Insuring Anything From Acts of God to Boys with Toys

Special Coverage Usually Requires Separate Policies or Policy Riders

You know a lawyer loves the phrase ‘an act of God’. There’s no quicker way out of a claim than to evoke the divine escape clause. If you’re an atheist there’s no one to blame. If you’re agnostic you don’t know whom to blame. If your God has a name, you may hear other people using it in vain.

Ever since Noah’s flood no one pays for major flood damage without a rider or a separate policy. Why call it Noah’s flood when the Bible plainly assigns liability to God for the event and exposes the truth that it was premeditated. If you’re in a flood plain and you can get special flood coverage, get it. Carol King once sang, “I feel the earth move under my feet.” If there’s any damage caused by earth movement, it is likely excluded. Sinkholes are the newest form of earth movement damage. You’ll need additional coverage for earth movement related events, if you can secure it. That depends on where you live.

The odds are high that if you have more than the allowable personal property coverage, you’ll need to get out your camera, take some photos and file your receipts in a metal box because you’re going to need them. There are high-value items that need to be listed and covered under a policy rider or a standalone policy for expensive valuables.

It’s remarkable that many families have jewelry that well exceeds $1,000 in value. If you’re in that demographic you need to check into special coverage. According to the FBI, in 2012 the average loss per burglary in the U.S. was $2,230. The total property loss to burglary in the same period was over $4.7 billion, that’s billion with a B!

If you are a rock-n-roll wannabe you’ll need to purchase a separate policy that covers your rig (musical equipment) or your 7-foot grand piano if you’re of the classical bent. If you like collecting beer steins, southwest pottery, antiques and heirlooms, you’ll need special coverage for all of it. Weekend warriors are not exempt when you own trailers, boats, RVs and ATVs.

And when it’s all said and done you may also need to look into a PUP policy, a personal umbrella policy for additional liability like a teenage driver. If your son or daughter is in a wreck with your family car and they were at fault, the coverage may indemnify you against the victims coming for your other assets. It’s relatively cheap and you can generally buy up to $2,000,000 with financial justification. So take inventory of your valuables, take photos of your valuables and keep receipts on your valuable purchases. Better update your coverage, because your opponent is lawyering up.