Insurance - expect the unexpected!

[ubassman]

Was at a dress rehearsal of Die Fleidermaus at the ENO on saturday ( as a spectator I hasten to add ) and watched in the second half a prison guards hat get kicked off the stage into the orchestra pit ..a crazy bit of deliberate theatrical direction but then the whole production was a bit crazy !.

As the UFO descended from above into the bass section , the 4 bass players were visibly taken by surprise, grabbing their instruments and edging under the safety net / gantry that catches the cast if they fall off stage. You could see them watching skyward thinking whats going on and whats next? . The principle bassist then donned the cap complete with 3 silver buttons and wore it sideways gangsta rapper style - the other 3 trying not to lose their concentration and avoiding eye contact - brilliant !

I guess thats the idea of a dress rehearsal you discover things for the first time but speaking to a colleague afterwards she said "oh the theatre has insurance for all that sort of thing and if anything hits and smashes a valuable instrument to pieces they will be covered !" ...thats kind of not the point when there are precious one-off instruments at stake.

Just highlighted to me the importance of checking the wording of my own insurance policy as I wouldn't like to rely on [u][b]any[/b][/u] venues insurance!

[ubassman]

My insurance is pretty cheap ( with Endsleigh ). For £3000 cover or theft and accidental damage on one instrument it costs £33 per annum . Who do others use?

[flyfisher]

I don't bother - they're just part of the household insurance, so probably not covered outside the house while gigging or rehearsing.

[ubassman]

Thats a really good point though - really worth checking the small print as theres no point in making a claim for damage at a gig if the cover is only for accidental damage in the home.

[flyfisher]

Indeed - good advice for ANY insurance policy.

I'm pretty sure most household policies will only cover for theft and maybe accidental damage in the home. Some policies allow a certain value of 'all-risks' for items taken outside (cameras, phones, laptops etc) but they often need to be specifically listed, expecially if they're above a certain value. Any item(s) used to earn money are almost certainly not going be covered by a household policy.

But all that's OK by me. The chances of my gear being stolen or damaged at the sort of places I go to is very low so I'm prepared to take on the risk myself. I've not needed to claim for 30 years so I'm probably up on the deal anyway. Plus, the absolute worst case would be a total loss of about £1500 - annoying as hell but not exactly life-changing.

[bassace]

Musicians Union membership gives me £2,000 non specified insurance. OK, it doesn't cover everything but enough to pay for a DB repair following gig damage (I've claimed once for a split in the table after a sax player knocked my bass over) or my Clarus head getting nicked. Stuff at home is only partially covered but I've always taken the more unlikely risks on the chin.

[MandShef]

I use Allianz:

[url="http://www.allianzmusicalinsurance.co.uk/find-the-right-policy/"]http://www.allianzmusicalinsurance.co.uk/find-the-right-policy/[/url]

This is insurance specifically for insuring musical instruments, and as well as cover for use in the home they cover your instrument in transit as well as at rehearsals/concerts, and if you have to leave it in your car between rehearsal and concert. V useful if you regularly gig with it. My sister, who is a music teacher, also uses them.

[gcordez]

I'm with Allianz and they were great when I had my first double bass stolen out of my car.

[ubassman]

Whats the small print of exclusions like? - cant seem to see that trawling on their web site .

[sarah thomas]

Allianz look great and have just quoted me £6.83 a month for a £3000 value, worldwide, all risks, including the bass being left in an unattended vehicle. The small print says the instrument must be concealed from view. Greg, how did you get along with that? Would a blanket thrown over the behemoth in the back do the job?

[MandShef]

[quote name='sarah thomas' timestamp='1380723223' post='2229562']
Allianz look great and have just quoted me £6.83 a month for a £3000 value, worldwide, all risks, including the bass being left in an unattended vehicle. The small print says the instrument must be concealed from view. Greg, how did you get along with that? Would a blanket thrown over the behemoth in the back do the job?
[/quote]

Sarah, I phoned and asked about that, 'cos I wasn't convinced that you could ever count a double bass as being 'concealed from view', but they did confirm that as long as it was covered with a blanket/tarpaulin then it would be OK.

[tcbass]

Hello, I use Allianz too, £22 a month for £8.000 worth of gear, from any unattended vehicle in Europe. I hope I never have to use it, but its nice to know its there...

[sarah thomas]

It looks well worth it. Thanks, Mand.

[ubassman]

[quote name='MandShef' timestamp='1380724721' post='2229583']
Sarah, I phoned and asked about that, 'cos I wasn't convinced that you could ever count a double bass as being 'concealed from view', but they did confirm that as long as it was covered with a blanket/tarpaulin then it would be OK.
[/quote]

Do you think that means if its in a gig bag then its covered under the policy or would you have to put a blanket over the gig bag do you think?

