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Dhruba · 09-11-2009, 01:43 PM

Having accumulated more photographic equipment than ever thought I would

, I now want to take them along in our trips. Several people have told me that I should get travel insurance and some kind of customs declaration from the US govt, but I could not get specific information. Do you get such insurance in your trips? Thanks for your response and sorry if this has been discussed before

tvfd911 · 09-11-2009, 08:42 PM

I was in the same boat as you 4 months ago while planning a trip to Tanzania. Went to the agents office to see what they had for travel insurance when they pointed me to year-round insurance.

All of my gear is insured through State Farm. If I remember right, its about $10 in premiums per $1000 of value, but you have to pay at least $30/yr if you have less than $3,000 in gear. My agent told me that I wouldn't need anything special for overseas trips or anything like that. I figure that $30/yr is well spent to cover when my stupidity takes a toll on my gear. Fragile stuff and I don't get along too well between the mountain biking, snowmobiling marshes and lakes. The agent had a scared laugh when I told her how happy I was to have purchased insurance I know I'll actually use for once.

I'd talk to your homeowners/car insurance agent and see what they have to offer. I don't know what others have, but I was assured that no matter the cause of the damage/theft to my gear, they would cover it with no deductible through State Farm. When I buy another lens, I just call them up with the make/model/serial number and they add it to the list. Put your tripods, bags, memory cards, everything on the list, it all gets covered if your bag full of goodies is stolen or falls into the lake.

Dhruba · 09-12-2009, 12:14 AM

Thanks for the detailed information

. We have State Farm as well. I will give them a call tomorrow.

ryan s · 09-12-2009, 10:26 AM

Originally posted by tvfd911

I was in the same boat as you 4 months ago while planning a trip to Tanzania. Went to the agents office to see what they had for travel insurance when they pointed me to year-round insurance.

All of my gear is insured through State Farm. If I remember right, its about $10 in premiums per $1000 of value, but you have to pay at least $30/yr if you have less than $3,000 in gear. My agent told me that I wouldn't need anything special for overseas trips or anything like that. I figure that $30/yr is well spent to cover when my stupidity takes a toll on my gear. Fragile stuff and I don't get along too well between the mountain biking, snowmobiling marshes and lakes. The agent had a scared laugh when I told her how happy I was to have purchased insurance I know I'll actually use for once.

I'd talk to your homeowners/car insurance agent and see what they have to offer. I don't know what others have, but I was assured that no matter the cause of the damage/theft to my gear, they would cover it with no deductible through State Farm. When I buy another lens, I just call them up with the make/model/serial number and they add it to the list. Put your tripods, bags, memory cards, everything on the list, it all gets covered if your bag full of goodies is stolen or falls into the lake.

Edit: Where in WI do you live?

There's only 4 Madison Pentaxians on here...

Originally posted by Dhruba

Thanks for the detailed information

. We have State Farm as well. I will give them a call tomorrow.

State Farm ftw! Their coverage and rates are so amazing for renter's insurance...$20k for $90/year...camera equipment included at no extra cost.

graphicgr8s · 09-12-2009, 08:06 PM

State Farm sucks. They screwed Florida over royally. Me and most I know are boycotting them.

Blue · 09-12-2009, 09:45 PM

Originally posted by graphicgr8s

State Farm sucks. They screwed Florida over royally. Me and most I know are boycotting them.

So did Farm Bureau.

Dhruba · 09-12-2009, 10:20 PM

Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option"

Blue · 09-12-2009, 11:09 PM

Originally posted by Dhruba

Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option"

It would probably be cheaper to "self insure" it then the way Florida works.

graphicgr8s · 09-13-2009, 10:56 AM

Originally posted by Dhruba

Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option"

We have that already. It sucks.

Dhruba · 09-13-2009, 05:55 PM

I am not a political person, my comment was meant just for fun.

graphicgr8s · 09-13-2009, 06:27 PM

Originally posted by Dhruba

I am not a political person, my comment was meant just for fun.

