Best way to insure my guns?

[gm652]

Looking for suggestions on insuring my firearms beyond what my home owner insurance covers , which is only up to $2500 for lose or damage.

 

[Indy Str8-Shot]

NRA members get $2500.00 no cost firearms insurance and you can take out additional coverage with the company at your expense.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Contact your homeowners agent for a rider. For a nominal fee, they will insure your collection for what it is worth. (not what the boilerplate limit will cover)

 

[Snizz1911]

There's been 3 or 4 threads this year on firearms insurance, maybe check those out...

In short, I have NRA Armscare.

 

[threedhuntr]

I went the Armscare route also

 

[Redtbird]

My State Farm Agent wrote a separate policy for my firearms coverage. The weapons are insured for their replacement value. In addition, I also have the $2500 free coverage thru the NRA. The SF policy runs me just over $80 a year for just over $5200 in coverage. If (when) I add a new weapon to my collection, then the coverage will increase per the new one's value. I was surprised that one cannot purchase, say $7500 in coverage as a blanket policy, but instead the policy is for only the replacement value of the weapons. This premium amount was comparable to the NRA's Armscare coverage, but now I have a local Agent to service the policy.

 

[RangerRider]

I just got with mine last week, my insurance company Farm bureau use scheduling. list guns make/model/serial num. and value you want it insured for, did not want pics. plus I jusr rejoined NRA so I have the $2,500 they offer.

 

[VERT]

I will probably insure some guns with my State Farm agent. In addition my home owners cover $2500 and NRA covers $2500. Not sure how that all fits together. Remember you have to sign up for the NRA insurance.

 

[Sonney]

Buy a good safe. If you insure your guns you just registered them. All the government has to do is ask the insurance companies who has gun insurance. It is nobodies business that you have a gun or not. When they quit playing around with your 2nd Amendment rights and start going by the Constitution then it will be safe to insure.

Sonney

 

[JollyMon]

Everything goes into a good safe but on top of it I went with the NRA Armscare. No serials unless the specific firearm is worth more then 2500.

 

[rdb700]

I have a policy thru farm bureau and the 2500 NRA policy.

 

[30calmachinegunner]

There's a similar topic to this under class 3 with more info
https://www.indianagunowners.com/forums/class-iii-nfa/334638-nfa-items-insurance.html

 

[SteveM4A1]

My State Farm Agent wrote a separate policy for my firearms coverage. The weapons are insured for their replacement value. In addition, I also have the $2500 free coverage thru the NRA. The SF policy runs me just over $80 a year for just over $5200 in coverage. If (when) I add a new weapon to my collection, then the coverage will increase per the new one's value. I was surprised that one cannot purchase, say $7500 in coverage as a blanket policy, but instead the policy is for only the replacement value of the weapons. This premium amount was comparable to the NRA's Armscare coverage, but now I have a local Agent to service the policy.

There are plenty of companies out there that offer blanket coverage for firearms as an endorsement to the homeowners policy. There are also companies that do NOT restrict the amount of firearms coverage in the event of a theft or mysterious disappearance. All depends on the company and having an agent that knows his/her stuff.

 

[scootn103]

Pulled this off another thread in regards to firearms insurance.. they only ask a few questions and are very reasonable . no serial numbers , no pictures , just a value of the collection. You also pay a policy fee of $25.00 to start the policy.
Collectibles Insurance - Protecting Books, Stamps, Antiques and other Rare and Vintage collections in Baltimore, Maryland

 

[Leadeye]

Buy a good fireproof safe and an alarm system. Over the years it's pays and the rate remains the same even if you expand your collection.

 

[worddoer]

I wish to add input on this one. I am an insurance agent and I was formerly an agent with a major company prior to opening my own agency. I however will throw in this disclaimer. Each company treats firearms and their coverage similarly, but not exactly the same. The best resource is to contact your company or agent and confirm exactly how they handle firearms and other valuable items. Any agent worth his salt should know this off the top of their head. If not, be leery of that agent and their knowledge of the insurance industry.

Most (not all) insurance companies have limitations on the amount they will pay for stolen firearms. This has happened over the last couple of decades and was caused by the substantial amount of insurance fraud with high value items disappearing. This is also true of other high value items like jewelry, collectibles, antiques, etc. Usually the limit (if there is one) on firearms is somewhere between $1,500 and $2,500. There are several important things to note about home insurance and firearms...

1. When a company has a limitation, it is usually for the "peril" or circumstance of theft and "mysterious disappearance". If you have a fire or a tornado blows away your home...most companies don't have limitations on firearms.

2. When you list a firearm on a policy, that firearm is now covered for those extra "perils" or circumstances they were limited by before...i.e..theft and mysterious disappearance. And for most companies, they will include all sorts of extra "perils" on that firearm that nothing else is covered for. An example would be when I had a client who dropped their custom rifle off a mountain out west. Not much left after bouncing off rocks for hundreds and hundreds of feet. It was covered since it was listed (See #5).

3. Most of the time when you list items on your policy, you can do it with zero deductible. The cost involved to list your firearm with either a large deductible and no deductible is usually at very little difference cost wise. So it usually makes since to have no deductible at all.

4. Not all companies cover this through the same method. Many companies simply add an "endorsement" or an extra piece to your home insurance. However, for some companies it is a separate policy.

5. Some companies only will cover firearms when they are individually listed on a policy. This is called "scheduling". When a company requires scheduling, they normally only need the make, model, serial number and the value of each firearm. Normally they do not need photos unless you have some super custom or extremely rare super high value firearm that may be difficult to value. Then the company may require photos, but most do not.

6. Other companies only cover firearms with what they call "blanket" coverage. This does not require a list as it is just a block of money and not attached to any one firearm. The thing to watch with blanket coverage is going back to those "perils" or all the different types of situations that the firearms are covered for. Some companies do not cover the firearms for as many things when using the blanket style coverage. And some do cover things the better way. Keep in mind that when you are covered is just as important as how much you are covered for. If your not covered for the type of situation that just happened to you, then the insurance just became worthless.

7. Some companies offer both. The company I use for my home insurance does. I chose to insure my own firearms under the "scheduled" method in #5 above to get those extra types of situations "perils" covered.

8. Keep in mind that insurance companies don't write blank checks anymore these days. Either of these methods means you are insuring your firearms for "replacement cost" coverage. If you dramatically over insure your firearms, you are just waisting money. The companies will only pay the amount necessary to find a new gun of "like kind and quality". So if you insure your AK made from a shovel for $100,000...you are not going to get the cash nor would you receive a solid gold AK (to tacky any way). Remember the key phrased used in the insurance contract for all companies now days is "like kind and quality". And equally important, don't dramatically under insure your firearms. You may have cheaper insurance now, but when a claim happens you will not have enough insurance to replace the firearm.

When it is all said and done...PLEASE DON'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS OR JUST HOPE IT'S COVERED!!! I can't tell you how many people I have seen in all my years in the industry that just "thought" things were covered and never asked. ASK, ASK, ASK... That way you can find out what you need or should have prior to anything bad happening. If you have an agent, they should be able to confirm this. If you don't have an agent, then you will need to contact the company directly. Either way, if you don't check with someone, then any bad results are completely on you.

 

[AA&E]

My insurance will replace anything I can prove I owned. Photos in the event of theft work... burnt remains with charred stocks... etc. Fair market value is the sticking point I suppose, but I suspect everything will be here and complete when I get home. Even if the house has burnt down around my safe.