Insurance for your move, without the small print
The question is not whether there is insurance. It is what exactly it covers, and on what figure it pays.
Carrier liability is not insurance
Every carrier is liable for what it carries, but that legal liability is capped and usually calculated by weight, not value. Translated: a two-kilo box with a camera inside is settled as two kilos of cargo, not as a camera.
Transit insurance is a separate thing and is bought separately. It pays on the value you declare in the inventory. Carrier liability does not replace it, and it is worth being clear on that beforehand rather than afterwards.
What value to declare
Replacement value, not purchase price. What it would cost to replace the item today, in the country where you will be living. A sofa bought eight years ago is not settled at what it cost then, nor at second-hand value, but at what an equivalent one costs there.
Under-declaring lowers the premium and raises the disappointment. Over-declaring achieves nothing, because settlement is paid against proven damage, not against the declared figure.
The three legs that need covering
Handling (loading, unloading, carrying), transit (ocean or air, with its transshipments) and time in storage if the goods are warehoused. These do not always sit in the same policy, and that is where the gaps appear.
If your move includes storage, ask explicitly whether those days are covered. We tell you without being asked, but it is worth knowing when comparing any operator.
What it includes
- Domestic or international transit policy to match the route
- Cover for handling during loading and unloading
- Cover for time in storage when warehousing is involved
- Valued inventory as the basis of the cover
- Written explanation of what each option covers and excludes
- Support with the claim if one has to be filed
Frequently asked questions
How much does the insurance cost?
It is a percentage of the declared inventory value, varying with the route and whether storage is involved. Because it is tied to declared value, the figure follows automatically once the inventory exists.
What does a moving policy never cover?
Pre-existing wear, hidden defects and, almost always, anything packed by the client. Cash, jewellery and documents are normally excluded too, which is why they should travel with you.
If something arrives damaged, what do I do?
Note it on the delivery record at that moment, before signing it off, and photograph it. A claim filed days later against a delivery signed without exception is far harder to sustain.
Shall we quote this service?
Tell us what you need to move and from where. The quote comes from a home survey, not from a phone estimate.