We have state run Citizens insurance. It was suppose to be the insurance company of last resort.

tvfd911 · 09-15-2009, 09:18 AM

Originally posted by ryan s

Edit: Where in WI do you live?

There's only 4 Madison Pentaxians on here...

State Farm ftw! Their coverage and rates are so amazing for renter's insurance...$20k for $90/year...camera equipment included at no extra cost.

Ryan,

I'm currently south of Milwaukee. Attempting to get out if the housing market will let me to move more centrally in the state. I'm a field rep for my company though and am all over the place. Pass through/stay in Madison quite often though.

On another note, did you ask your agent about how well the renters covers the camera gear? My homeowners technically does as well, but not nearly as completely as having its own plan. I don't remember what it was, maybe like a $500 value cap or something like that. Whatever the limitations were, I wasn't happy. Hopefully renter's is better at covering it than homeowners.

ryan s · 09-15-2009, 07:55 PM

Originally posted by tvfd911

Ryan,

I'm currently south of Milwaukee. Attempting to get out if the housing market will let me to move more centrally in the state. I'm a field rep for my company though and am all over the place. Pass through/stay in Madison quite often though.

On another note, did you ask your agent about how well the renters covers the camera gear? My homeowners technically does as well, but not nearly as completely as having its own plan. I don't remember what it was, maybe like a $500 value cap or something like that. Whatever the limitations were, I wasn't happy. Hopefully renter's is better at covering it than homeowners.

Aha, nice. It would be awesome to get a PentaxForums Madison-area meet together

Umm...well the last time I talked with my agent was about 2 years ago and at the ripe old age of 25 my memory isn't what it used to be

I have a terrible grip on numbers, and technically, I'm a couple weeks away from 25 years

All I remember is trying to figure out a "value" of my stuff to insure...their minimum was like twice was I was going to "declare." I vaguely remember asking about electronics and camera stuff, but can't remember since I was driving 2 hours away to move as soon as I was done there...

From what I understand, homeowners covers a LOT of stuff. I've never had to deal with a renter's claim though...

09-11-2009, 01:43 PM	#1
Dhruba Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 106	Insurance Having accumulated more photographic equipment than ever thought I would , I now want to take them along in our trips. Several people have told me that I should get travel insurance and some kind of customs declaration from the US govt, but I could not get specific information. Do you get such insurance in your trips? Thanks for your response and sorry if this has been discussed before

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09-11-2009, 08:42 PM	#2
tvfd911 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: WI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 354	I was in the same boat as you 4 months ago while planning a trip to Tanzania. Went to the agents office to see what they had for travel insurance when they pointed me to year-round insurance. All of my gear is insured through State Farm. If I remember right, its about $10 in premiums per $1000 of value, but you have to pay at least $30/yr if you have less than $3,000 in gear. My agent told me that I wouldn't need anything special for overseas trips or anything like that. I figure that $30/yr is well spent to cover when my stupidity takes a toll on my gear. Fragile stuff and I don't get along too well between the mountain biking, snowmobiling marshes and lakes. The agent had a scared laugh when I told her how happy I was to have purchased insurance I know I'll actually use for once. I'd talk to your homeowners/car insurance agent and see what they have to offer. I don't know what others have, but I was assured that no matter the cause of the damage/theft to my gear, they would cover it with no deductible through State Farm. When I buy another lens, I just call them up with the make/model/serial number and they add it to the list. Put your tripods, bags, memory cards, everything on the list, it all gets covered if your bag full of goodies is stolen or falls into the lake.

09-12-2009, 12:14 AM	#3
Dhruba Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 106 Original Poster	Thanks for the detailed information . We have State Farm as well. I will give them a call tomorrow.

