Ohen Cepel
Member
Also, check collectibles insurance agency. Easy to work with.
I need to look into Eastern when its renewal time myself.
I need to look into Eastern when its renewal time myself.
Firearms appraisals for insurance?
- Thread starter Trey Veston
- Start date
- Status
theshephard
Member
Resurrecting an old convo, but one element missing from these conversations comparing insurers is how they perform when it’s time to pay up. I would imagine the companies that require the least (the easiest) validation of a collection’s estimated value might be the more difficult to work with when/if it’s time to pay up. Anybody have experience with State Farm/Eastern/Lockton/others when submitting a claim? It’s generally easy to find people to take your money, but the value is in how reputable they are in delivering what you pay for.
OP
OP
Trey Veston
Member
Roadblock after roadblock when I tried to insure my firearms. Bottom line is that I may have $50k worth of firearms, but no one will insure them. And I can't afford to properly protect them, or have them appraised.
My father, a somewhat infamous big game hunter and author, has a firearm that I will inherit, that is invaluable. I would guess its value of around $50,000. Sad because I make about that a year, and can't afford to insure or properly protect such a firearm. Don't want to sell it due to such a strong connection to my dad, but not sure what to do with it when he passes and I inherit it, and a few others like it.
It's like inheriting a classic exotic automobile. You love to admire it and drive it, but you can't afford the insurance or maintenance.
My father, a somewhat infamous big game hunter and author, has a firearm that I will inherit, that is invaluable. I would guess its value of around $50,000. Sad because I make about that a year, and can't afford to insure or properly protect such a firearm. Don't want to sell it due to such a strong connection to my dad, but not sure what to do with it when he passes and I inherit it, and a few others like it.
It's like inheriting a classic exotic automobile. You love to admire it and drive it, but you can't afford the insurance or maintenance.
George P
member
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2018
- Messages
- 7,772
have you tried Collectibles Inc?
https://www.ammoland.com/2018/10/gun-insurance-collectibles-insurance-services/
https://www.ammoland.com/2018/10/gun-insurance-collectibles-insurance-services/
Howland937
Member
What about that magazine that has the "identification and values" section?
Not really, but I was wondering if there were any auction houses near your area that specialize in firearms. A friend of mine owns a gun shop and an auction service. He routinely appraises entire collections for estates, auctions, divorces, bankruptcy or whatever.
Not really, but I was wondering if there were any auction houses near your area that specialize in firearms. A friend of mine owns a gun shop and an auction service. He routinely appraises entire collections for estates, auctions, divorces, bankruptcy or whatever.
Hello,
I just finished insuring my firearms through State Farm. The worst part of the process was inventorying, documenting and coming up with replacement values. That process took me four days. When the agent saw what I had he said it would be easy and that underwriting would be almost certainly be easy.
Total to replace my firearms would be about $20,000. My homeowners covers $5,000. That is their standard that I was told they include in every replacement value policy that is fully insured. (I will explain my understanding of that in a bit.). The remaining $15,000 was added to my personal articles policy. (I have SF covering my house, my autos, my 40 acres, my excess personal liability/umbrella coverage and my personal articles. I am a long time customer. Yes, SF is more expensive than some but every claim I have had has been covered promptly and fairly. Service has been excellent. More on that later.)
The additional annual cost for the $15,000 coverage is about $144. There is a difference in payment timing between the $5,000 under homeowners and the $15,000 under personal articles. Which guns are under which policy has been specified. Assuming everything was lost at once, I was told SF would write me two checks. The first check would be $15,000 for the guns under the personal articles policy. I wouldn’t have to replace them. Giving me the $15,000 would end their obligation for those guns. No deductible on that policy.
The second check would be for the “depreciated” value of the guns under the homeowners policy. My HO deductible would apply. If I didn’t replace those guns then SF’s responsibility for those was ended. Say the depreciated value was $3,000. The deductible gets tricky because it is one deductible for the entire loss. In the event of a loss, there will probably be other amounts, say breakin damages, damages to my safes, fire, water or storm damage to the house and other contents, etc. There would be one deductible for the entire loss; how it would be apportioned or affect the remaining amount to be paid, I didn’t have clarified. It is still one deductible for the entire loss under the HO policy.
Say I replaced those guns at a total cost of $4,500. I would submit copies of the receipts to SF and they would pay me an additional $1,500. If the total replacement cost was $6,000, SF would pay me an additional $2,000.
