I just scared myself

[philc]

As the title goes, in an idle moment yesterday, I did a rough calculation of what my whole gadget bag contents are worth and cme up with £3300 replacement costs! Checking with my home insurers, tells me that this value is actually covered, but I wondered what everyone else -especially the professionals here -do about insurance/security of photo kit?

Phil

[Robshaw]

As the title goes, in an idle moment yesterday, I did a rough calculation of what my whole gadget bag contents are worth and cme up with £3300 replacement costs! Checking with my home insurers, tells me that this value is actually covered, but I wondered what everyone else -especially the professionals here -do about insurance/security of photo kit?

Phil

Everything of mine is pictured with the original purchase receipt with it.

[Scuff]

Around 30k of kit all insured on a pro policy which includes cover for kit left in the car etc. Also public liability included.

[philc]

Around 30k of kit all insured on a pro policy which includes cover for kit left in the car etc. Also public liability included.

..........And I'm not surprised . I've looked at equipment insurance but it seems expensive for the keen amateur, as opposed to the pro.

Phil

[Loz]

I used to have mine insured, but I don't at the moment. What scares me more is that when I go out to take macro photos (ie just one of my camera bodies, one lens and a flash) I'm using over £2k worth of equipment :S

I try not to think about it

[eccleshill]

I used to have mine insured, but I don't at the moment. What scares me more is that when I go out to take macro photos (ie just one of my camera bodies, one lens and a flash) I'm using over £2k worth of equipment :S

I try not to think about it

And then you get into £15-25,000 of car and travel at 70mph amidst a load of other folk doing the same. Makes your camera's life look quite safe and sedate

In the grand scheme of things £2000 isn't much money - that much cash disappears up my exhaust pipe each year.

You still need to get it insured though!

[Loz]

And then you get into £15-25,000 of car and travel at 70mph amidst a load of other folk doing the same. Makes your camera's life look quite safe and sedate

In the grand scheme of things £2000 isn't much money - that much cash disappears up my exhaust pipe each year.

You still need to get it insured though!

And then go home into your house that cost £200k - yes I know, but realistically most peoples cameras are probably well under £1k, unless they are into it! And as I pointed out - that is just one set up - ie one lens, one body and a flash. Take into account that I have several lenses, several bodies and other 'accessories' it's not all that cheap!!

P.s - it more than likely comes out of your exhaust pipe - if it's disappearing up it then....

[logiclee]

Just over £4000 with all filters, bags, tripods etc included. Have seperate photography insurance with car cover.

Struggled to get holiday cover this year and was only covered if the room had forced entry.

My Cousin is a pro and works mainly on humanitarian projects so ends up in all the worse places on the planet. His insurance is a nightmare.

Cheers

Lee

[ukcruiser]

ha ha - £5500 in one body alone! 3 of them + Lenses - best not add it up!

Al.

[Sonner]

£49 for camera, and used gift vouchers i won at work, so to me free i guess.

i don't want to offend anyone but this is starting to sound a bit like a bragging match. be it £200 or £5500, isn't photograhy about personal expression and looking at things through different lights and angles.

fair enough if you have built that amount of equipment of a few years, but i'm not keen on this very materialistic nature this thread is becoming

[ukcruiser]

£49 for camera, and used gift vouchers i won at work, so to me free i guess.

i don't want to offend anyone but this is starting to sound a bit like a bragging match. be it £200 or £5500, isn't photograhy about personal expression and looking at things through different lights and angles.

fair enough if you have built that amount of equipment of a few years, but i'm not keen on this very materialistic nature this thread is becoming

Maybe so... but People would laugh at me if i turned upto work with a £50 quid camera... and i couldn't give my clients the results that they want and expect from me... The difference between a genuine, top-end Nikon Lens and a £100 sigma lens, to me, is huge. Horses for courses i presume, but i'm sure a professional joiner would not turn upto work with a cordless drill from Makro...

Al.

[Lady Elanore]

£49 for camera, and used gift vouchers i won at work, so to me free i guess.

i don't want to offend anyone but this is starting to sound a bit like a bragging match. be it £200 or £5500, isn't photograhy about personal expression and looking at things through different lights and angles.

fair enough if you have built that amount of equipment of a few years, but i'm not keen on this very materialistic nature this thread is becoming

I know what you mean and agree about the personal expression side of photography, but people like Scuff do it for a living, so it isn't really bragging. It's just showing us how expensive it really is when you move from keen amateur to fully Pro.

[the mad monk]

it wouldnt matter how much i spent on a camera, id still be useless

its not how good the camera is these days but how good you are with photoshop. i bet a good photoshop user could produce better pictures with a point and shoot camera than i could with a 5k bit of kit

thats why i just use my desire hd phone these days

[Photogdave]

Monk I sort of agree but remember you can't polish a turd, but you can cover it in glitter!

[KBPhoto]

The OP was a question about insurance on camera kit, not about how much kit you have.

As a professional photographer, I have a lot of kit (mobile studio as well as cameras) which is all insured on a professional insurance policy (Aaduki) as I get a discount through my professional membership. This covers me up to a high level of cover, in vehicle as well as away from home, but also includes Public Liability and Professional Indemnity insurance that and amateur photographer would not need.

My insurance came in at just over £300 (edit: just renewed for the next 12 months and it came to less than last year - £280 ish), so I'd guess that camera cover only would be significantly less that this.

I am under the impression that as long as you are not using your cameras in a professional capacity, and your house / contents insurance covers it, then you should be fine. Perhaps you could double check with your insurer and get it in writing by email or letter.

When considering the relative 'expense' of equipment insurance, consider what you would do if you dropped your camera and trashed both the body & lens? Could you afford to replace it from your bank account or does the c.£200 for insurance start to look appealing?

The counter argument would be that I might not drop my camera for 6 years and, by not paying insurance, would have saved c.£1200 along the way (but will this still be in your bank account after 6 years?)

Edited 13 December, 2011 by KBPhoto

[Loz]

ha ha - £5500 in one body alone! 3 of them + Lenses - best not add it up!

Al.

Nice I can't bring myself to spend that much on a body, keep being tempted though..... I want full frame!!

[KBPhoto]

I can't bring myself to spend that much on a body, keep being tempted though..... I want full frame!!

Second hand full Frame Canon 5D would be about £800 in reasonably good condition.

It might be c.7 years old now, but I am still hammering mine as a pro-wedding tog (and other photography jobs) and it works great.

[Loz]

Second hand full Frame Canon 5D would be about £800 in reasonably good condition.

It might be c.7 years old now, but I am still hammering mine as a pro-wedding tog (and other photography jobs) and it works great.

Canon? no thanks! :wonder: I want a D700.... no wait, a D3s... mmmmmmm hehe!

[Lady Elanore]

I'd love full frame (2nd hand 5D perhaps?) but most of the things I snap use longer focal lengths so I guess it is cheaper to stick with my 7D. To be honest, I don't think I am good enough to make the most of a full frame

[KBPhoto]

Canon? no thanks!

I'm not going down the Nikon/Canon avenue! It's just not worth it...

At the end of the day, it's the photographer that makes the picture!

I want a D700.... no wait, a D3s... mmmmmmm

Me to, but I can't justify changing my whole kit bag from Canon to Nikon. Way too expensive!

And I don't think that I've bee soooo good that Santa will bring me a new Billingham bag loaded with a D3s, lenses and flashes, etc.