Guns and home insurance

[AK103K]

Maybe some of you need to change insurance companies.

Thats easier said than done, and believe me, I tried. All State, and most of the others, wont cover us due to our dogs.

Even so, All State must be one of the few that does cover guns that way, as I dont remember any of the ones we looked into over the years doing so. Are we comparing typical "home owners" policies here, or something else too? You mentioned a business loss in one of your posts.

I suppose another question would be, what does it cost for a policy like that? They may cover them under that plan, but is it also comparable cost wise to plans that dont and you have to add the rider?

 

[justice06rr]

My insurance agent told me they would only cover $2500.00 worth on my homeowners policy unless I listed them on a rider policy. I bought a fire lined safe and forgot about any inventory. I keep them locked up unless I have them on me. Most people aren't aware that the govt. can get a list of anything you have insured, from your agent , and he/she can't even tell you the govt. asked. This is thanks to the Patriot Act after 9/11. Yes, the ATF has access to anything you have bought lately but any really old guns aren't in their records. Just food for thought. Get a good safe and don't worry about the insurance.

This is exactly why I do not notify my home owners insurance. That, and there is no firearm registration in my state, so no one other than myself and roomates know how many firearms are in my home.

The less the government knows, the better..

 

[M2 Carbine]

Thats easier said than done, and believe me, I tried. All State, and most of the others, wont cover us due to our dogs.

Dogs?
That's a new one on me. I don't have any dogs now but had dogs most of my life. It never came up as a problem for homeowner's insurance.
I wonder what some of those insurance companies would say about these Poodles in the back yard?


Something else that never comes up is the shooting range in the back yard.

Are we comparing typical "home owners" policies here, or something else too? You mentioned a business loss in one of your posts.

Yeah, just typical homeowners insurance.
In the past storms and fire the barn and "shops" (just more or less work shops) were also covered by the house insurance because they are "attached" to the house. The insurance companies said just having a water line or electric lines from the house to the barn and shops made them "attached", so covered by the home insurance.

The "shop" that was first stormed damaged, then later burned to the ground, was my gun/reloading building, not a business.
The insurance company bought me a $5,200 Morgan building to replace a very old $500 Wards tin building. The Morgan building is on the left in this picture.



The barn roof was tore up three times. The adjuster said, "No offence, but if the barn is hit again I hope it totals it. It would be cheaper for us to build you a whole new barn, than to keep replacing the roof".

I suppose another question would be, what does it cost for a policy like that?

I'm pretty under-insured but I guess the rate is about normal.
$911/year, with a $854 deductible.

House $90,000
Other structures $8,500+
Personal property $49,000
Liability, etc $300,000
Full replacement coverage. I actually made a bunch of money when my shop burned but lost such as Wedding pictures, military records, etc, so, of course the money wasn't worth the loss.

 

[AK103K]

Dogs have become a big issue and there is a list of around 10 or so dogs that will cause you grief in regards to getting homeowners. You would be surprised at some of the breeds too.

They must have the added cost of the limits, or lack of them in your premiums. This is what were are paying for our homeowners....

House/outbuildings $165000

Personal property $125000

Liability $300000

Premium $630/yr with a $1000 deductible, all full replacement coverage

 

[Carl N. Brown]

Liability Insurance

The increased penalty for owning a gun is based on a New England Journal of Medicine study. When the NEJM claimed that owning a gun increased your risk of death 47 times, there were serious problems with the study: sample size and location, interpretation (now they have a study it's only 40% after criticism?)

slide 1 Risks That Raise Insurance Rates By Lewis Braham of Bloomberg
slide 2 Dogs
slide 3 Swimming pools
slide 4 Trampolines
slide 5 Tree houses
slide 6 Guns
slide 7 Big Ticket Jewelry
slide 8 Home Business
slide 9 Heating Fires
slide 10 Sewer backup
slide 11 Zip lines
slide 12 Exotic pets

Come to think of it the exotic pet in the illustration may be worth the extra premiums.

Not the snake -- I hate snakes -- the one with the mascara.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Generally, the low $2500 coverage you guys are talking about is for theft coverage. As far as loss from fire and othe hazards they are covered under your personal property. At least that is the way it is with my company. The max additional coverage my company offers on a homeowner's policy for theft is $5000. After that, you have to purchase an additional rider at about $1.80 per $100 per year.

