Good question, with a growing question i've been curious also.

Uhhhh...nobody. Didnt even think to add them as a seperate item, thought they would be covered under my home owners policy?

I think they would have to be added as a separate item, but not sure.

While Ive never had to file a claim I have taken numerous pics to document the condition and recorded the serial numbers. I keep these off-site in case my home is attacked by aliens or Winona Ryder happens to drop by and visit.

At least in germany we have 2 different insuranves .. one for the hous, and one for furniture, etc.
Within the furniture also my 14 machines in the garage are covered. But I had to take pictures and raise the "in all amount" of my furniture, etc up to 120.000 Euro. Just in case everything get lost.
Therefor I documented my pins with pictures on a list with the price I paid and the price "I would have to pay in that condition" due most pins are highclass renovated.

They are covered under standard homeowners, and you need records of serial numbers and proof of purchase or any other documentation you have as proof. If your collection value is high enough to warrant its own policy, then you get a 'collection policy' per my State Farm agent. Since I have 2 and not 200, I don't have anything extra policy-wise.

I recently brought my home policy under State Farm and asked specifically about this. They are covered under personal possessions and you need to make sure you have adequate coverage for them. This applies to all of your things. Its amazing just how much "stuff" accumulates over the years. Make a list, document it and then check every year to ensure its up-to-date. Word to the wise.

Oh ROMMY Calling ROMMY we have an insurance question!

how do you show proof of purchase on craigs list items paid for with cash? hmmmmm....pictures first then ill worry about this. good topic!!

Want to let all you guys know that if you do not have proof that your games are what you say they are, the insurance company will not give you a damn thing for your pile of ashes and soot. People just think, "Oh yeah, they are covered. My agent said they are covered."

But, when it comes time for that insurance company to write a check for your 100K worth of pinball, they are not gonna be like OK bud, here you go... They want to see receipts and such. It is much more complicated than, "It's covered."

I have AllState with replacement value insurance.

No rider is needed if the pin don't exceed the total content insured value...which in my case is just over 300K. I do have a $50 a year rider for general water damage though (like a basement flood)

In fact I just emailed a spread sheet of stuff...including pins to my agent 2 days ago. I'm well short of 300k

They told me I was covered

I think that depends on the type of insurance coverage you have. If you have a replacement value policy it's pretty easy to show the value. The fact that I paid $2200 for my AFM in 99 doesn't mean a damn thing...it's still 7k to replace it today

Just have your agent look on E-bay to get a comp!

It depends on the type of coverage you have. Typically coverage is written on a Replacement Cost Value but it can also be Actual Cash Value which is basically market value. The value of a machine of like, kind and quality is a good way to look at ACV.

RCV would entitle you to a brand new machine if the machine was still in production. RCV gets a little tricky when the machines are no longer in production and you'd probably end up getting market value for a machine of like kind and quality. The key to RCV is you have to actually replace the item before you're paid the RCV. You'll get paid ACV initially and then would be reimbursed the difference once you provided proof of replacement.

Some policies exclude collections so those have to be specifically scheduled which, of course, costs more.

The smart thing to do is go through your house and do a video of your valuable possesions. Record it on a disc or memory stick, and put it in a safety deposit box or safe place. Calculate the value of your possesions and make sure you have enough insurance to cover that amount. DO NOT give a list of your valuables to your insurance company. People at insurance companies will sell your private information to criminals for a quick buck. Temps love this stuff. Get in the door, download some info, and move on. Then a month later your house gets broken into.

Just make sure you have enough coverage, if you don't have adequate coverage it's your own fault.

This.

A few other things: If your games are in the basement, make sure your policy covers "acts of god" issues, like pipes breaking. When I got my insurance through Allstate, it was an additional cost. Nationwide wouldn't even cover it (this 8 years ago). I basically told my agent that I wanted them to be covered no matter the cause.

Also, be VERY clear on how you explain what the games are to you. I used the example of "it's like a pool table, but I have 25 of them". If they think they are for business use, they won't cover them. Don't mention "artwork", as they sudden think they are picasos and artwork is covered differently.

Lastly, look at taking out insurance with a collectible company as extra protection. Your homeowners insurance might cover everything, but given the oddity of our hobby, I'd expect them to look at every technicality to weasel out of payment.

Yeah...no shit.

I've been over this a bunch of time with my agent of about 20 years. I just reconfirmed the information when we moved a couple years ago...and as my collection value started to increase.

The general consensus is pay the couple bucks a month extra for the replacement value...and it's a lot easier should you need to use it. It's cost me about $120 a year extra for replacement value and water damage rider

That's exactly why I dropped State farm when I bought my first house. There Homeowners Insurance was a PITA if you had anything other than standard household stuff. Of course that was a LONG time ago...and it might have changed since then

That's not necessarily so. There are instances when the entire house is destroyed and there is no documentation left. As long as you're honest with your inventory, the insurance company isn't going to give you grief. Good documentation is definitely a plus but not essential.

I just asked my lady from Country Financial just the other day, she said its all covered, fire-water-theft but if they break its not covered, DARN!!!! LOL

Uninsured. Which would be the best for pins?

