How To Select The Correct Insurance Coverage When Moving

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Moving can be a dangerous thing to do. Packing up thousands of your belongings, loading them up in a truck, and driving them long distances is a recipe for disaster. Even the best moving companies who carefully pack each item and take all the necessary precautions to ensure that nothing breaks still have accidents and valuables will still end up damaged.

To ensure that you are covered for the items that may have been damaged during a move, it is important to understand the different types of coverage that moving companies offer.

There are typically 2 kinds of coverage that a moving company can provide:

1. Released Value Protection. This type of protection gives your belongings a value depending on how much they weigh. This is typically set at 60 cents per pound. If you have 10,000 pounds of belongings that are being moved you would be covered up to $6,000 if the belongings were destroyed due to the moving company's negligence.

This coverage is included in every quote by a moving company. In other words, you do not need to purchase this coverage as it will come standard with any move.  

2. Full-Value Protection. What happens if your belongings are more valuable than 60 cents per pound?  What if the mover lost a diamond necklace that was worth $5,000 that only weighed 1 pound? You would only be compensated 60 cents for that necklace. Clearly, there may be times where you have very light belongings that are worth a lot of money. If that is the case, you may want to opt for full-value protection coverage. This coverage gives a higher value to your belongings.

This coverage is not included on a standard moving contract and must be purchased separately. There are different ways to calculate this coverage. One common way is to use $6 per pound of your shipment. If your shipment weighed 10,000 pounds, you would have $60,000 worth of coverage. You are also able to complete a high value inventory form that includes protection for items that are even higher in value such as jewelry.

It is important to know and understand these different options. Just know that things are bound to happen, and things will inevitably get damaged or broken. If your belongings are of lesser value, the basic released value protection might be the best option. If your items are of higher value, you may want the full-value protection to ensure that they are protected. Check out companies like All Pro Moving & Storage for more information. 

3 November 2014