insure a dress to be stored elsewhere???

AALC

Hi,

My friend wants to store her wedding dress at my house. My insurance company say that it won't be covered under my contents insurance so I am wondering how we might go about finding an insurer for this one off item. The dress is worth circa £2500.

A

Dangermac

AALC wrote: »

Hi,

My friend wants to store her wedding dress at my house. My insurance company say that it won't be covered under my contents insurance so I am wondering how we might go about finding an insurer for this one off item. The dress is worth circa £2500.

A

The dress doesnt belong to you, and you dont appear to have a legal responsibility for the dress. This means that you dont really have an 'insurable interest'

The dress is your friend's to insure - she will need to add to her insurance arrangements, as being stored away from her home. She need to organise this as part of her household insurance arrangements.

DM

InsideInsurance

Normally you do have an insurable interest as you are looking after it and so have a duty of care towards it and the owner. Did your insurers say why it wasnt covered by your Home insurance?

Dangermac

InsideInsurance wrote: »

Normally you do have an insurable interest as you are looking after it and so have a duty of care towards it and the owner. Did your insurers say why it wasnt covered by your Home insurance?

Completely disagree. The OP (presumably) isn't being paid to look after it. They are doing as a favour. They don't own the dress and have no financial interest in the dress.

The reason that the insurer say it isn't covered is simply because there is no insurable interest.

I have picked up a random household insurance policy wording (from one of the UK's largest and most prolific insurers), and the definition of 'contents' is:

- Items that you own
- Items that you are legally responsible for
- That belong to domestic employees who love with you

The whole raison d'etre (reason for being) of a household policy is to cover things that are damage which effective cause you a loss. If the items don't belong to you, and you aren't legally liable for them (like say a rented tv), I cant see why your insurer would be paying out.

The reply from Inside Insurance seems to turn the whole concept of insurable interest on it's head, and to my mind he/she is completely wrong. If an item is to be covered for which the the OP has no ownership or responsibility for, the OP could effectively make a profit out of the item being damaged.

Anyway, in summary, I would ignore the advice of Inside Insurance. My experience in the insurance industry (and my research this morning) is telling me that them item is not the OP's to insure. The friend needs to insure the item.

DM

trukdiver

Dangermac wrote: »

- That belong to domestic employees who love with you

You mean like in "Upstairs Downstairs"?

nobbysn*ts

So, anything I borrow, stuff my kids friends bring round, nothing is insured?

Quentin

nobbysn*ts wrote: »

So, anything I borrow, stuff my kids friends bring round, nothing is insured?

Not on your policy

trukdiver

AALC wrote: »

Hi,

My friend wants to store her wedding dress at my house. My insurance company say that it won't be covered under my contents insurance so I am wondering how we might go about finding an insurer for this one off item. The dress is worth circa £2500.

A

Is it for long term storage or short term - to hide it before the wedding? If it's short term, wouldn't wedding insurance cover it?

vaio

nobbysn*ts wrote: »

So, anything I borrow, stuff my kids friends bring round, nothing is insured?

Quentin wrote: »

Not on your policy

Doesn't sound right, Direct Line definition of contents is

Contents
Household goods, personal possessions, camping equipment, money, satellite dishes, aerials and other articles, unless otherwise insured, for which you are responsible or that belong to you, domestic staff who live in or guests, except paying guests........

which to me reads that anything I borrow & stuff my kids friends bring round are covered

Dangermac

vaio wrote: »

Doesn't sound right, Direct Line definition of contents is

which to me reads that anything I borrow & stuff my kids friends bring round are covered

Contents
Household goods, personal possessions, camping equipment, money, satellite dishes, aerials and other articles, unless otherwise insured, for which you are responsible or that belong to you, domestic staff who live in or guests, except paying guests........

Only if you are responsible for the items (i.e have formally agreed to take responsibility for their safekeeping). Pretty similar to the intention of the Aviva policy.

DM

vaio

Although it suits your argument I'm not sure that your "formally agreed to take responsibility for their safekeeping" can be read into the DL "for which you are responsible".

What does "formally agreed" mean? Contract? Does not "informal agreement" also qualify? How about common law tortuous duty of care?

If I borrow something off you then I am responsible for its safekeeping whilst I have it and would expect my insurer to cover it as if it was mine.