Insuring Art and Equipment

It can be difficult to find insurance that covers your art, especially if you do not have an established market presence. Insurance is about being able to place a clear monetary value on your property; despite your own feelings about the value of your work, unless you have proof that your work commands a certain value in the marketplace, you will run into difficulty convincing an insurance agent that the price of your piece is worth receiving compensation for the amount you dictate.

Because most providers do not like insuring items that have an ambiguous value, many policies will only compensate you for the actual costs of the materials. If you spent $20 in paints and canvas to create your masterpiece, you can expect to receive only $20 in compensation. Your time and the “emotional” value you place on the piece will not be considered in the reimbursement. In addition, you often will not be compensated for works in progress.

However, do not fret. Although hard to find, there are plans out there that will cover your artwork. Besides covering your studio or creations, some policies will cover your work when it is in transit, being shipped to another location (i.e. exhibitions, museums, moving, etc.).

Some policies provide coverage for specific art practices (jewelry making, dance studios, musical instruments, metal workers, etc.), while others protect art exhibitions or vendors and their wares at art fairs and other special events. The types of policies available are nearly endless. Review the Resources section in this chapter to find out more about these artist-friendly policies and providers.

Collectors, gallery owners, museums and dealers can often find insurance that covers the entire price of any artwork in their possession. In the eyes of the insurance carrier, artwork in the hands of a collector or gallery owner has an established market value, which the provider can easily put a price tag on.

In addition to covering your work, consider coverage for your equipment -- especially if you have expensive or irreplacable equipment such as film and video cameras, computers, kilns, foundry equipment, or musical instruments. Consider this type of policy when your basic property coverage or renter’s insurance policy is insufficient, or excludes the item you want to insure.

Many basic property policies will only cover an item as long as it remains on the premises of the insured space. This could become problematic if your equipment needs to leave the building often and costs a substantial amount. A specialized policy will also work in this case for a variety of off-premise art activities (i.e., a film shoot or music or arts festival).

For example, imagine you are a professional photographer, and your basic property policy sets a limit of $250 to replace a damaged or stolen camera. You have a professional model camera that costs nearly $1,500, and is used outside the studio frequently for shoots. Given your unique requirements – replacement of an expensive piece of equipment, and the need to have the equipment insured even when not on the premises -- a specialized equipment policy is needed.

In many cases, these policies will cover you for theft and damage of the item, even when you are using it off-premises. In addition to special equipment policies, you can also find policies that will cover your artwork/equipment when it is in transit or being shipped to exhibitions/performances and becomes lost or damaged.

TIP: To learn more about the types of insurance policies available to cover mortgages, see Chapter 8: Buying Real Estate.