Homeowner's insurance is commonly thought of as covering the structure of the home, but it also covers your personal possessions inside the home as well. “Coverage C” on your declarations page refers to the amount of coverage you have for your personal property. This typically includes items you brought into your home, including furniture, clothing, and appliances you can unplug or remove. Another way to look at your personal property would be to think of all the items that would fall out of the home if it were tipped upside down.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that each policy has a special sub-limit of coverage for some types of personal property, including but not limited to: Jewelry, Wine, Fine art, Collectibles, Stamp collections, Fire arms, Camera equipment, Golfers equipment, Coins, Antiques, and Musical instruments.

Here are some common special limits of liability examples:

• $1,500 for loss of jewelry, watches, furs, precious and semiprecious stones
• $2,500 for loss of firearms and related equipment
• $2,500 for loss of silverware, silver-plated ware, gold-ware, gold-plated ware, platinum-ware, platinum-plated ware and pewter-ware. This includes flatware, hollowware, tea sets, trays and trophies made of or including silver, gold or pewter

There are ways to be sure your unique items are insured to the correct value. Here are some options:

1. Increasing the special limit on your home policy
2. Schedule the valuable item on your home policy
3. Obtain a separate stand-alone policy from a carrier that specializes in that specific coverage

Here are some benefits of securing a separate policy for your valuables:

1. The carrier may specialize in the coverage
2. Guidelines may be broader than the homeowners carrier
3. If the home was rewritten to a new company, the stand alone policy is able to stay with the same carrier
4. Blanket policies may be available
5. An up-to-date appraisal maybe not be required, although this can be beneficial

Don’t get blind-sided in the event of a loss of those precious items. Contact us today to make sure your special collections are covered!