What made getting these coverages “easy” was I first built a spreadsheet that listed and numbered every gun. I included detail for any extras added to each gun. For example my wife’s S&W model 60 was listed at the current price per S&W plus $75 for the Big Dot front sight plus $75 for the trigger job. Normally they won’t cover additional services but since it was necessary for my wife to use it as her in-home protection they cover it. Contrast the $60 trigger job on a 10/22, that isn’t covered. However the $80 for a Kidd trigger kit for another 10/22 and the Wild West Happens trigger for my Marlin 336 are covered.
My spreadsheet also included serial numbers for each gun, comments about gun quality and rarity, comments how replacement cost was determined (msrp if in production, gunbroker.com price where out of production(plus shipping and ffl fees) and an amount ( that included the purchase price plus sales tax plus shipping plus ffl fee). I then included pictures of each gun, generally right side, left side, serial number and caliber markings. I included every extra added, scopes, slings, new triggers, custom grips, good carry cases for my two expensive rifles. I labeled the pictures so they were easily tied to the list. I didn’t worry about receipts. I went with current replacement cost. The spreadsheet also listed which are under the HO policy and which are under personal articles.
SF has the spreadsheet and pictures they requested. This reminds me To send them the rest of the pics and keep backup copies in my safe box and digitally as well.
This has gotten long and it is late. I will add more tomorrow. OP, I would push on your agent and if he can’t get it done quickly then talk to another SF agent or call 800 srervice number. Good night and more tomorrow.
I just finished insuring my firearms through State Farm. The worst part of the process was inventorying, documenting and coming up with replacement values. That process took me four days. When the agent saw what I had he said it would be easy and that underwriting would be almost certainly be easy.
Total to replace my firearms would be about $20,000. My homeowners covers $5,000. That is their standard that I was told they include in every replacement value policy that is fully insured. (I will explain my understanding of that in a bit.). The remaining $15,000 was added to my personal articles policy. (I have SF covering my house, my autos, my 40 acres, my excess personal liability/umbrella coverage and my personal articles. I am a long time customer. Yes, SF is more expensive than some but every claim I have had has been covered promptly and fairly. Service has been excellent. More on that later.)
The additional annual cost for the $15,000 coverage is about $144. There is a difference in payment timing between the $5,000 under homeowners and the $15,000 under personal articles. Which guns are under which policy has been specified. Assuming everything was lost at once, I was told SF would write me two checks. The first check would be $15,000 for the guns under the personal articles policy. I wouldn’t have to replace them. Giving me the $15,000 would end their obligation for those guns. No deductible on that policy.
The second check would be for the “depreciated” value of the guns under the homeowners policy. My HO deductible would apply. If I didn’t replace those guns then SF’s responsibility for those was ended. Say the depreciated value was $3,000. The deductible gets tricky because it is one deductible for the entire loss. In the event of a loss, there will probably be other amounts, say breakin damages, damages to my safes, fire, water or storm damage to the house and other contents, etc. There would be one deductible for the entire loss; how it would be apportioned or affect the remaining amount to be paid, I didn’t have clarified. It is still one deductible for the entire loss under the HO policy.
Say I replaced those guns at a total cost of $4,500. I would submit copies of the receipts to SF and they would pay me an additional $1,500. If the total replacement cost was $6,000, SF would pay me an additional $2,000.
What made getting these coverages “easy” was I first built a spreadsheet that listed and numbered every gun. I included detail for any extras added to each gun. For example my wife’s S&W model 60 was listed at the current price per S&W plus $75 for the Big Dot front sight plus $75 for the trigger job. Normally they won’t cover additional services but since it was necessary for my wife to use it as her in-home protection they cover it. Contrast the $60 trigger job on a 10/22, that isn’t covered. However the $80 for a Kidd trigger kit for another 10/22 and the Wild West Happens trigger for my Marlin 336 are covered.
My spreadsheet also included serial numbers for each gun, comments about gun quality and rarity, comments how replacement cost was determined (msrp if in production, gunbroker.com price where out of production(plus shipping and ffl fees) and an amount ( that included the purchase price plus sales tax plus shipping plus ffl fee). I then included pictures of each gun, generally right side, left side, serial number and caliber markings. I included every extra added, scopes, slings, new triggers, custom grips, good carry cases for my two expensive rifles. I labeled the pictures so they were easily tied to the list. I didn’t worry about receipts. I went with current replacement cost. The spreadsheet also listed which are under the HO policy and which are under personal articles.
SF has the spreadsheet and pictures they requested. This reminds me To send them the rest of the pics and keep backup copies in my safe box and digitally as well.