 

[huntsman]

slide 2 Dogs
slide 3 Swimming pools
slide 4 Trampolines

yep I used to do insurance inspections and those were the big 3 add in woodstoves and bad roofs/gutters for minor issues.

 

[M2 Carbine]

As a side note. Don't allow your insurance to run out.

Back in the early 1970's money was tight and when the insurance ran out in November I was going to wait a couple months to renew it. After all we didn't get Tornadoes in November.

Wrong!
The roof ended up in the trees about 300 yards away.

yep I used to do insurance inspections and those were the big 3 add in woodstoves and bad roofs/gutters for minor issues.

Interesting. I've never had an "insurance inspection" but I can see that it would be done in some cases.
I suspect it is different in different states?

 

[heeler]

Speaking of insurance inspections it does happen because a friend at work had her former home insurer do that upon renewel time.
They were not happy about something I cannot remember but she basically told to pound sand and went with Travelers Ins.

The last time my home was burglarized I had a cost replacement policy in effect and it helped tremendously because several firearms I "once" owned were bought in the 60's and 70's and the replacement costs were easily triple that number.
I eventually replaced most models due to years of gun show searches and good old Gun Broker auctions.
As a firearms owner the two things I will never be without in the future is a very good gun safe and a cost replacement clause on my home owners policy.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Something else about insurance.

Of course have good info/pictures of your guns and keep the info off site but also take pictures of everything, not just the guns themselves.

From the outside my gun shop that burned down, looked like an inexpensive metal building, which it was.
But the inside was fixed up nice with carpet, wood panel, good loading benches, etc.
Because I had pictures the insurance company replaced the destroyed building with a much nicer one.

Also the pictures showed that the shop was packed with loading presses, components and thousands of rounds of ammo. Which the insurance company also replaced.

Take pictures!!! And keep them in a safe place.

 

[ROGER4314]

After being trashed by Hurricane IKE, I have absolutely NO faith in Homeowners Insurance. Feeling safe and protected by those thieves is simply not on my agenda. They chiseled, cheated and actually sent a con man out to evaluate my loss. The guy demanded that I pay the entire amount of my deductible to him on the spot! The insurance company sent him to me! (Farmers). They took 5 months to settle my claim and left me without help of any kind (Check out the term "Tag Team Adjusters"). I've been with the company for 30 years and had no clue how treacherous they would be if I actually had a claim.

Recently, lightning hit in front of my house, blew two transformers off of the power poles and got my laptop, 52" TV, trashed my AC unit and several other items. (All items had surge protection except for the A/C). In the end, they disallowed my claim because the jolt came in through the wires instead of a direct hit on my house.

Those companies have an exclusion for everything imaginable to keep from paying off. Be SURE you check the policy carefully to keep them from cheating you. They sneak those exclusions into the policy one-by-one until you are basically uninsured. Talk to your agent and grill his butt until you are SURE you understand what is covered and what is not.

Flash

 

[huntsman]

Interesting. I've never had an "insurance inspection" but I can see that it would be done in some cases.
I suspect it is different in different states?

the company I worked for did business in most states, if nobody is home during the day then nobody would know I was there. Dogs, pool/HT and tramp all got pics taken dogs demeanor evaluated when possible.

 

[cherishpeter]

Though having gun in your home increases the risk of homicide but at least you can expect your insurance to be higher.

 

[Hugo]

Homeowners or liability insurance? Either way I believe the NRA does have some recommended ones with discounts for members. Your Mileage may vary!

 

[JTHunter]

My insurance company also has a theft loss maximum of $1,500 per firearm with a max loss of $2,500. I also have the additional rider that bumps that to $2,500 per item with a $5,000 max. I am beginning to think about dropping that as, over the course of the years, I will end up paying more for the insurance than the replacement costs (with a few exceptions).
Any other loss is covered under "personal property" and the house has the "full replacement" provision. There is also a $1,000 deductible on the policy. My annual premium is $669 with a $144,000 "dwelling coverage" limit and $14,000 "dwelling extension" (detached garage).
There are also two discounts of $179/ea. for "Claim Record" and "Home/Auto".

As for ATF/gov. knowing WHAT I have, neither the agent nor the company have a list of what i own.

FYI

 

[Twiki357]

Strange coincidence: msn's source is "bloomberg.com"