Atherton & District Amateur Photographic Society

Does anyone use a Photography specific insurance company to insure there kit? or do you just use your house contents insurance? Can anyone recomend a company to use? or to avoid!

Cheers Andy

Whenever I have looked into this it has always cost less to put the items in the All Risks section of my household policy.

The specific photographic insurance can be ludicrously expensive.

Mine are included with the household policy.
And the insurance company increased the value of items insured whilst away from the home from £ 2000 to £ 3000 at no extra cost.
Just make sure your single item value covers the most expensive item in your bag.

Theo

Andy,

Whilst household insurance is generally the cheapest route, you need to read the small print because if you are using the camera equipment professionally (their interpretation of professionally is usually if you are getting paid by some means, not that its your main source of income) then they probably will not cover you.

There's quite a few threads on photo forums re insurers/insurance, with some people having problems with certain companies - having said that, the odds are that people will complain on a forum about what they consider to be bad treatment so it is a slightly biased view.

So if you pay a model to take portrait photos etc then in the insurance companies eyes that may count you as using your gear professionally, though they wont know the facts they may ask you to produce proof that no money changed hands or that you weren't selling the photo or placed it with a stock register etc. In other words they are a business and they tend to try hard to reduce their losses.

I'm insured with aaduki, mainly because the discount they give being a member of the swpp paid a good percentage of the swpp membership. I have a public liability and professional indemnity policy with them and then took out a separate gear policy.

Like everything else today its about risk, but in these compensation-itous times should someone trip over your equipment they may sue you and also the theft risk is reasonably high in some locations.

If you do decide to insure separately from your house insurance again check the small print, many charge extra for continental trips, replacement as new and also a few wont insure contents left in an unattended vehicle even if its in the boot.

Phil.

Thanks everyone. I will continue to look into this.