Postcard Collection Insurance

[santadog99]

I think I need to get separate insurance for my postcard collection. Can anyone recommend insurance companies that have policies suitable for postcard collections? I already have general house contents insurance.

[kevinramsdale]

http://www.stampinsurance.co.uk/index.htm

[Andrew]

I noted that they advertised in last years' BIPEX catalogue.

Would it be an idea, since they are specialist insurers, to have a permanent link to their website somewhere on this website - subject to their agreement of course (although, I can't see them not agreeing, since it gives them more free advertising)?

[Moonraker]

I used to be a keen stamp collector and had problems getting insurance cover, even though it was kept in a safe. Companies wanted to know if the safe was bolted to the ground, could I give a list of all the items (in 20 albums!), could I get it professionally valued (which would have cost a bomb)? They seem far less concerned about postcard collections - perhaps they don't realise how valuable they can be. My house and contents are now insured with the Pru, and they were quite obliging about my collections. (I've sold off a lot of the stamps, so now there's room in the safe for my postcards.)

Perhaps Santa Dog has come up with similar problems? It may be that a non-specialist company would cover his collection if its value didn't exceed a certain proportion of that of all his contents.

Some years ago, I got a leaflet from the company recommended by Kevin and felt that it offered a reasonable service, but found a company (can't recall which) which offered slightly better terms.

Moonraker


Moonraker

[Andrew]

My current household insurer last year refused to insure my collection of postcards and engravings - unless, like Moonraker, I had it professionally valued. It's too large to carry to a valuer, even if I could find such a person, so they would have to come to my home.

Even if I had it valued, my insurers advised that they would only pay out for items I replaced. They would NOT pay out compensation.

Given that it's taken so many years to build up the collection, I consider that it's irreplaceable. If I lose it, there's no way I could replace it, so would probably just give it up, rather than start again.

So why pay premiums to insure something that I cannot really replace.

And that's from someone who has worked in the insurance world for all his working life.

[RAFPOL]

Personally, I find insurance, just one giant rip off. Experience has taught me that the insurance companies are very happy to take your premiums every week/month, then comes the crunch. You have to make a claim ! Oh calamity! This is where the small print comes into play and they are full of opt out clauses for the insurance company concerned. I don't know what the alternative is, other than to keep your home security updated and hope that you don't get burgled, a fire or flood.

[Moonraker]

.

... Even if I had it valued, my insurers advised that they would only pay out for items I replaced...

How daft. Many of the postcards I've got aren't likely to come my way again, and some have postmarks and messages that make them probably unique.

Then there are insurance companies who expect you to obtain replacement household goods from their approved stores, which may not stock the item you had in the first place. A case in point some years was being expected to get a top-quality bicycle from Halfords, who only very recently have started stocking these and then of only one make and with one range of components.

Moonraker

[Moonraker]

One might also ruminate about what value an item should be when paying extra for a "signed for" postal service. An Australian eBay vendor once insisted on sending a £7 PC by an "international signed for" service that cost me £5 (which I knew about and had allowed for when I was bidding). And he said he couldn't use Australian commem stamps, so all I got on the envelope was a boring bit of paper. As a vendor (currently of stamps) and buyer (of PCs), I'm inclined to risk posting, or having posted to me, material worth up to £25 by ordinary mail, then prefer Recorded Delivery up to around £65, then it's Special Delivery. At least for signed-for letters I use high-value commem stamps, but am reluctant to put them on unsigned-for packets because they give a clue that the contents are philatelic.

One snag with having to sign for packets is that I'm not always in, so have to nominate a day when I shall be or do a six-mile round trip to collect it from the sorting office.

This morning I tumbled out of bed to sign for a "Special Delivery" PC that had cost me £35; the vendor had charged me £1 for p & p, but still sent it by a service costing £4.30. (I would have thought Recorded Delivery would have done, but still.) Occasionally as an eBay vendor I also pay extra to send by a signed-for service if bidding for an item has gone very high.

Moonraker

[kevinramsdale]

This morning I tumbled out of bed to sign for a "Special Delivery" PC that had cost me £35; the vendor had charged me £1 for p & p, but still sent it by a service costing £4.30. (I would have thought Recorded Delivery would have done, but still.) Occasionally as an eBay vendor I also pay extra to send by a signed-for service if bidding for an item has gone very high.

Moonraker

I would also do that when sending out an item which has sold for a good price, plus also on rare occasions when I'm uneasy about the buyer.

Not really much of a a problem in the postcard sector, but allegedly there are forums/chatrooms dispensing advice on how to obtain goods on eBay for nowt by claiming non delivery, not as described, faulty etc

[Moonraker]

Not really much of a a problem in the postcard sector, but allegedly there are forums/chatrooms dispensing advice on how to obtain goods on eBay for nowt by claiming non delivery, not as described, faulty etc

Hopefully not too much of a problem with postcards, as the value is relatively low. Dunno about there being advice on how to fiddle, but there are certainly websites, including eBay's own Community (link on top-right of most eBay pages), advising on how to go about things when one feels one has a genuine grievance.


Moonraker

[MichaelDay]

I noted that they advertised in last years' BIPEX catalogue.

Would it be an idea, since they are specialist insurers, to have a permanent link to their website somewhere on this website - subject to their agreement of course (although, I can't see them not agreeing, since it gives them more free advertising)?

I've added a link here....
http://www.postcard.co.uk/nonptalinks.php

They also give discounts to PTA members so are due to get a mention on the PTA membership benefits page I'm currently working on.