Insurance in Canada for Gear

I was just wondering if people get a special clause included on your house insurance, or how do you insure your camera gear? Don't think we can get it through NANPA can we?
Thanks.

Jackie my camera's, lenses are insured through my House Insurance, its something like 10-20 dollars per $1,000 of equipment value.

Thanks Paul, just wondering what people did/do.

Paul Lagasi said:

Jackie my camera's, lenses are insured through my House Insurance, its something like 10-20 dollars per $1,000 of equipment value.

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Check with your house insurance Jackie but if it's like mine you are covered for loss due to theft and fire (maybe flooding?) but not for accidental damage or loss. I carry extra coverage for big ticket items like the 500/4 and 85/1.2 to cover accidents- same as Paul, about $18-20 / $1000.

I make sure my insurer has an up-to-date list of all my equipment with replacement costs in case there is total loss in the house.

Thanks John, it's nice to know what you do. Also good to know about the 500 and the 85. Pretty pricey glass, well worth the piece of mind I would imagine

In the U.S., you can add a rider to your house insurance to specifically cover your gear, BUT, if they find out that you have ever sold even a single image or otherwise derived any income from the equipment, they can deny your claim. Once you have any income, you must get a separate business policy, even if you are not a business for tax purposes. Have no idea if or how this applies to Canada but might be worth checking out.

I relied on house insurance up until about 15 years ago when I tried to claim on a stolen camera in Honolulu. It was painful, and I did not get the replacement value minus deductible. It came up short by a considerable amount. After that I bought special equipment insurance riders through the business. Ergo I now have house AND business insurance which is about $1800 a year all told. (I also have to have professional liability errors and omissions to cover my profession). At least its all completely deductible. Recently, I was told if I tried to claim that because I use the cameras for work (and I am not a professional photographer) I could not claim them on the house insurance, similar to what Mike says. I think you really have to question the insurance company and read the fine print. We did a review for the biologists up here on insurance, and its amazing what is not covered and why it might not be covered.

Just insured my stuff yesterday as a rider on my home insurance. Cost was $2.50 per $1000.

I have my gear insured as a rider on my farm policy, which is business insurance. I had no hassle when my old 20D decided to make like a Nikonos a couple of years ago.

Just added a large lens to my arsenal and got a rider on my home insurance that covers usual fire theft etc... also accidental drops in the lake etc... had to send them a copy of bill of sale for any gear i wanted covered and items bought more than 3 years ago would need to be appraised before they would cover them under the special rider. Also if I was selling images, the policy would be void.