personal articles policy and insure it for the proper amount and have documentation you should not have a problem. most insurance companies have a "sports equipment floater" which is just a personal articles policy with a fancy name.

as greg points out homeowners policies have special limits of liability. guns have a special limit but fishing gear does not. still, fishing gear is exposed to more hazards than your sofa just through normal use.

as a practical matter it may not be worth while to insure every little piece of gear. you have to weigh the premiums against your own risk tollerance.

a 1,000,000 excess liabilty umbrella has nothing to do with personal property and will not provide any coverage unless you hurt someone.
your boat insurance is not a substitute for proper personal property coverage.

my last advice. never get your insurance advise from your neighbor or your mother in law (unless they are in the insurance business). talk to your agent. lack of communication and assuming too much makes for an unhappy outcome.






Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/04/2007 10:13PM by LARRY PIRRONE.

Thank you, Larry for bringing a professional up date on this issue. Like most professions, unless you deal with it on a daily basses you really know nothing about the process
Good Wraps Bob

I'm in the insurance racket too, and Larry's post is spot on. The problem with insurance is that most people, including those who work in the field, make it much, much more complicated than it needs to be.

It's a very common thing for agents to push policyholders into scheduling property separately. They do this not because they're going to make money on the extra premium (the extra premium is usually small, and they only get around 10% of it, so it doesn't really matter to them if they get 10% of $50 or $200). No, they try to get you to schedule the property separately because doing so broadens the coverage, and lessens the chance that they will have to tell you, right after something happens, that you're out of luck. Brokers hate those phone calls.

If all you're worried about is the stuff that could happen to your furniture (fire, theft, etc.), then the basic property coverage on your homeowner's policy is almost certainly fine. Theft is usually the big issue here -- if someone steals your car, and you had $10,000 in rods and reels in it, your homeowner's company is going to have to pay the claim, as there's no limitation on fishing equipment. They might give you some grief over the size of the claim, and they might drag their feet cutting a check, but in the end they're going to have to pay you. Most policies don't even have a documentation requirement -- you can tell them that you have no receipts or photos, and in the end they're still going to have to pay.

But if you're worried about stuff other than theft, fire, and the other usual stuff, you may want to look into scheduling your rods and reels. But for what it's worth, to replace all my gear would be at least $8,000 - $10,000, and I don't have anything other than a basic homeowner's policy, and I sleep great at night.