[Rabbie]

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1380634442' post='2228181']
Musicians Union membership gives me £2,000 non specified insurance. OK, it doesn't cover everything but enough to pay for a DB repair following gig damage (I've claimed once for a split in the table after a sax player knocked my bass over) or my Clarus head getting nicked. Stuff at home is only partially covered but I've always taken the more unlikely risks on the chin.
[/quote]
+1 for this but if you have an instrument worth a lot more than 2k it is worth insuring separately

[Dad3353]

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1380738282' post='2229861']
Do you think that means if its in a gig bag then its covered under the policy or would you have to put a blanket over the gig bag do you think?
[/quote]

Not speaking from experience, of course, but I'd have thought that a bass in a gig bag would be an even more attractive target, if visible, than a 'naked' bass. Even if they don't really know what's in it, if it looks portable, they'll snaffle it. For insurance purposes, I'd say it's not hidden, in the sense of not looking stealable (apparently that word doesn't exist..! A synonym, anyone..?).
Subject to correction, completion and/or contradiction by others, of course...

[bassace]

Thing is, what risk(s) are you insuring against. If I take my bass to a gig the most likely event will be damage of some kind and from some source. OK, I know of a bass that had an upright piano fall on it, so a total write off. But £2,000 will easily cover quite a serious amount of damage. Now, digging deeper on this, to a student for example a DB may well be his principal asset and he would do well to cover his instrument for total loss, eg theft, or in a house fire. My house is equal to an awful lot of basses so it makes sense to get that well-covered and in the event of that getting destroyed I might be less concerned at losing a bass.

We can go through life insuring everything against every risk - and spend an awful lot of money doing so. Or we could cover ourselves against the biggest risks and take the lesser events on the chin.

(Commenting on Rabbie's post - quote missed off, sorry)

Edited October 2, 2013 by bassace

[ubassman]

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1380740530' post='2229922']
We can go through life insuring everything against every risk - and spend an awful lot of money doing so. Or we could cover ourselves against the biggest risks and take the lesser events on the chin.
[/quote]

Thats what Excesses in the Policy are designed to do !

[bassace]

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1380740650' post='2229927']
Thats what Excesses in the Policy are designed to do !
[/quote]

To a point.

[MandShef]

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1380738282' post='2229861']
Do you think that means if its in a gig bag then its covered under the policy or would you have to put a blanket over the gig bag do you think?
[/quote]
No, it needs to be covered up with a blanket or something.

[fatback]

[quote name='gcordez' timestamp='1380717055' post='2229397']
I'm with Allianz and they were great when I had my first double bass stolen out of my car.
[/quote]

And I was betting with myself that nobody would ever be dumb enough to steal a double bass. I have this vision of the thief trying to punt it around the local bars. I don't want to carry it, and I play the wretched thing.

Great Allianz did the right thing by you. Good to know.

How many of you folks have actually had a bass stolen?

Edited October 3, 2013 by fatback

[ubassman]

[Happy Jack]

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1380738282' post='2229861']
Do you think that means if its in a gig bag then its covered under the policy or would you have to put a blanket over the gig bag do you think?
[/quote]

I tried to cover mine under the policy, but the piece of paper wasn't big enough ...

[CamdenRob]

My basses are covered under the house insurance when out and about but not if I'm using them for "professional use".... Guess I'm OK if I'm not getting paid for the gig... bit of a grey area though.

They also asked me on the phone for my house insurance if I lived within 1500 meters of water.... Who doesn't live within 1500 meters of water?

My folks house was flood damaged a few years back and apparently there is a separate pot of money from the government which insurers can draw against for this. When the bloke came to assess the claim he insisted that we needed every door frame and every bit of work custom made by a relevant craftsman to its exact condition before the flood, bespoke carpets and everything... didn't use a single off the shelf part...presumably they were getting us to spend as much as possible then putting their bit on top to draw from the government pot.... dishonest bas***ds.

Rob

[SevenSeas]

I would recommend the Musicians Union (If you're a student) not that it isn't great if you aren't a student. (I think it's about £120 a year? If you aren't a student)
I paid £20 for the year as a student and you have up to £2000 insurance although I was slightly worried as for most gigs I had more than £2000 worth of gear which wasn't ideal. (Of course for electric gigs people were more likely to run off with a bass as for double bass stuff, it would be hard to leave unnoticed)

I currently have no insurance but I am gigging maybe 1/10th as much as I use to be although my general rule is to make sure the gear is being watched at all times, even if you're in the same room as all your stuff, including unloading and loading, soundcheck, intervals. (etc) I am assuming most people do this anyway but I had a gig recently were people wanted to sit at a table that was inconveniently away from all our stuff of which I declined saying someone must be watching the gear at all times. (doesn't help that the loading door was widely open next to a main road)

Each to their own but I can't think of anything worse then your stuff being stolen especially if it could of been prevented.

I will be getting insurance soon for a new double bass which I will want insured up to my eyeballs incase anything does happen!