Most moving services either offer moving insurance or partner with a company that does. Before you sign up for such coverage, though, talk with your homeowners insurance company to see if you can save on moving insurance. If you can add worldwide coverage to your homeowners policy, you might not need to purchase additional moving insurance.
Types of Moving Insurance
Moving services often offer three types of insurance: declared value, assessed value and full value. Declared value is the least expensive of the three but also provides the lowest level of coverage. Full value, conversely, provides the best coverage at the highest rates.
Declared value policies insure belongings by how much they weigh. A policy may, for example, provide $1.20 in coverage for every pound an item weighs. Under a policy like this, you would receive $36 for a 30-pound box that was damaged -- regardless of what was in the box. This may be enough coverage for items that don't cost much, but it doesn't provide enough coverage for valuables and electronics. A policy with the above coverage would only insure a 4-pound computer for $4.80.
Assessed value insurance covers specific items for a pre-determined amount. The precise level of coverage may be a valuable appraised worth, or it might be some other figure that both you and the moving company agree upon beforehand. Of course, the more you want an item insured for, the higher the premiums for your assessed value policy will be. If you choose to insure belongings with this type of insurance, you'll need to sign off on each item once it reaches your new home.
Full value coverage is most like homeowners insurance. A full value policy will insure all of your belongings, although specific terms and conditions might limit how much protection it provides for jewelry, firearms, art and similar valuables. It will also have deductibles, like a homeowners policy.
For complete protection, you'll need full value coverage -- the most comprehensive, but also most expensive, type of moving insurance. This level of coverage isn't included in most moving quotes, only coming at an additional cost.
Another Insurance Option
Before purchasing insurance from a moving service, you should discuss your current coverage with your homeowners insurance company. You may already be covered and not need an additional policy.
If your homeowners insurance policy includes "worldwide coverage" for your belongings, then you already have the coverage you need. Investopedia defines worldwide coverage as protection for personal property that extends everywhere in the world. In other words, your coverage isn't limited to just when your things are in your home or car. They're covered no matter where they are, even if a moving service has them in a truck.
Not all homeowners insurance companies include this coverage in their policies, though. If your policy doesn't include such protection, you may be able to purchase it at an additional cost. This may be less expensive than buying insurance from your moving service.
If you either already have worldwide coverage or are able to obtain it at a reasonable price, then you may be able to save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on your move. The exact price of moving insurance will vary from company to company, but the average cost for such coverage, according to HomeAdvisor, is about 1.5 percent of the value of goods being moved. If your family has $50,000 worth of stuff, finding affordable worldwide coverage through your homeowners insurance could save you $750.
It's important to make sure your belongings are insured during a move, but purchasing coverage through a moving service can add hundreds of dollars onto your moving quote. Before you purchase full value insurance from your moving company, talk with your homeowners insurance company to see if you either already have or could obtain worldwide coverage for your possessions. If you can, then you might not need to buy moving insurance at all.
For more information, contact local moving services.
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