This has gotten long and it is late. I will add more tomorrow. OP, I would push on your agent and if he can’t get it done quickly then talk to another SF agent or call 800 srervice number. Good night and more tomorrow.
Elkins45
Member
There is a total blanket value limit which IIRC includes the value of scopes, holsters, etc. You can add separate coverages for ammunition and reloading equipment. I have a $250 deductible.Does Eastern cover not only the gun but stuff attached to it. Such as, a bolt action rifle (covered), scope attached is covered? Is NOT covered?
Anyone know please? thnx
And is there a deductible
To follow up on my post of last night, when I listed a gun on my spreadsheet, each addition got a separate line. Each gun and its additions were given the same number but all of the additions were listed separately. So a gun with no additions had just one line in the spreadsheet. Contast my AR build that has separate lines for the lower, the upper, the grip change, the binary trigger, the rail change, the gas block change, the sling, the buttstock change, the Eotech site, the Vortex magnifier, the Streamlight, the sling, the 12 MagPul Pmags, the two binders, the nice case, the shooting gloves, etc. The total on this one was about $3,500.
Because each add-on was listed separately and clearly and then shown in the pictures, SF insured it.
When deciding what to cover under the HO vs Personal Articles policy, my agent suggeted putting big ticket items and items that I would want to replace immediately and any item that might be difficult to replace on the Personal Articles policy. Thus, my collectible DW's, my two AR's, my CA Mesa, etc and my EDC are on the personal articles policy. Most of my 22's and several other guns that are replaceable but that I won'r feel a need to replace immediately are on the HO policy.
Regarding appraisals, SF requires appraisals for any firearm over $5,000. A basic appraisal from Cabelas, Scheel's and the like will do with the caveat that extremely rare or valuable guns would need a more formal appraisal. The agent explained that underwriting has a basic idea of what is worth how much and will generally accept amounts that their experience says is customary. Underwriting will object or notify if an item is way outside their range. In the case of an objection that underwriting thinks an item is over-valued, a formal appraisal by an expert will generally be accepted. Not always, but generally will.
SF underwriting has been known to notify if an item is significantly undervalued. My agent shared the experience of another client who collect Longaberger (sp?) baskets. (I had no idea that those were collectibles.). In that case, the client claimed a $1,000 value. Underwriting's review indicated a $5,000 value. The client did some checking and realized that underwriting was correct and agreed to $5,000 of coverage.
One more item that helped my coverage is the disclosure that I have two safes/RSC's.
Hopefully this helps the OP and others considering how to insure their possessions.
Because each add-on was listed separately and clearly and then shown in the pictures, SF insured it.
When deciding what to cover under the HO vs Personal Articles policy, my agent suggeted putting big ticket items and items that I would want to replace immediately and any item that might be difficult to replace on the Personal Articles policy. Thus, my collectible DW's, my two AR's, my CA Mesa, etc and my EDC are on the personal articles policy. Most of my 22's and several other guns that are replaceable but that I won'r feel a need to replace immediately are on the HO policy.
Regarding appraisals, SF requires appraisals for any firearm over $5,000. A basic appraisal from Cabelas, Scheel's and the like will do with the caveat that extremely rare or valuable guns would need a more formal appraisal. The agent explained that underwriting has a basic idea of what is worth how much and will generally accept amounts that their experience says is customary. Underwriting will object or notify if an item is way outside their range. In the case of an objection that underwriting thinks an item is over-valued, a formal appraisal by an expert will generally be accepted. Not always, but generally will.
SF underwriting has been known to notify if an item is significantly undervalued. My agent shared the experience of another client who collect Longaberger (sp?) baskets. (I had no idea that those were collectibles.). In that case, the client claimed a $1,000 value. Underwriting's review indicated a $5,000 value. The client did some checking and realized that underwriting was correct and agreed to $5,000 of coverage.
One more item that helped my coverage is the disclosure that I have two safes/RSC's.
Hopefully this helps the OP and others considering how to insure their possessions.
Regarding claims experience, as I have said, I am a long-time SF customer. Whether that helps my experience or not, I cannot say. Over the years, I have had claims for water damage, hail damaged roof, several fender-benders and a two totaled vehicles. Each claim was handled promptly, courteously and for amounts that covered my losses (less any deductibles).
