From rare artwork to wine to unique memorabilia, the world of collecting is both varied and ever-evolving, demanding a strategic approach to collection preservation. A collector’s worst fear is damage to or loss of a priceless, irreplaceable item or collection. For the savvy collector, implementing effective risk mitigation and preservation...
The Art of Restoration with Specialty Insurance
When most collectors think of fine arts insurance, they may imagine disasters brought on by major events like fires, floods, and theft. However, the most common perils that threaten unique art collections are far more subtle: a poorly hung painting that falls to the ground or a simple scratch due to improper handling. Unlike the expectations with...
The Art of Security: Safeguarding High-Value Investments with Collectibles Insurance
In the world of fine art, collectibles insurance is where passion meets investment, which makes ensuring the safety of your client’s valued treasures a tricky business. The reason? Collectors want to know they are preserving not only the monetary value of their collectibles but also the items’ sentimental and historical significance. As a result,...
Ask Your Clients These Collectibles Insurance Questions
Collectibles represented a $458.2 billion market last year, with expectations to grow up to $462 billion in 2023. Whether someone collects sports jerseys, bourbon, jewelry, or specialty duck decoys, they want to know their investment is protected. While standard insurance policies can offer some protection, they weren’t designed with...
What You Need to Know About Insuring Sports Memorabilia
The world of sports memorabilia is a treasure trove of history, unforgettable moments, and (in some cases) risky investments that paid off. From legendary game-worn jerseys to iconic trading cards, to championship souvenirs, and more, collectibles ignite a certain type of passion that transcends time. On top of the nostalgia and sentimental value...
Insuring High-Value Collectibles
There’s investing in stocks, and there’s investing in collectibles. In the latter case, collectors represent a unique group of investors, and it may be precisely this reason why the world of collectibles is as unpredictable as it is adventurous. Some categories of collectibles represent million-dollar investments. Water damage, theft, and even...
King of Collectibles: What Insurance Agents Should Know
“We sell the most interesting things in the world from all categories — sports, entertainment, comics, rock and roll, movies — and we also deal with an incredible cross-section of celebrities, athletes, serious collectors as well as individuals who may find that one thing that’s going to change their life. Literally, within the first 60 seconds...
Protecting a Collection in the Event of a Hurricane
Billion-dollar weather events are on the rise. As an insurance agent, you are likely counseling clients to review and adjust coverage for their personal homes and commercial properties. But have you asked about their collections of artwork, signed sports memorabilia, wine…or something else? For context, insured losses due to severe weather...
Giddy Up Your Coverage: Insuring Bourbon Collections in Time for the Kentucky Derby
Bourbon has become a treasured prize for collectors around the world. But whether you enjoy sipping it neat or mixing it into classic cocktails, bourbon is singularly beloved and wholly American. Bourbon is the only spirit native to the United States and, in fact, is protected by a 1964 Congressional resolution that limits its production to...
How to Insure Antiques and Fine Collectibles
It’s a $42,000 mistake that happened recently at an art exhibit in Miami. The most famous balloon dog sculpture in the U.S. was accidentally knocked over by an attendee — and it shattered into pieces. Wait a minute..? Why didn’t they place that sculpture under protective glass or something? Good point! But the bigger question is, “Who’s going to...
PEZ Outlaws, Beanie Babies, and the Need for Insurance
There’s a group of collectibles that deserves to be in its own category. And because the right name for it doesn’t exist yet, we came up with an acronym of our own. We’re calling this group the CCC — short for “collectible cash cows.” You may already know a bit about these high-value collectibles that have become internet sensations. For one,...
Top 7 Most Unusual Collections We’ve Insured
We’ve all heard stories about the Hollywood stars and athletes who take out insurance policies to cover specific body parts. World War II pinup model and actress Betty Grable was famous for having a $1 million insurance policy on her legs. More recently Proctor and Gamble insured the flowing locks of its shampoo spokesperson (and former...
Loss-Control Tips for Private Collectors
Billion-dollar insurance losses have been on an upward trajectory for the past several decades in a trend that shows no signs of slowing down. The latest data from The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) indicates a dramatic increase in both the total number of billion-dollar events each year as well as the cost of insured...
Why Your Clients Need Collectibles Insurance
As long as items hold value, there will be insurance coverage to protect them, and there are many different types of insurance needs. It’s your responsibility as an agent to offer your clients appropriate coverage for their valuables. If any of your clients are collectors – and millions of people are – collectibles insurance is a great way to...
Protecting Sports Memorabilia
It seems like almost everyone has heard a story about someone's cherished collectible that either went missing or was destroyed. Maybe you or one of your insurance clients are the someone who experienced this loss. For serious collectors, it can be an emotional and often financial loss to discover that a treasured item has disappeared or has been...
3 Types of Collectibles Your Clients May Have
Out of all the clients you have, there's a chance that a few of them have high-value collections of some kind. Most of the time these collections go uninsured (or inadequately insured) because your clients simply are not aware they can insure their precious belongings. With this in mind, remember that it is important to truly get to know your...
Caring for an Antique Collection
Collecting antiques is a wonderful and rewarding hobby. Regardless of the current value of your collection, it’s important to take time to care for your antiques. You’ll want to keep them in top form to maintain their maximum value. Make sure you are not allowing the antiques to get dusty. Try to dust them frequently in order to avoid the damage...
Agents, Are You Asking Your Clients About Art Insurance?
There is estimated to be somewhere between $500 million and $1 billion of insured art globally. If you think about how much art there is in the world – or even just within the United States – and how much monetary value that art is worth, you could surmise that there’s a lot of art going uninsured. There are many gallery owners and art collectors...
How to Collect Customer Feedback
Taking the time to collect customer feedback is important. Having a system in place to make this easier and more fluid is a benefit for every member of your team. By making a habit of collecting feedback, you can potentially identify someone who had a negative or unsatisfactory experience with your agency and turn it around before that client...
What is Your Stamp Collection’s Value?
Many people pick up stamp collecting as a hobby or may end up inheriting a stamp collection from someone. However, when it comes to evaluating a collection, it's easy to get lost trying to decipher all the jargon online. We are going to break down some of that vocabulary to help make you a bit savvier while shopping or when communicating to a...