Coverage C - Personal Property

Coverage C, Personal Property Coverage is the limit that the insurance company will pay out in the event of a covered loss involving your personal property. This property is anything that isnt attached to the home (covered under Coverage A) and is not covered under an Auto type insurance policy. Personal Property can also be located off premesis as noted in policy documentation. Examples of such could be secondary residence or luggage while you are on vacation as well as personal property in a vehicle.

Replacement Cost or Actual Cash Value

Personal Property value can be determined based on two methods:

Replacement Cost: How much it costs to obtain the property of similar like and kind as of now

Acutal Cash Value (ACV): The property value as originally purchased is depreciated based on wear or age of the property and the value is determined based upon the resulting value.

How the Coverage C - Personal Property limit is determined

Personal Property limits are by default 75% of the amount that is noted on Coverage A. For the vast majority of insureds, this amount is more than adequate. Exceptions are noted in the event of floaters or inland marine type coverages.

Floaters and Inland Marine

Many types of floaters are available on your Homeowners insurance policy. Some examples are, Jewlery, Coins, Antiques, Art, Guns etc. Insurance policies by default have a specific limit of the amount the company will pay for a specific class of item. For example a Wedding Ring might have an appraised value of $10,000. However your homeowners policy may limit the maximum paid out on each type or class of an item to a specific amount such as $1500. You would have to obtain a floater to cover the excess value of the ring. Scheduled Lists can be just a list of items and value, some floaters such as Jewelry or Art may require a recent appraisal to substantiate the value of each item.

Payouts can be made on an ACV, Replacement Cost or an Agreed Value basis.

Floaters also allow for additional loss types that are not included in standard Personal Property Peril types. These can be Loss or Theft. You can also have a lower deductible on Floater items than on your general home policy.

Inland Marine is an older term that is still used today. It essentially is the type of insurance that floaters of this type are classified under. Though it sounds as if it is some kind of boat coverage, it really applies to specialty type insurance to cover more specific losses.

GetCoveredUSA.com Insurance Tip: Make sure you keep receipts and documentation on your Personal Property. Pictures and Video as well as notations on serial numbers, make and model of all items will drastically help you settle claims. Keep these kinds of records away from the insured premesis in case of complete fire loss where the records might also be burned or stolen.