Equipment insurance for professional photographers

Who needs photography equipment insurance?

Anyone who earns a living by taking or recording images needs camera and equipment insurance. That’s whether you work from a studio or on location.

You can’t rely on your home contents insurance to cover the kit you use for your business. You need a dedicated policy instead.

So, in no particular order, that means:

• Baby photographers
• School photographers
• Wedding photographers
• Videographers
• Commercial photographers
• Food photographers
• Advertising photographers
• Fashion photographers
• Corporate photographers
• Portrait photographers
• Wildlife photographers
• Sports photographers
• Pet photographers
• Event photographers
• Landscape photographers
• Architectural photographers
• Travel photographers
• Stock photographers
• Paparazzi

And anyone else who uses camera equipment in their line of work.

What does photography equipment insurance cover?

Equipment insurance for photographers covers all the kit you use to run your business. So that’s cameras, lenses, flashguns, tripods, lights, laptops, phones and any other tech.

All the stuff you rely on and can’t work without, in other words. Props and hired-in equipment too.

If any of it gets lost, damaged or stolen, your policy pays to repair or replace items as new. That’s whether it happens in the course of your work, in transit or otherwise.

Good, huh? It also pays for you to hire kit to tide you over in the meantime.

What it doesn’t cover is drones. You need a specialist policy for that.

Does insurance for camera equipment cover lost data?

All self-respecting photographers’ equipment insurance has Ts & Cs around backing up data.

But sometimes a camera can be dropped and damaged before you’ve had a chance to transfer the images. So what then?

For physical damage, Hiscox equipment cover hooks you up with CATS (Computer & Technology Solutions). They’re experts at retrieving data.

And that can save you from having to explain to a client where their once-in-a-lifetime images have disappeared to. It can even stop you being sued for negligence.

How much camera and equipment insurance do I need?

The trick is to add up the value of all your kit, from cameras and laptops to lens caps. Then buy enough cover to take care of the lot.

Because what happens if there’s a burglary and your whole inventory goes AWOL? Or a flood at your studio ruins every last item of kit you own?

You can’t work, that’s what. Not unless you somehow have enough cash idling in your bank account to replace it all in one very expensive go.

Remember you need enough cover to take account of the replacement value of each item. Not what you paid for it originally.

And if you hire in equipment from elsewhere, you’ll need enough to cover that, too.

Does photography equipment insurance cover me for overseas travel?

It can do, yes.

It can cover you for working:

• in the UK only
• within the UK and EU, or
• worldwide.

You just need to choose which parts of the planet you want cover for when buying your policy.

Photography gear insurance even covers your kit in transit, with certain Ts & Cs.

If you want worldwide cover for your kit, it’s obviously going to cost a bit more than a UK-only policy. But it’ll be worth it if your equipment goes walkabout in Wyoming.

What other kinds of insurance do photographers need?

Your kit’s your lifeblood when there’s a job to do. So it’s worth protecting.

But there are other types of insurance photographers need to protect their business. And their reputation.

Professional indemnity insurance has your back if you’re accused of negligence. Say a client alleges your poor standard of work cost them money. It pays for your legal defence and any compensation due.

Public liability insurance takes care of accidents and mishaps…like someone tripping over your tripod or a lighting rig crashing through a window. It pays both legal costs and compensation for injury and property damage.

Equipment breakdown insurance covers you if your kit just stops…working. So mechanical failure rather than damage – but not wear and tear. It pays for repair or replacement of broken gear, as well as data retrieval.