09-12-2009, 10:26 AM	#4
ryan s Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Madison, WI Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,383	Originally posted by tvfd911 I was in the same boat as you 4 months ago while planning a trip to Tanzania. Went to the agents office to see what they had for travel insurance when they pointed me to year-round insurance. All of my gear is insured through State Farm. If I remember right, its about $10 in premiums per $1000 of value, but you have to pay at least $30/yr if you have less than $3,000 in gear. My agent told me that I wouldn't need anything special for overseas trips or anything like that. I figure that $30/yr is well spent to cover when my stupidity takes a toll on my gear. Fragile stuff and I don't get along too well between the mountain biking, snowmobiling marshes and lakes. The agent had a scared laugh when I told her how happy I was to have purchased insurance I know I'll actually use for once. I'd talk to your homeowners/car insurance agent and see what they have to offer. I don't know what others have, but I was assured that no matter the cause of the damage/theft to my gear, they would cover it with no deductible through State Farm. When I buy another lens, I just call them up with the make/model/serial number and they add it to the list. Put your tripods, bags, memory cards, everything on the list, it all gets covered if your bag full of goodies is stolen or falls into the lake. Edit: Where in WI do you live? There's only 4 Madison Pentaxians on here... Originally posted by Dhruba Thanks for the detailed information . We have State Farm as well. I will give them a call tomorrow. State Farm ftw! Their coverage and rates are so amazing for renter's insurance...$20k for $90/year...camera equipment included at no extra cost.

09-12-2009, 08:06 PM	#5
graphicgr8s Guest	State Farm sucks. They screwed Florida over royally. Me and most I know are boycotting them.

09-12-2009, 09:45 PM	#6
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by graphicgr8s State Farm sucks. They screwed Florida over royally. Me and most I know are boycotting them. So did Farm Bureau.

09-12-2009, 10:20 PM	#7
Dhruba Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 106 Original Poster	Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option"

09-12-2009, 11:09 PM	#8
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by Dhruba Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option" It would probably be cheaper to "self insure" it then the way Florida works.

09-13-2009, 10:56 AM	#9
graphicgr8s Guest	Originally posted by Dhruba Hmm.. may be time to discuss "public option" We have that already. It sucks.

09-13-2009, 05:55 PM	#10
Dhruba Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 106 Original Poster	I am not a political person, my comment was meant just for fun.

09-13-2009, 06:27 PM	#11
graphicgr8s Guest	Originally posted by Dhruba I am not a political person, my comment was meant just for fun. We have state run Citizens insurance. It was suppose to be the insurance company of last resort.

09-15-2009, 09:18 AM	#12
tvfd911 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: WI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 354	Originally posted by ryan s Edit: Where in WI do you live? There's only 4 Madison Pentaxians on here... State Farm ftw! Their coverage and rates are so amazing for renter's insurance...$20k for $90/year...camera equipment included at no extra cost. Ryan, I'm currently south of Milwaukee. Attempting to get out if the housing market will let me to move more centrally in the state. I'm a field rep for my company though and am all over the place. Pass through/stay in Madison quite often though. On another note, did you ask your agent about how well the renters covers the camera gear? My homeowners technically does as well, but not nearly as completely as having its own plan. I don't remember what it was, maybe like a $500 value cap or something like that. Whatever the limitations were, I wasn't happy. Hopefully renter's is better at covering it than homeowners.

09-15-2009, 07:55 PM	#13
ryan s Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Madison, WI Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,383	Originally posted by tvfd911 Ryan, I'm currently south of Milwaukee. Attempting to get out if the housing market will let me to move more centrally in the state. I'm a field rep for my company though and am all over the place. Pass through/stay in Madison quite often though. On another note, did you ask your agent about how well the renters covers the camera gear? My homeowners technically does as well, but not nearly as completely as having its own plan. I don't remember what it was, maybe like a $500 value cap or something like that. Whatever the limitations were, I wasn't happy. Hopefully renter's is better at covering it than homeowners. Aha, nice. It would be awesome to get a PentaxForums Madison-area meet together Umm...well the last time I talked with my agent was about 2 years ago and at the ripe old age of 25 my memory isn't what it used to be I have a terrible grip on numbers, and technically, I'm a couple weeks away from 25 years All I remember is trying to figure out a "value" of my stuff to insure...their minimum was like twice was I was going to "declare." I vaguely remember asking about electronics and camera stuff, but can't remember since I was driving 2 hours away to move as soon as I was done there... From what I understand, homeowners covers a LOT of stuff. I've never had to deal with a renter's claim though...

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