When you take out a standard home insurance policy, the coverage you have extends to the structure of the home, your furniture and the outbuildings you have on your property. The coverage on the home is equal to the amount of money that you paid for it and if you have replacement cost included in your policy, you will be compensated for the amount of money you need to replace the home at today’s costs. The coverage for your furniture is equal to half the coverage on the home itself, with an additional percentage for coverage on your personal belongings, such as clothing and for the outbuildings.
There are items you may own that are not included in a standard home owner insurance policy. These include movable items that you can take and move to another location outside the home. The clothing coverage, for example, covers your normal clothes. It does not include coverage for expensive furs. Therefore if you own expensive clothing, such as designer dresses and suits or furs, then you will need to have additional insurance on these items.
These are the items included in what is called a “floater” in insurance terminology. This is an extra clause added to your policy so that you will be compensated for the loss of the items listed that are extras and not included in a standard policy. Jewelry and art work are also included in this category and are not part of your regular policy.
In order to have these items added to your policy, they must be listed individually along with a written description and the cost of the item. Insurance providers may require a professional appraisal of the item along with a photo. This is to make sure that the items you are ensuring are actually worth the value you claim in the insurance policy.
When you buy expensive diamond jewelry, the retailer will provide an appraisal certificate to show that the diamonds are real. If you do not have such a certificate, it would be in your best interests to pay to have the appraisal done on your own and submit it to the insurance provider.
You can add or delete items on your home insurance policy at any time. For example, if you purchase a painting that you want insured or if you have an antique table that is worth far more than you would receive under a standard home insurance policy, you can have this item added to your policy by paying the extra costs involved. At the same time, if you sell one or more of the items you have included in a floater at any time, all you have to do is to contact your insurer and have these items deleted from the policy.