For that reason, many moving companies purchase cargo insurance for household goods movers in case of damage so that their clients can be paid back promptly.
As a mover of household goods, you do face liability for all of the things you lose or damage. Although loss and damage are inevitable in some cases, you are still required to pay a certain amount of money. However, commercial auto liability differs depending on many factors.
Federal law mandates that those moving between states must offer a minimum of two cargo insurance options. Those are full value protection and released value protection.
Under full value protection, the mover has the most protection they can get. The client is entitled to full replacement value for anything that is lost or damaged for the entire duration of the shipment.
Released value protection however, means that you are only somewhat protected. There may be certain goods and items that you are still liable to pay should damage or loss occur.
The full value protection can be more expensive, but might be worth the money for claims brought against the mover. However, these are just baseline federal requirements, and there are additional cargo insurance for household goods movers coverages you can purchase (such as truckers general liability).
Policies should take into account the dollar sign value of cargo, but also consider the emotional aspect of value when things are being transported. Items such as photos or gifts cannot be easily replaced, and may end up costing movers more if damaged.
Cargo insurance for household goods movers covers the basics, your property, and things being transported. A good policy should encompass both the actual monetary value of things but also the emotional and sentimental value, such as goods that were custom made or family items and gifts (maybe even photos).
In addition to full value coverage and released value protection, some companies also offer separate liability insurance. Separate liability insurance is run by state law. It generally covers the insurance amount that has been purchased minus the difference of basic liability that the mover can pay (which is usually around $.60 for every pound they carry). This can provide additional coverage to your existing plan that may be necessary in the future.
If by contrast, you are a homeowner, there may be other things for you to take into consideration. It is by no means standard, but there are homeowner policies that can cover people’s property while they are moving. This means that a mover may not need to cover the cost alone (depending on the legal liability of course).
Homeowner or auto protection will probably not cover things you take in a personal vehicle. In that case, it may be worth it to stick to a moving company, so as to ensure the fullest possible protection.
In the event that something happens to your property, you are going to have to file a claim with the appropriate insurance company so that they’ll agree to cover the maximum cost possible. However, this also involves an issue of proof, as this can often be a battle of assertions.
In order to successfully file a claim as a homeowner, it has to be proven that the moving company actually moved the items in question and that the items were not damaged before the move. This can usually be accomplished through an inventory list (taking stock before and after the move), and serve as proof. It is also a good idea to take photos of different items before they are transported so that it can be shown that damage occurred only after the move.
Similarly as a mover, you can benefit from taking a full inventory and also pictures of cargo as it is being loaded on and proving that things were damaged before they got to your vehicle.
We hope this article on cargo insurance for household goods movers has been informative. Moving can be a hectic experience. Whether you are a household goods mover or a homeowner, there is a lot of risk of damage that can be done, leaving you with high costs. The best way to avoid this is to make sure that either the household goods mover or homeowner has sufficient protection of goods during the entire process.
Read through helpful commercial auto insurance for small business to help you better understand polices you own or are buying.
