Mitch Deoudes
Well-known member
Talked to Brandy @ Dewitt Stern just now. Some notes (so that people don't need to harass the poor girl with the same questions over and over)
o insurance is worldwide (!)
o insurance is "replacement cost" - you schedule out everything ahead of time, and that's what they pay you.
o "all risk" (earthquake, fire, flood, dropping it in the ocean, terrorists) No, I'm serious - terrorism is covered. The one thing she mentioned that sort of seemed off was, "If you leave it in your car, and your car is unlocked, and you go off to eat - that might be a problem." i.e. if they can prove that you were negligent, no love. I guess this is the sort of grey area you encounter with all insurance, and it just depends on whether the company / claims adjusters are going to fight you or not.
o along those same lines: Dewitt has an in-house claims team who in turn deal with the adjusters at Fireman's Fund (who underwrite the policies). She says they aim to have a check in your hands in 10 days, when there is a claim.
o policy does *not* cover rentals. Or more specifically, "It's o.k. once in a while, but it can't be the majority of the business you do with the camera." Another grey area. It's been mentioned in this thread that there's a 50% cap on income made from unattended rentals vs. going out with the camera yourself. I'm not sure this is in writing anywhere. Basically, she said it was to deter rental houses from trying to get one of these policies. My guess is that you're probably cool for the first couple of claims either way, and cool in general if you can show that you're going out with the camera most of the time.
o w.r.t. this last point - the renter would generally have production insurance in a case like this anyway. However, if they don't, Dewitt can offer them a short-term policy for your equipment for a few hundred bucks.
o policy does *not* include lost rental income, as has been noted above. However, you can add it to the policy for about $70/year/$5k coverage.
o there *is* a deductible. It's in the $500-750 range, depending on coverage amount.
o in the case of theft, always get a police report!
Hope this helps. Prices were in the $600-700 range for a $40k package. If anyone has experience making a claim, or sees a better deal from another company, definitely post it here.
o insurance is worldwide (!)
o insurance is "replacement cost" - you schedule out everything ahead of time, and that's what they pay you.
o "all risk" (earthquake, fire, flood, dropping it in the ocean, terrorists) No, I'm serious - terrorism is covered. The one thing she mentioned that sort of seemed off was, "If you leave it in your car, and your car is unlocked, and you go off to eat - that might be a problem." i.e. if they can prove that you were negligent, no love. I guess this is the sort of grey area you encounter with all insurance, and it just depends on whether the company / claims adjusters are going to fight you or not.
o along those same lines: Dewitt has an in-house claims team who in turn deal with the adjusters at Fireman's Fund (who underwrite the policies). She says they aim to have a check in your hands in 10 days, when there is a claim.
o policy does *not* cover rentals. Or more specifically, "It's o.k. once in a while, but it can't be the majority of the business you do with the camera." Another grey area. It's been mentioned in this thread that there's a 50% cap on income made from unattended rentals vs. going out with the camera yourself. I'm not sure this is in writing anywhere. Basically, she said it was to deter rental houses from trying to get one of these policies. My guess is that you're probably cool for the first couple of claims either way, and cool in general if you can show that you're going out with the camera most of the time.
o w.r.t. this last point - the renter would generally have production insurance in a case like this anyway. However, if they don't, Dewitt can offer them a short-term policy for your equipment for a few hundred bucks.
o policy does *not* include lost rental income, as has been noted above. However, you can add it to the policy for about $70/year/$5k coverage.
o there *is* a deductible. It's in the $500-750 range, depending on coverage amount.
o in the case of theft, always get a police report!
Hope this helps. Prices were in the $600-700 range for a $40k package. If anyone has experience making a claim, or sees a better deal from another company, definitely post it here.
