Should I insure my personal possessions?

Should I insure my personal possessions?

Sam Friedman (Editor-in-Chief, National Underwriter, Property & Casualty Edition) gives expert video advice on: What does homeowner's insurance cover?; Am I required to have homeowner's insurance?; What does home insurance property protection cover? and more...

Many of your personal possessions are insured automatically under your homeowner's policy. For instance, if you lose your couch, if you lose your television, if you lose your dining room table. Those are pretty standard items. If they're lost in a fire, for example, and have to be replaced, you will be able to replace those things at a reasonable cost. However, you should be very aware that if you have any sorts of specialized property that's hard to put a value on - a stamp collection, a baseball card collection, fancy fur, extra-special jewelry - these types of things need to be brought to the attention of the agent and the insurer up front. And you may have to have endorsements, which are additions to coverage, to make sure that these items are adequately appraised, accounted for, and insured under your policy.