SF also has stepped up when another driver caused damage to my vehicles and their insurer started being difficult. Note they ony do this on vehicles that have full coverage. So when Progressive started jerking me around on damages to my truck, I filed my claim with SF. SF promptly covered my claim and then went after Progressive. About three months later SF sent me a check for the $250 deductible. They went after Progressive for the full cost of the repairs. When SF collected, they remitted the deductible back to me.
I would expect difficulty from any insurer where the claimant is not their insured. I experienced that with Progressive and with American Family, This is not saying Progressive and American Family are bad companies, they are just following the industry practice of denying and minimizing claims whenever possible. On autos, there is a way to minimize the frustration but that is getting beyond the scope of this forum.
I am aware of one situation where SF initially balked at providing adequate coverage to one of its insureds. In that instance, there was major tornado. There were so many claims that SF contracted for temporary claims help. The difficulty was with one contractor who was unresponsive and understating damages when they did do something. The claimant called his agent and SF's customer service number and SF promptly replaced that adjuster. The claimant then promptly and courteously got his claims covered.
I have heared that flood areas are special cases and there may be claims problems but I have no experience with flood versus storm claims.
Hope this helps the OP.
SF also has stepped up when another driver caused damage to my vehicles and their insurer started being difficult. Note they ony do this on vehicles that have full coverage. So when Progressive started jerking me around on damages to my truck, I filed my claim with SF. SF promptly covered my claim and then went after Progressive. About three months later SF sent me a check for the $250 deductible. They went after Progressive for the full cost of the repairs. When SF collected, they remitted the deductible back to me.
I would expect difficulty from any insurer where the claimant is not their insured. I experienced that with Progressive and with American Family, This is not saying Progressive and American Family are bad companies, they are just following the industry practice of denying and minimizing claims whenever possible. On autos, there is a way to minimize the frustration but that is getting beyond the scope of this forum.
I am aware of one situation where SF initially balked at providing adequate coverage to one of its insureds. In that instance, there was major tornado. There were so many claims that SF contracted for temporary claims help. The difficulty was with one contractor who was unresponsive and understating damages when they did do something. The claimant called his agent and SF's customer service number and SF promptly replaced that adjuster. The claimant then promptly and courteously got his claims covered.
I have heared that flood areas are special cases and there may be claims problems but I have no experience with flood versus storm claims.
Hope this helps the OP.
md7
Member
I’m an insurance agent. For us it depends on whether I’m insuring a mobile home or traditional site built home.
On a mobile home it’s a flat fee of $45 per year for up to $6000 in coverage and that’s the cap. No serial or documentation required but I strongly advise my clients to maintain values, descriptions, pictures, etc in the event of loss
Homeowners policies for us are different. I’ve offered but never actually written an endorsement for firearms on an HO policy. However, I remember quoting one about a year ago. On the quote, I had to enter the make, model, and approximate value. Optics had to be similarly listed. The only appraisal required in the quote was for one custom bolt gun. In his case, he retained the receipt for it and that satisfied underwriting requirements.
Photos and serials were not required. However, it’s advisable to have photos, serials, etc documented personally in the event of loss.
Going purely on memory, the guy had around $35,000 he wanted to insure and the cost was around $250 annually if memory serves.
Few of our clients own much beyond a few basic rifles, pistols, etc. and they opt to have the default coverage of $2500 for loss due to theft and default coverage for personal contents which is typically 50% of the coverage in dwelling
On a mobile home it’s a flat fee of $45 per year for up to $6000 in coverage and that’s the cap. No serial or documentation required but I strongly advise my clients to maintain values, descriptions, pictures, etc in the event of loss
Homeowners policies for us are different. I’ve offered but never actually written an endorsement for firearms on an HO policy. However, I remember quoting one about a year ago. On the quote, I had to enter the make, model, and approximate value. Optics had to be similarly listed. The only appraisal required in the quote was for one custom bolt gun. In his case, he retained the receipt for it and that satisfied underwriting requirements.
Photos and serials were not required. However, it’s advisable to have photos, serials, etc documented personally in the event of loss.
Going purely on memory, the guy had around $35,000 he wanted to insure and the cost was around $250 annually if memory serves.
Few of our clients own much beyond a few basic rifles, pistols, etc. and they opt to have the default coverage of $2500 for loss due to theft and default coverage for personal contents which is typically 50% of the coverage in dwelling
FlyingScot
Member
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2010
- Messages
- 47
We insure - without appraisal or need to provide a list of firearms - for $45K. Runs about $350 / year. No single item can be worth more than $25K, per agent. Pretty straightforward. These old firearms are worth more than I paid by a longshot, was surprised when check values. Not selling them 
- Status
