Ask Aaduki

Insurance questions asked by Societies' members.

aaduki Q: Hi Aaduki,
I am insured with another company and whilst taking pictures of my kids splashing around in the bath I dropped the camera in with them! Whilst they found it funny, when I tried to claim the insurance company said as I wasn't working then it wasn't covered on my policy and I should claim on my household insurance. The trouble is my household insurance had lapsed so they won't pay what do you suggest?

R, Surrey

A: Aaduki says: This Insurance Company is really taking the proverbial! Have a look at your policy and see if it says you are only covered whilst working professionally. If it does, then I am afraid there will be very little you can do but if it doesn't then complain to the Managing Director of the Company. If they still refuse to budge, then ask them for their complaints procedure and tell them you intend to take it further. Follow the complaints procedure and I am sure the outcome will be in your favour. I would also suggest looking for another Insurance Company that doesn't apply such a ridiculous rule as well!

Q: Hi Aaduki,
I do a lot of landscape photography and spend many a night in a tent. After reviewing my policy which is due to be renewed, I have noticed that I am not covered overnight in an unattended vehicle. My current Insurers want me to take the photographic equipment into the tent with me, but I feel it is safer in the car! Is there anyway around this you know of?

J, Cumbria

A: Aaduki says: Theft from Unattended Vehicles is a bit of a "hot potato" with Insurers and they don't like covering it. However, in this case, it seems like a common sense approach is needed, where it stands to reason that the equipment will be much safer in the car overnight than in the tent with you! I think that this would be need to be dealt with on a case by case basis - call an insurance company and ask them to refer it to the Underwriters. Aaduki would certainly take a pragmatic view on this, but there will be deciding factors like how close to the tent is the car and is it alarmed. You will need to call for more advice on this...

Q: Hi Aaduki,
I want to exhibit at a wedding fair and the Organisers have told me that I need Public Liability cover. Is my PL cover on the policy I currently have going to cover this or will I need to take out additional PL cover for this one off event?

M, Newcastle

A: Aaduki says: The short answer to this is it depends on who you are insured with! A quick ring to your Company should be able to sort this out - if you are insured with Aaduki then the answer is yes, you are covered. Make sure you find out though - some PL covers won't cover you if you do damage to the Hotel or venue so you need to be sure!

Q: Hi Aaduki,
With the way the economy is going I want to ensure that my finances are protected so have been looking for insurance to protect them. The trouble is I can't seem to find any as a professional photographer? Do you know where I should look?

P, Swansea

A: Aaduki says: Standard Photographic Insurance Companies don't generally provide this but we are about to extend our services by introducing income protection, Mortgages, Investments, Pensions and Life Insurance through an Independent Financial Advisor that we have teamed up with. Look out for further details on this soon.

Q: Hi Aaduki,
I wanted to complain to you about the "Aaduki Boys" that I saw running around naked at the Convention and then again at Focus. I do not think this sort of thing should be allowed and wanted you to confirm that you won't do it again.

F, Norwich

A: Aaduki says: We have received a number of comments about the "Aaduki Boys" most of them positive. Whilst I recognise that they may not have had an appeal for you - they did appeal to many at both the SWPP Convention and Focus and they demonstrated the "fun" side that we as an Insurance Provider have. We do not believe that there should just be semi-naked women at these events and thought it would be fun to do something different - I assume that you also have made a complaint about these ladies in the interests of equal opportunity! I am sorry that you did not appreciate it but as to confirming that we won't use them again, I am sorry to report you will be seeing a lot more of them - and there are 12 different boys to see!

Q: Dear Aaduki,
I have had a claim with my current company and they insisted that I obtain a repair estimate before they would look at my claim. I explained that I needed to replace the lens immediately but they said that if I did and it proved that the lens I had damaged was repairable, they would only pay for the repairs. As it happened I needed a back up lens anyway so I did buy a new one and the lens I dropped was in fact repairable but my question is this, firstly is that normal practice for insurance companies and secondly, what if I did not buy another lens and had to wait two weeks for my repaired lens to be returned - do insurance companies cover hired equipment?