We use Country Financial, and they wanted documentation of our pinball machines...serial numbers...receipts. My collection is only $25k with arcade games, but was not insured under normal homeowners insurance. We now pay an extra $50 per year to include the pinball machines. They also would not insure a specific machine for over $2500 without an appraisal.

You see that guy , pinballmike217 up there? he gets it. no one who works at an insurance company is above reproach. they are just people.

have to watch for that "any specific item valued at over (X) must be listed separately" - used specifically for electronics, jewelry, guns, high value items. so you don't hit them with the $250,000 wedding ring burned to ashes claim. i am unaware of that clause being used on a pinball claim as I have never seen a pinball claim.

I am an auto claims Appraiser for AAA, I do vehicle claims but know about policies, you have a certain amount per policy to cover what is lost, say you have 300k for dwelling which is to rebuild your house, 100k for items in the house clothes, furniture pinballs etc, you will only get your maximum amount of 100k regardless of what you have, I have 24 pins and dont have any special insurance for them, but the way pin prices have been going up i may have to up my household items limit, same for cars, but its a home policy

Correct...our contents (not counting the house structure) is right at 300k.

yes you have different amounts for structure and contents and injury just like auto insurance

I dont know how they value them honestly. When I realized mine wouldnt need anything special since they are covered under the overall policy, I didnt go much further. Personally I have the eBay receipt for JP and the cancelled check for the 2 from private sales. Those with way more invested have much better info since they have researched it more.

Insurance companies are your friend, until something goes wrong.

I had a WMS F-14 Tomcat

It told me I was insured

3 times I have been asked to validate pricing on a claim.. one time I was asked by the insurance company (they called) to "testify" to the value via recorded phone call..

I asked the owner a bunch of questions about what the machines were, condition, last time they were serviced, had there ever been any major work done on them... Then I gave my opinion of FULL RETAIL replacement cost in my market.

I work in claims, your homeowner policy covers damage to your personal property for named peril coverages, Ie theft, fire, collapse, etc, most policies state the coverage clearly, however if it is not a named peril like fire (such a mysterious dissaperance ) not covered, OR for example if a 3 year old takes a sharpie to your game and draws on your MB, not covered, if a vandal draws a lewd drawing on the side, it could be covered as vandalism. Your pinball machine is no different than your dvd player in that respect. Things to do is to take pictures of your games to show they exist and in a reasonable condition to warrant like kind and quality replacemnt. upload photos of all of your items on a webhost like photobucket, then you could prove ownership of them, obviously in a fire, your pin legs and metal wont disintigrate, but if you have a MM, you want to document them, if you have a Millionaire, and try to pass it off as a Cactus Canyon, you will have to prove ownership of such, the burden to prove what you own is yours, not the insurance companies...

My advice is to have a person standing in the picture. Someone the insurance company could find.

You should have done your research when you dropped State Farm and went to Allstate. While they are OK on auto, they have the worst record of paying claims on homeowners. Allstate is famous for weaseling out of a payment for damage.

Take it from someone who lost $20K when I needed them and they denied my claim.

Tom (former Allstate insured for 20 years)

I hope for all of you if that you don't need my help but if you guys ever do please let me know, I will be happy to establish Value for you if there is ever an issue.

JJ

Loss by theft you will not have coverage for pins on your home policy. They have very small minimums for jewelry, watches, furs, art and collectables on a theft claim. If the house burns down there "may" be coverage for the pins. The best bet is to schedule them on the policy and pay a few extra $$ for the coverage. Its not expensive to do.

EDIT: Im an Agent in NY

Thanks man!

I just spoke with my ins. company (USAA) and I made it very clear that they are my hobby and belongings. She "notated" on my account that we had that conversation and that my collection is covered.

Now, with that being said, I asked her how things would be handled in the event of loss and she said "They will buy you a new one". I further went on to clarify what that meant like "A new one on eBay? They don't make some of these games anymore?"
She continues to tell me that they will just "buy me a new one".....

I don't think she really understands but that's fine. I would just hate be stuck with 14 avengers should something happen.... (although that might not be too bad either, lol)

Interesting..
While I never had a homeowners claim with them my parents have had...we both have the same agent.

4 years ago the claim went about as smooth as a total loss claim could go...that included a 6 figure check and numerous other compensations for temporary shelter.

Wondering how one claim can go so good...and another so bad.

I updated my insurance for my shop, which is were my pins call home. I only had coverage of $50k for the shop and belongings, my agent said it does not matter what is in it just cover it for what you think the total would be to put it back the way it is. So, we upped the value to $85k, and my policy for the shop went up $250 per year.

Germania, thats really not bad, for this area.

USAA cannot be beat if you can get them. (need to be a vet or family) I had a power surge and the power company covered most of the stuff fried. USAA was going to cover anything that the power company did not cover. The power company came close enough for me that it was not worth making a claim with USAA.

I did ask them the same question you did a couple years ago. They told me the same thing they told you but I ended up buying a couple dollars extra for the pins and a few other things just to try and be sure.

$250 extra a year is nothing when you think about loosing it all. That is only 2500 for 10 years, the cost of one pin for $35k of just in case.