Whether you have a couple of bottles or an extensive collection, if you have spent time and money building a whisky bottle collection then it is worth spending a little time to check that it is insured. A lot of collectors assume their bottles are covered on their household insurance, but as general insurers have little understanding of the value of alternative assets you risk not being completely covered if something should happen – if you are insured at all.
In a video with the whisky insurance expert Alexandra Richards from Bruce Stevenson Insurance, Mark and Alexandra discuss the ins and outs of insuring your collection.
What you need to know about insuring a whisky collection
The video covers everything you need to know about insuring a whisky collection direct from an expert within the industry. Below are a few extracts from the video highlighting the keys points.
Home insurance
You may assume your collection is covered on home insurance but there are issues with this. Standard household insurance policies won’t insure bottles above a certain value, often less than £1,500. Also the cover isn’t often specialist enough for collections.
Specialist insurance covers your collection for physical loss or damage at home and in transit. It covers accidental damage, including shelves collapsing, boxes being damaged and flooding, giving your collection as much protection as possible.
Exclusions
The things you aren’t covered for are things like inherent vice. In addition, you have an inherent responsibility to look after your bottle storing it correctly etc. Please check the documentation for a full list of exclusions.
Storage
You can store your collection across multiple locations, including home, self storage and professional facilities. You do need to inform the insurer about this and there are limits to cover in self storage.
Transit
Cover remains in transit, as long as the bottles are properly prepared for transport, such as in suitable air sacs. In transit cover begins as soon as you own the bottle so covers bottles purchased at auction that needs to be posted or through a shop that you want to take straight home.
The cover is usually based on fair market value at the time of loss.
Based on prices at the time of filming cover starts at £351 for up to £100,000 worth of cover.
How to document your collection for insurance?
It is important to keep track of your collection through up to date inventories. Receipts are useful if you have them. Photographs aren’t a requirement but is a quick and efficient way of documenting the bottle and its condition. Keeping a record of the market value is also useful and needed on the anniversary of your policy.
Please note that the above is meant as a introduction, you should discuss your specific policy and needs with your insurer to ensure that your cover is sufficient for your needs and check for specific exclusions etc.
Discount code
To claim £25 off the Insurers Minimum Premium for collections under £100,000 quote BSIBML on your fact find. If you don’t quote this reference you won’t get the discount. The discount does not apply to collections valued more than £100,000. All policies are subject to terms and conditions and administration fees.
Prices accurate at time of publication.
To get a quotation or learn more please contact Alexandra Richards +44 (0)131 553 2293 [email protected] or visit www.brucestevenson.co.uk
To claim £25 off your policy simply quote the code BSIBML on your fact find
