Which Contents Insurance for Home Cinema / Hi-Fi

[professorhat]

Hey guys,
Having recently realised my contents insurance is up for renewal, I've decided to look into an insurer which is specifically geared up for us hi-fi / home cinema enthusiasts with policies to match (given the number of limitations I've read from my current policy concerning single article limits, liabilities, wear and tear on the new for old scheme etc).
At the moment, I've been looking at Hiscox which seems to be a much better policy than the one I currently have, but wondered if any one else has been down the same path and has any insurers they recommend, especially if you've had to go down the claim line and they were fantastic in replacing any of your beloved items. I think one of my main concerns is the huge investment I've made in DVDs, Blu-Rays, CDs and other such material which is very hard to value and even harder to prove what you had in the event of making a claim...
Any advice welcome!

 

[Messiah]

As far as proof is concerned, I photograph everything including receipts and then store it on disc away from the house (say at work, not buried in the garden

). If anything then did happen I have evidence of everything!

 

[bigblue235]

I've never really bothered about getting a specialist insurer, maybe I've just been lucky that my insurers have been understanding.

I recently took out a new policy as I moved house, and all the new insurer wanted was a list of items that were of special concern, such as jewellery, golf clubs, hi-fi etc. plus any other individual items that were over £2000 in value.

Hi-Fi corner used to have an insurance arm, HFC Select or something. Not sure if it's still going, but I used to work for a company that supplied them.

 

[madeinstein]

I switched to Lloyds TSB recently (after I got my pioneer) they have unlimited cover as long as single item is not more expensive then 2k, no list required. I was quite surprised because the cost was the same as my previous online one. Only accidental damage was quite expensive.

 

[Anonymous]

Just a note of caution with contents insurance. I'm going through a claim since 3 July and although the insurers, Abbey, accepted my claim and took away all the damaged electrical items from my lounge they now want to replace like for like. So they have offered to replace my top of the range s-VHS JVC with the equivalent of what's available today. That is a £60 VCR as the cheapo ones are the only ones being made still.

Also the 28" Panasonic widescreen CRT would, if I had not stepped in, been replaced with the equivalent widescreen CRT that was still available (if at all) on the market.

I'm pushing for "upgrades" for the current technology but they are resisiting, saying I have to pay a top-up to get a new Panasonic plasma.

Every which way they can they will go for the cheapest replacement irrespective of how beloved your original gear is to you.

 

[John Duncan]

But that being said, hold out and you can get a cheque - my friend's Tokai Les Paul was stolen and his insurer wanted to buy him an equivalently priced guitar, since their suppliers didn't have his guitar - course, these are personal things and he wanted to pick the exact guitar he wanted, and the insurer finally relented and gave him a cheque to do with as he pleased.

 

[professorhat]

Gatwick Flyer:
Every which way they can they will go for the cheapest replacement irrespective of how beloved your original gear is to you.

Yup, this is exactly the sort of thing I'm thinking about and, fortunately I've never had to claim, but reading through my policy with my existing insurers, I noticed a lot of get outs for things like this, especially clauses on the supposed "new for old" where it takes into account wear and tear on an item and its current valuation, meaning the TV I spent £1,500 on 3 years back would only be worth £200 - £300 now so that's the amount of money they would give me for a new TV.
Hence why I'm looking for somewhere which wouldn't try and stiff me like this! Hiscox looks good so far, but there must be some others I would have thought...

 

[SpiceWeasel]

Maybe the magazine could run a feature on this ?

Like you say it would be nice to know that you are properly covered in case the worse happens. Especially with all get out clauses that seem to be in some policies.

I would be furious if they wanted to replace my Pany PZ85 with a £300 tv. Really you would be expecting to get an equivalent model in Pany's model range,what ever that might be in a few years time.

At the moment I have no insurance, but my recent Pany purchase has me thinking it's about time I did. Which company to use,what policie, how much is it going to cost me a month etc etc. It would be nice if the information was in the magazine.

 

[Anonymous]

I picked up the household insurance at the same time as the mortgage and it was all bundled in. I had terms and conditions in my dreams so really didn't take the time to study them more closely. I will be pushing for realistic replacements and the specialist items like the projection screen and laserdisc player I am getting a cheque for.

 

[Anonymous]

Hopefully I can help out here folks. I'm a director of an insurance broker that deals with claims like this probably 30/40 times a day.

There are two types of claim you can make for replacement goods - indemnity or reinstatement

Indemnity - this is used when insurers take wear and tear into consideration - you would select this when the item you have could be replaced by a second hand item without any loss of performance - normally people who own plant like JCB's would take this out as the sum insured you set is lower than replacing a brand new JCB as a second hand one will do the same thing. The cost of a second hand one may be £30,000 when a brand new one is £50,000 - they both will do the same job, but your premium is based on £30,000 and not £50,000 so its cheaper to insure

Reinstatement (new for old) - the whole idea of this is to replace your old item with its new equivalent providing the insurers dont pay more than you originally paid for it, eg you paid £1,000 for your tv last year, it gets stolen this year and is worth today £800.. Insurers will replace your set up to £1,000 - they do not take wear and tear into consideration as its New for Old.... if you wanted a newer tv worth £1200, then the insurers will give you £1,000 and you have to find the extra £200 (this is called betterment)

Hiscox are a brilliant insurer for this - they are not the cheapest insurer, but their cover is exceptional and well worth the extra money. I cant comment on Lloyds or Abbey's policy, but bearing in mind I'm an insurance broker, I would never ever dream of insuring via a bank-- Insurance companies do loans, but their rates are so high you would always go to a bank - it works the same the other way

Never ever ever insure via a bank - Insurance Companies are experts at this and if you dont believe me, speak to a bank clerk about insurance - they have to be regualated by FSA so should know what they are doing and I'm sure they do, but they can't compete with insurance experts... just as insurance companies cant compete on finance.

How many of you have gone on holiday and purchased travel insurance from a travel operator - did you have a detailed discussion about insurance such as pre-existing conditions?? Probably not ... well not until 2009 when travel insurance becomes regualted by the FSA

Insurance is a mega competitive industry and its unfortunate the public particularly on motor buy on price (cheapest) as opposed to the quality of the product - a CRT TV is cheaper than a LCD/Plasma but you won't buy the former - yet people buy the cheapest insurance product and then moan when they have a claim - rememeber New for Old is the way to go and insurers do not take wear and tear off a claim - if they do, you have an indemnity policy and not as re-instatment

Hope this helps some of you unfortunate to be going through a claim at this time

 

[professorhat]

Thank you Horgan - that helps explain two terms that can be used when discussing a claim, and also backs up my theory that basically Hiscox is the best I can get for what I want!
Most appreciated!