Insurance

Who, where, how, and how much?

Hugh Woods. Bellefonte, PA. Online application, printed and mailed with a check. $54/year for $20K.

None, as part of my personal dislike of this gambling industry. (Insurance industry started at an English pub as people bet upon the possible return of ships, this evolved into Lloyds of London, the very first insurance company.) I also feel that the insurance industry has contributed to part of the breakdown of our communities. Decades ago people HAD to form relationships with their neighbors, family, church and community. If your barn burned down it wasn't an insurance opportunity, it was life threatening event. People had to rely upon their relationships with those around them to rebuild no matter what the tragedy. In todays insurance world, no one has to form any relationships with anyone other than their insurance agent.

This is probably not a good position to have and I certainly carry all kinds of other insurance in my life. (Insurance covered over $900,000 in medical bills on me this past year.) The $2000 I have saved not carrying stamp insurance over the last 35-40 years may be false economy but it is a small, satisfying form of personal protest. It is one corner of my life I feel ok with taking the risk just to be able to flip a bird at this industry.
Don

Hugh Wood, but you can also check with your local agent State Farm. Personal Articles Policy.

Not sure who provides the better value.

For Hugh Wood you must be a member of the APS, which is about $45 per year.

Hugh Wood (APS members only) or Collectibles Insurance Services - http://collectinsure.com. I have used both at different times. Insurance as a rider on your homeowners policy is typically much much more expensive.

I use Collectibles Insurance Service, mentioned above by SPQR. The rates and coverages are comparable to those of Hugh Wood. The major difference between the two, I believe, is that Hugh Wood requires APS membership while Collectibles does not. (I am an APS member but began using Collectibles several years ago when I was not a member.) SPQR is correct that the rider on homeowners policy approach is probably more costly. Additionally, when I looked into this several years ago I was told by the State Farm agent that stamps were not covered by the personal articles rider I already had on my homeowners policy and they could not be added to it. So if you go that route make sure you check the coverages.

I'm with Don on this one. I begrudge the insurance industry increasing their premiums so much every year to cover the results of their own poor decisions. This side of the insurance business is about "chronic unease", making you feel uncomfortable and then paying money to make you feel better. My collection really should be insured (it's worth more than my home) but I am happy to save myself around $2500 a year for better things. However, I've never had any issues in the last 20 years or so, even during the many times I have been living overseas. They get enough money off me elsewhere in my life.

My annual premium with Collectibles is about 0.0024% (less than three tenths of one percent) of the policy coverage limit. So roughly $30 annually for every $10,000 of coverage. As has been mentioned, I believe that Hugh Wood rates are comparable.

Don and Tim, I hear you about insurance companies and certainly it is an individual decision as to whether to insure a stamp collection. I decided in the past that the premium was worth it to me to have the peace of mind that comes with having something insured. Beyond the policy limit insurance giving me peace of mind, the mailing coverage has also saved me some money in that I send a lot of stamps off for certification using Registered mail and can decline the postal insurance or go with a minimal amount of it, knowing I am covered for loss in the mail up to $60,0000 for Registered, Express, or FedEx shipments (and up to $2,500 for USPS insured, Certified, and all Signature Confirmation shipments and up to $200 for "no signature required", i.e. regular mail shipments). Having a small amount of postal insurance noted on a Registered shipment is probably better than having a large amount noted - less likely to be noticed!
As to premium rate creep, that is always a concern with insurance but I haven't had any from 2008-2016. My 2016 premium rate is actually less than my 2008 premium rate. As always, your results may vary!

My collection is not worth all that much but I still insure. I keep my collection in a safe deposit box at the local bank most of the time. The cost of the box is about $100 per year and holds our trust and other legal papers as well. If you tell the insurer this, the policy rate is decreased substantially since the risk is much less. You also get discounts for a home rated safe and or a central monitored home security system.

I imagine if you had a stamp dealing business (a legal one that collects and pays taxes) that you could write off as business expense cost of safe deposit boxes and insurance policies. I wonder do dealers do this?

I also use the APS plan through Hugh Wood. Rates are comparable to CIS (formerly operated by Dan Walker), but participation in insurance through the APS plan also benefits APS.

My premium has barely moved (if at all) in the last ten years. [and I agree with other comments that getting a rider on your homeowner's policy is likely to be much more expensive than the specialized stamp insurance].

In addition to coverage at home, the insurance also generally covers material being exhibited, and that's important.

Hugh Wood. For me the decision to not do the homeowners rider (Allstate) had less to do with the cost of the policy and more to do with the hoops - photos, inventory, etc. - to get the coverage.

Now there's the rub with me I guess. I live on the top floor of an apartment block with double secure entrance systems, but I baulk at the idea of getting some sort of surveillance system. We seem pretty overloaded with these in the UK as it is. Also, how do I fit 19 binders (and counting) into a safe that is so big that it will probably decide to fall through the floor and visit the folks downstairs?

I'm sure if I addressed these two issues my insurance premium quotes would come down.