F, Nuneaton

A: Aaduki says: Yes! All insurers usually ask for repair estimates as it is common law duty to mitigate any losses as much as possible. All I can tell you is that if you were insured with us we provide an element of hire charges whilst your lens is being fixed although you have to agree them with us beforehand. Check with your current insurers to see if they provide this - if not then you might like to consider switching companies to one that does!

Q: Dear Aaduki,
I am thinking about the professional indemnity cover mentioned on the page on the SWPP website and notice the great deal you offer SWPP members. I am not a member of the SWPP but I have been comparing policies and cover between insurance companies. Some companies offer £50,000 cover and others as low as £25,000! I notice that Aaduki offer £75,000 and the premium is very competitive against even the £25,000 cover offered elsewhere. Why would I need such a high level of £75,000 when others are offer £25,000?

D, Cardiff

A: Aaduki says: Most people recognise that the biggest claim under Professional Indemnity (P.I.) is for a wedding and the average cost of re-staging a wedding is around £18,500! You would usually only do this if ordered to in a court of law so if you imagine the worse case scenario, the P.I cover needs to provide the restaged wedding AND cover your legal costs for defending you, it is likely in my view that £25,000 is simply not going to be enough. £50,000 might be more reasonable, but we like to make sure that you are adequately covered no matter what which is why we offer the £75,000 level. Remember also this is an "aggregate amount" meaning that you have up to £25,000 or £50,000 in each policy year. What would happen if you were unlucky enough to suffer more than 1 claim???

Q: Dear Aaduki,
I am a student studying photography but I have been approached to do a wedding. Do I really need insurance and if so can I buy it short-term?

J, Plymouth

A: Aaduki says: Either you're a professional or you are not. You can be a part-time professional and if you are thinking of shooting this wedding then you will be classified as one. IN answer to the specific question, you should have Public Liability cover as a minimum and I would recommend that you take out Professional Indemnity cover too - as a member of the SWPP this is £110 for the year and unfortunately, you are unlikely to be able to buy short term cover as this is for liabilities - and if you are able it would probably cost you more than the year! My advice on this is either get covered or send the job to a Society photographer in your area to do.

Q: Dear Aaduki,
I have been looking around to cover my equipment but most of the different insurance companies seem to want 5 lever mortice deadlocks and locks on all the windows! I live in a rented property and I just cannot seem to get this done is there any way around it?

S, Hereford

A: Aaduki says: Well it really depends on how much equipment you need to insure but Aaduki has a panel of insurers and at least 2 of them don't insist on window locks and 5 lever mortice deadlocks. You will need to give me a call to discuss the exact cover you require but I am sure we can find a solution for you. With other companies I am sure some will offer "co-insurance" where you can take a bigger excess or just excluding the bits that insurers don't like is also an option - at least you would have cover for the other perils then!

Q: Dear Aaduki,
I am thinking about doing some schools photography. Is there any special insurance I need to cover me?

J, Stafford

A: Aaduki says: The short answer is no! You will need to ensure that you have Public Liability cover and the norm for this type of work would be £5 million. I would also advise that you undertake a CRB check (Criminal Records Bureau) as it is likely that the School will want to see this before allowing you near the children/young people. I think you will need to get further advice from school photographers so would suggest asking on the Society forum if anyone has any further advice for you. Good luck with your new endeavour!

Q: Dear Aaduki,
My insurance is due up in January and I want to get a quote from you - will I be able to do this at the Convention?

S, Norwich

A: Aaduki says: Absolutely! I will be at the Convention in person so you can come and ask me some difficult questions if you like! Hopefully, we will be in a position to offer some deals as well and we are planning something a little bit special so watch out for us in January at the Novotel!

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