Understanding Your Move Valuation

Many people get confused when they try to understand the difference between valuation and insurance coverage when planning their move with a professional mover. Typically the type of coverage that you have with your homeowners or renters insurance policies provides coverage for your household goods while they are in your residence. Depending on the type of policy you purchased, you may have full replacement or depreciated value coverage. With moving companies, the means in which you items are covered in case of loss or damage is known as valuation and the amount of coverage is determined by the value of your shipment.

Moving companies will generally apply a minimum amount of valuation for your move at no additional charge to you. Typically this valuation coverage is at $0.60 per lb. that is transported. If you have an item that weighs 100 lbs., the amount of coverage you would have included in your move at no additional cost would only be $60.00. Obviously, that would not replace a large screen TV in today's market. Therefore, it is generally advisable to purchase additional valuation coverage when planning your move.

Most moving companies will establish a minimum amount of coverage based on the weight of your shipment in order to provide you with a quote for full replacement coverage. For example, an industry norm for coverage is to provide $6.00 per lb. for full replacement of the damaged item. So if you have 10,000 lbs of household goods, you would need to purchase $60,000 of full replacement valuation to fully cover your items. Should you have items that are of high value such as antiques, pianos, fine art, or any others, you may need to determine if the amount of coverage is adequate enough to cover your entire shipment. It is important to remember that full replacement valuation can be quite expensive and depending on the weight of your shipment can be add an additional $500.00 or more to the cost of your move.

At most moving companies, in addition to full replacement valuation, you will also be given the option of purchasing a type of coverage that would include a deductible amount. For example, you may be given a $250.00 deductible or a $500.00 deductible. These deductibles work just like the deductible coverage that you have for your automobile insurance or homeowners insurance. When considering these options, you may want to perform a comparison of the amount of coverage you would have if you chose the coverage supplied by the carrier at no charge, typically $0.60 per lb. to the amount of coverage that you would have with a deductible coverage option on place. Determining factors in your decision should be the claims record of your mover, and the actual difference in the pricing between the two options. Also, you may want to take some other factors into consideration such as the distance that you are moving, if you are having the mover pack your goods professionally making them responsible for damages due to the packing process, or if you are packing yourself in order to gauge the risk of having damages during your move. Depending on your situation, it may be just as acceptable to take the coverage provided at no charge, than the coverage with a deductible.

One last thought is to make absolutely sure that you are not covered with your homeowners or renters policy before you choose to purchase additional valuation coverage from a moving company. Most insurance companies will cover you when your goods are being moved by a professional mover for losses such as in the event of a fire or natural disaster. Most often they will not cover your goods when the damage is caused by the mover. However, some companies do cover this damage within your existing homeowners' policy or will offer some type of coverage that may cost less than purchasing the valuation coverage that is being offered through the mover. It is important to review your particular situation with you insurance company prior to finalizing your move.