Scheduled Items

	Scheduling valuables is an important reason to have homeowner insurance. Don’t forget to schedule them and make sure they are covered.

Homeowner policies do not cover everything. Many personal items, which are covered, are limited to a specific amount. For example, most homeowner policies limit coverage for theft of jewelry to $500 or $1,000. If you have an engagement ring worth more than this limit, you must "schedule" that item on your homeowner policy.

Scheduling simply means the specific item is listed with a description and current value. If it is stolen or destroyed by a covered loss, the company will pay the lesser of the cost to repair or replace the item up to the scheduled limit.

The types of personal items most often scheduled are listed below. The limits provided are just guidelines. You must check your specific policy for the actual limits.

• Jewelry - Most policies limit unscheduled jewelry to $1,000.
• Business Property in the Home - Business property is usually limited to $2,500 while on premise and just $250 while away from the home.
• Furs - Most policies limit unscheduled jewelry to $1,000.
• Silverware - Limits vary, but most policies limit coverage to $5,000.
• Guns - Many companies limit guns to $1,000.
• Camera Equipment - Check your policy; we have some companies that do not limit cameras.
• Antiques and Collectibles - While most companies do not limit these, they should be scheduled to help establish the value.
• Fine Arts including Paintings, Sculptures, Oriental Rugs - Like antiques, fine arts are rarely limited, but you should schedule valuable fine art objects to help establish their value.
• Stamp and Coin Collections - Coin collections are considered cash if not scheduled, and the coin is paid for at its monetary value. i.e. - If a rare penny were stolen, you would receive 1 cent if it was not scheduled. Cash money is limited to as low as $100 in some policies.
• Baseball cards, Magazine collections - These are rarely limited, but if they are not scheduled, companies pay very little.
• China, Hummel’s, collector plates - Many of these item’s value can be found in magazines or periodicals and very few companies limit the coverage.
• Computers - Some companies limit computers to $2,500, others say if they are used for business coverage is limited. Check your policy.

What are the advantages to scheduling?

Scheduling items provides three advantages:

• It provides an additional amount of insurance - Contents coverage is a percentage of the insurance on the home. Usually, this is 70% to 75% of the dwelling. If a total loss occurred, the contents limit could be paid (with verification) and the scheduled items would be paid in addition to the contents limit.
• It usually does not have any deductible - All homeowner policies have a deductible. The most common amount is $250. If a $500 gold chain were stolen, only $250 would be paid if it were not scheduled. ($500 less the $250 deductible) However, if were scheduled, the entire $500 would be paid. (Some companies allow for deductibles on scheduled items to lower the premium.)
• The coverage is usually broader - Scheduling an item usually provides the broader "risks of loss" coverage which states that coverage applies unless excluded in the policy elsewhere. Unscheduled items are most often covered with "Named Perils" coverage, which lists the perils insured against.

Be careful, scheduling does not guarantee you will receive the scheduled amount. If a diamond ring were scheduled for $5,000 and a similar size, cut, clarity and color diamond could be purchased for a lesser amount; the ring would be replaced for that lesser amount, rather than a check being issued for $5,000.