What kind of insurance do I get from my mover?
Posted 03-05-2009 at 04:01 PM by Scott Luther
Updated 03-05-2009 at 04:04 PM by Scott Luther (Formatting)
Updated 03-05-2009 at 04:04 PM by Scott Luther (Formatting)
Should I buy the extra insurance from the moving company?
For full disclosure, I work for a moving company and have for over 26 years. I am trying to be consultative. In my first installment of this series I would like to talk a little about the difference in insurance and valuation. In following installments I will break down each kind of coverage you can purchase, the exceptions to coverage and the wisdom behind buying coverage or not.
First of all, only insurance companies offer insurance. Movers sell “valuation”. There is a significant difference. Insurance is“all risk” coverage most of the time. Valuation is coverage for damage due to movers’ negligence while it is in the movers’ possession. Talk to your insurance agent. He sells insurance and would be better to tell you what they cover. Do not assume your home-owners insurance will offer you any coverage. Most of the time, they don’t. The two big exposures that HO don’t cover are “due to movers’ negligence” and “off-site or in-transit”. I only know of two companies that offer coverage for these types of exposures so it is definitely the exception when you are covered, not the rule. Now renters’ insurance is a different story. Most of the times renter’s insurance offers coverage for those exposures and you are paying for it anyway. It’s a no-brainer in that case. Go for the free coverage and save the money on the move…you’ve got coverage already. Talk to your insurance agent first to confirm any coverage!
I will preface this by saying you will always be covered for movers’ negligence! If a mover is negligent with an item, they will be responsible for it. No matter what! The only question is the amount of coverage you get or the liability you are covered to. Any inter-state or intra-state mover has to supply a minimum liability of .60/lb per article. Please know that this is very minimal coverage. In fact, depending on what got damaged, this could be garbage. For example, if a mover drops a 100 lb TV and you have .60/lb per article, you will get a check for $60.
They will not argue liability. Or they shouldn’t anyway. You are covered, just not for much. I’m sure they will state your agreed upon coverage as if you understood it clearly prior to loading. Of course, if you hired the right mover, they would have clearly communicated this to you well in advance. I would only suggest .60/lb per article if you have some other type of insurance covering your household goods. I know someone is going to say the mover should be responsible for anything they damage. They are….to either .60/lb or full replacement. You get to pick.
There will be much more on this tomorrow.
For full disclosure, I work for a moving company and have for over 26 years. I am trying to be consultative. In my first installment of this series I would like to talk a little about the difference in insurance and valuation. In following installments I will break down each kind of coverage you can purchase, the exceptions to coverage and the wisdom behind buying coverage or not.
First of all, only insurance companies offer insurance. Movers sell “valuation”. There is a significant difference. Insurance is“all risk” coverage most of the time. Valuation is coverage for damage due to movers’ negligence while it is in the movers’ possession. Talk to your insurance agent. He sells insurance and would be better to tell you what they cover. Do not assume your home-owners insurance will offer you any coverage. Most of the time, they don’t. The two big exposures that HO don’t cover are “due to movers’ negligence” and “off-site or in-transit”. I only know of two companies that offer coverage for these types of exposures so it is definitely the exception when you are covered, not the rule. Now renters’ insurance is a different story. Most of the times renter’s insurance offers coverage for those exposures and you are paying for it anyway. It’s a no-brainer in that case. Go for the free coverage and save the money on the move…you’ve got coverage already. Talk to your insurance agent first to confirm any coverage!
I will preface this by saying you will always be covered for movers’ negligence! If a mover is negligent with an item, they will be responsible for it. No matter what! The only question is the amount of coverage you get or the liability you are covered to. Any inter-state or intra-state mover has to supply a minimum liability of .60/lb per article. Please know that this is very minimal coverage. In fact, depending on what got damaged, this could be garbage. For example, if a mover drops a 100 lb TV and you have .60/lb per article, you will get a check for $60.
They will not argue liability. Or they shouldn’t anyway. You are covered, just not for much. I’m sure they will state your agreed upon coverage as if you understood it clearly prior to loading. Of course, if you hired the right mover, they would have clearly communicated this to you well in advance. I would only suggest .60/lb per article if you have some other type of insurance covering your household goods. I know someone is going to say the mover should be responsible for anything they damage. They are….to either .60/lb or full replacement. You get to pick. There will be much more on this tomorrow.
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