A blog post, "5 Things To Know About Making A Photography Insurance Claim," by Front Row Insurance talks about making a photography insurance claim.
Disclosure: Front Row Insurance is an advertiser on this web site.
Some important tips are:
a) If your gear is stolen, you MUST make a police report.
From my experience here in Toronto, police are very used to making reports for insurance companies. With Toronto police, you can often file a report by telephone but have ready a detailed list of what was stolen.
If you want a copy of this report, it will be expensive (I forget what Toronto police charge for this). Your insurance company can usually buy a copy for a lower price (not sure why it's cheaper.)
Police will not investigate "small" thefts. That might mean under $5,000. In most cases of theft, the police will just say, "call your insurance company." In fact, the first question you might be asked is, "Are you insured?" or "Is this report for your insurance company?"
If your laptop/tablet/phone is stolen and you have tracking on that device and you know exactly where it is, larger police forces will rarely get involved. It isn't worth their time. The police cannot just go to the address and demand the return of your device. It doesn't work like that at all.
b) You need some sort of proof of ownership. You can't just say you own a $15,000 lens and then two months later make an insurance claim for loss of that lens.
Whenever I buy a piece of gear, I photograph the item, showing the serial number if possible, along with the sales receipt.
You might not think it's worthwhile to insure low cost items. But if you have, say, ten $70 memory cards, that's $700 in your camera bag. A handful of $100 camera batteries, a pouch full of $50 cables, a half-dozen super clamps, etc. can all add up to thousands of dollars
Keep a list of all the major items you own along with serial numbers. If an item has no serial number, (e.g. camera bags, light stands etc.), know the exact make and model rather than just "Lowepro camera bag."
You could create your own serial numbers by buying a roll of numbered/barcoded stickers.
c) Don't let your gear get stolen. Easier said than done.
Most insurance companies have a much higher deductible for thefts from a vehicle.
Never leave gear in your car especially overnight. If you must, then use a chain or steel cable and padlock your cases in your car. My car has several metal anchors meant to secure luggage and boxes. I've seen photographers chain their cases to the rear seats. Your vehicle might have a metal anchor meant for a baby seat.
It's cheap and easy to make your own cables. Buy some suitably thick plastic-coated cable (many hardware stores will cut this to size for you),
proper-sized ferrules and some padlocks. Whether you buy combination locks or key locks, buy a bunch that use the same combination or same key - it will make it much easier for you.
Consider using a
Pacsafe bag protector which may be tough to find in stores. These wire mesh bags may prevent a smash and grab but won't stop a thief with tools.
At most events, as much as possible, keep your bag in front of you. This includes any event where the public has nearby access. Thieves target large events at hotels and convention centres because they know everyone will be carrying laptops and tablets.
At large sports events, assume thieves will be there and will often have press/photo credentials. Use the lockers in the photo rooms and don't leave anything lying about. Have a friend watch your stuff when you have to run to the bathroom.
I was at a sports event where a thief walked through the floor-side photo pit and grabbed a couple of bags while the photographers were on the floor shooting the trophy presentation less than thirty feet away.
In a parking lot, be aware if someone is watching you put gear in or out of your car. I know two photographers whose cars were broken into after they had parked, grabbed some gear and went to shoot an event. When they got back to their cars, their trunks were open and all remaining gear was gone. Obviously someone had seen them taking camera gear out of their trunks.
Twenty-five years ago, a friend who worked in a bio-reseach lab got me some big yellow stickers that said, "Caution Radioactive Materials" and "Caution Bio Hazard". (You can now buy these online). I put these stickers on all my metal cases and no one went near them.
Topic: Making an insurance claim (Read 1165 times)