Insurance

[The Thing on The Sticks]

So its time to shop insurance polices again, and one of the agents I called was insistent that the liability portion of my policy was going to come in at around 1600, this is significantly more than the policy I currently have. Which brings up two possibilities, the first that I got sold the wrong type of policy and need to reevaluate my current coverage. The second is that the rough number that he mentioned was for a policy I simply don't need as an individual owner op.

Do any of the other freelancers here care to share what their polices have been coming in around. One of the things I really hate about this process is not knowing the ballpark range of what is reasonable.

Also any recommendations on an agent are appreciated.

 

[2 Hungry Dogs]

Insurance is very region specific. y can deal with So rates vary greatly

Talk to several agents from several companies. Independent agents are great as they can get quotes from multiple companies. Have them look at the dec page of your current policy. (You can always copy it and redact the actual prices) This should make sure you are getting quotes on comparable policies. Ask them if you have enough coverage, and ask them what you are missing.

Be very specific about the types of risks you want to make sure you are covered for. Put it in writing. Make sure they acknowledge in writing that the policy covers all the risks you requested. Good luck reading and understanding the policy on your own.

 

[Focused]

Regional specific indeed

My brother and I bothhave suburbans - 1 model year apart He lives in Albany NY. I live in SD. His insurance is 3X higher than mine and I put on 4 to 5x the miles he does. Translate to gear and you get the same thing.

I'll be open about the numbers:
Inland and marine on $135k of equipment(replacement cost)
Vehicle insurance replacement w/ full collision & other drivers covered
$1mil liability policy.
Annually it all comes in at$2500.

It breaks out for the vehicle at 800. Which is higher then the area average but it is a commercial vehicle so the cost is higher. The liability is about $400 I think which leaves $1200 or so for the gear.

Hope this helps.

 

[The Thing on The Sticks]

Yeah thats about what I was thinking liability should be. Thats really the sticking point here my other numbers are not so far off from yours. I have to see what numbers this one agent comes back with after he runs everything but his ballpark figure put liability alone around 1600. That said I have to see what the competitors come back with as well.

 

[Capt. Slo-mo]

My inland marine (with a raft of new coverages) is about $1100/year for $70K worth of gear replacement and a $50K rental gear rider. The business liability ($2M) policy runs just over $500/year.

 

[Berkeley Shooter]

Here in the SF Bay Area where things tend to be expensive, I'm paying around $750 for liability through a broker written by The Hartford/Sentinel Insurance Co.

One place I save money on liability is by not having coverage for grip trucks. I make clear with a client that they will need that coverage. I can't remember what that coverage was costing, but at some point years back realized I was paying a lot for something I didn't really need.

I insure my van with a commercial policy through Allstate.

For Workers Comp., in California you can get a State Fund policy. Much cheaper that going through an insurance broker if you have a small payroll. The broker policy had a very high minimum premium. The main coverage difference between the broker sold policy and one from State Fund is that if hire anyone out of state they will not be covered. Again not an issue, just have your client do the hiring.

I won't get into equipment coverage costs as I had a theft so my premium is very high.

Robin (Berkeley)

 

[Cameradude]

I have $2,000,000 liability and $50,000 for gear on an inland marine policy, and I pay around $1,000 a year.

 

[The Thing on The Sticks]

My inland marine (with a raft of new coverages) is about $1100/year for $70K worth of gear replacement and a $50K rental gear rider. The business liability ($2M) policy runs just over $500/year.

This is about the price and policy I ended up settling on. I still find it hard to believe but the number returned by the first agent I mentioned in the original post was actually close to 2500 combined liability and equiptment. Hence the reason I started the thread, that and the fact that I believe we all benefit from a dialog on the subject.