Whether you choose a policy that pays actual cash value or replacement cost, there are limits to what the policy will pay to replace your personal property. With a renters policy, you set these dollar limits when you decide how much insurance to buy. Your policy will never pay you more than the limits you choose.

Limits On High-Value Items

No matter how much personal property protection you buy, all policies set dollar limits on what they will pay for certain high-value items — even if you have replacement cost coverage. For example, not everyone has $20,000 worth of jewelry… so rather than make everyone pay the premium, the special limits cause only those who do have the exposure to pay for it. While standard coverages vary from policy to policy, typical limitations are listed in the next column:

Jewelry, watches, furs	$1,000
Guns	$2,000
Silverware, goldware	$2,500
Watercraft, including trailers and motors	$1,000
Money, coins, gold, silver	$200
Stamps, securities, valuable paper	$1,000

Limits listed above are for each category, not for each item in a category. For example, if a burglar absconds with your $2,000 ring and $500 watch during the same incident, your insurance would cover only $1,000.

The limits shown above for jewelry, watches, furs, guns and silverware apply to theft losses only. In many states, for other causes of covered losses, you would be reimbursed up to the dollar limits of the personal property portion of your policy. Ask your insurance company representative if your state has different regulations governing insurance on high-value items. Also ask about limits on the amount your policy will pay to replace items such as antiques, memorabilia, souvenirs and collectors’ items.

Next: Floaters And Endorsements

Updated Thursday, July 22, 2004

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