Five Plans for Insuring Gear
Photography, as both a profession and passionate hobby, calls for rather expensive equipment that can become outdated quickly. One’s gear is an essential investment, and with myriad customized insurance plans for it, it’s important to explore the options and find the best suited insurance plan for one’s needs. Here are five:
Professional Photographers Association (PPA) – Photo Care
One of the most popular insurance options available, PPA’s Photo Care provides up to $15,000 worth of coverage for either $28 monthly or $323 annually for their ‘Professional Active’ membership. After paying for the membership for ten years, you can then transition to their ‘Life’ membership, which is free!
If you use more than $15,000 of equipment, members ‘in good standing’ have the option to purchase an additional $10,000 in coverage.
PPC’s Photo Care covers loss due to fire, as well as equipment and computer hardware breakage. The insurance package will replace any broken kit pieces at its current value, with your first deductible priced at $250, a $500 deductible for your second loss, and $750 for your third within the span of one year.
Hill & Usher – Package Choice
Providing special, custom packages for media professionals, Hill & Usher’s insurance package, ‘Package Choice’, protects nearly everything you can imagine. Professional liability, photography gear, computers and portable electronics, and personal studios are just some of the things that receive protection under the Package Choice option. Quotes are customized based on your specific needs.
Furthermore, the insurance options are divided into a number of categories catering to specific photographers: wedding, portrait, commercial, architectural, industrial, sports, event, glamor, nature, aerial, and other. Based on your customized plan, deductibles range from $250-$1000.
TCP – Photography Insurance
In business for over 40 years, TCP caters to both photographers and cinematographers with a variety of insurance options. Just like Hill & User, quotes and deductibles are customized based on your needs.
General liability and equipment insurance starts at $500 annually, with the option to make payments on a quarterly basis. Building upon that, TCP’s photography insurance policy includes general liability ($2,000,000) and equipment coverage, as well as short-term photo rental equipment coverage, computer equipment coverage ($25,000 on-premises / $10,000 off-premises), portfolio coverage ($2,500 for casing / $100 each image), and office contents coverage ($3,000).
Insureon – Photography Insurance
The median policy premium average is between $500 and $526, although custom quotes are needed for exact policy pricing. Insureon offers an array of insurance policies for photographers including general liability, business ownership, professional liability, inland marine protection, and umbrella insurance. The average deductible for the policy is around $250.
While not nearly as popular as the first three, their business owner’s policy is a great option for those hoping to protect both their gear, studio, and technological equipment. Plans are limited to $2,000,000 with a claim limit of $1,000,000.
HISCOX – Insurance for Photographers
Catering to a high-net-worth clientele, HISCOX offers a number of unusual insurance policies that include computer hacking, kidnapping and satellite damage. Additionally, they provide electronic data loss insurance.
For simple equipment protection, their business owner’s policy is your best bet, which includes $10,000 for studio equipment coverage and the option to upgrade the limit. Policy rates start at only $400 for the year, and additional coverage for portable items are tacked on in the process.
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