You’re on vacation, and you realize one of your diamond stud earrings has fallen off; you come home from a business trip to discover your wine cellar has failed, and your collection is ruined; a tree fell through your roof, and several pieces of original art are damaged or destroyed; a burglar ransacked your home and made away with two vintage guitars, four guns, and your grandmother’s silver….
Maybe you’re willing to gamble, but it won’t happen. But if you rely on your homeowner’s insurance to cover such losses, you are in for a rude awakening.
“Risk is just an expensive substitute for information.” —Adrian Slywotzky.
According to Robert Kerdasha, managing director of The Summit Advisory and partner at AssuredPartners, basic homeowners policies offer limited coverage on valuables such as jewelry, wine, guns, silver, or art. “Even with a Chubb policy, which is one of the best, there’s only coverage for $5,000 at best for each category. Many people think it’s a $5,000 limit per item, but the limit applies to the total loss,” he explained.
What to Schedule and Why
In the insurance industry, “schedule” is a fancy term for list. Policyholders wishing to guard items of value should list those items and purchase additional coverage with a scheduled personal property policy. The good news is that your scheduled property is protected against all risks and is not subject to the standard policy deductible.
“Let’s say you have an antique Persian rug worth $50,000. A normal homeowners policy covers fire, lightning, theft, vandalism, and water discharge. If my cleaning lady spills bleach on it, or I spill wine on a white cowhide and stain it, the carriers I write will cover it, but it’s subject to the deductible. If you schedule it, you eliminate the deductible, giving you all-risk coverage,” Kerdasha explained.
By all-risk, he means all risks. “For example, if you have a $35,000 painting, the policy we write will cover art subject to the deductible. But if somebody’s got a $10,000 Ben Ham on the wall and it falls, some carriers would say breakage is not covered under the homeowners policy,” Kerdasha pointed out. In either case, if the art is scheduled, it is covered for the total amount, regardless of the peril that created the loss.
It may come as a surprise, but all-risk also applies to flood. “Let’s say I schedule a piece of art, and my home is flooded, and it looks like a fishbowl. There is no exclusion for that for flood,” Kerdasha explained. “Whereas if the house floods, the homeowner’s policy doesn’t cover the general contents. You have to have flood insurance, which doesn’t cover the art.”
The bottom line is insurance policies can be complicated and confusing. That’s why you need an expert like Robert Kerdasha to help guide you to the right coverage.
“We habitually ask every customer, ‘What are your valuables?’ My trademark would be that I sit down, listen to a customer, and understand that their risk tolerance differs from the last person I spoke to,” Kerdasha said. “Define your catastrophe. Can you handle a $5,000 deductible or $100,000 deductible? Let’s tailor what we’re doing to meet that threshold.”
Kerdasha has over 30 years of experience in the insurance industry, cutting his teeth with Liberty Mutual and transitioning to higher-value markets with more specialized carriers such as Chubb, AIG, and PURE, which are geared toward high-value homes. He founded Premiere Coastal Insurance Group in 1999 and joined the AssuredPartners team in 2014.
Kerdasha is one of approximately 327 insurance professionals worldwide to hold the prestigious designation of CAPI certification (Certified Advisor of Personal Insurance) from the Wharton Executive Education program. This program helps insurance agents and brokers serve as trusted advisers to successful clients. He wants to share his knowledge and experience with you, whether writing a new policy or helping you evaluate your existing approach to determine if your coverage is adequate.
“Nobody values what they have until they have a loss,” Kerdasha said. “Then they truly appreciate why they’re insuring what they’re insuring.”
Based in Bluffton, S.C., but licensed in all 50 states, Robert Kerdasha can insure all your properties and valuables nationwide. For more information, call (843) 405-8270 or (912) 220-9994.
