If you need to ship part of your art collection – between homes or on loan, perhaps – make sure you ask the right questions and get the right insurance to preserve the value of their investment.
.jpg)
10 Crucial Questions to Ask Before Putting Your Art into Shipping
1. Who will be my point of contact for the shipment? You should be assigned a point person to oversee the course of your shipment, door-to-door, nail-to-nail. This person should be available to answer any questions you may have, as well as gather important information from you about the shipment.
2. Are the people handling the shipment trained art handlers? Your shipper should not only be able to confirm that the staff is trained, but provide evidence and examples of such training.
3. How will the shipment tracked? GPS tracking should be standard for all fine art shipments.
4. What are the pertinent truck specifications? Climate control, air-ride, security systems?
5. If traveling by air, will my cargo be screened and by who? A handful of fine art shippers are Certified Cargo Screening Facilities, a TSA certification that allows the company to inspect and seal crates prior to air shipment. Those who do not have this certification must outsource to a 3rd party company, find out who that CCSF is and if their staff are trained to handle art (not all are!)
6. What are the contingency plans in place for inclement weather, cancelled flights, etc?
7. How will my object be packed prior to transport, and why? It is the responsibility of the shipper to know the best methods and materials to prepare your object for shipment. There are a wide range of options, from simple wooden boxes to museum-quality crates. Ask what their plan is and why.
8. What third-party carriers will be handling my artwork during shipment and how did you select them? Sometimes it is necessary to employ the services of a third-party carrier during a shipment. If this has to happen, you have the right to know who these people are, what their credentials are, and what their liability is for their portion of the service.
9. What documentation must be provided for customs? In the US and abroad, it’s important to discuss this early so you have time to gather any supporting documents you need.
10. What documentation will you provide me to show the shipment was safely delivered?
with thanks to Crozier Fine Arts
Check out our FREE white paper on risk and insurance: Doing Business in the UK.
La Playa’s Elaine Lamb considers the insurance implications for US businesses looking to expand into the UK.
.jpg)
With London voted #1 European city for business for over twenty years, US companies are taking advantage of its stability and favorable tax regimes to set up operations in the UK. But how much do you know about UK insurance requirements? London is the ‘cradle’ of insurance and the industry is regulated with a strong arm by the Financial Conduct Authority. Some coverages are mandatory – and some are just plain common sense. Some you may need from day one, others you’ll need to consider as your risk exposures change with the growth and development of your business. There are also some coverages available that you simply can’t buy in the US.
What if…
…your online content breached laws in the UK that you never knew existed?
…your US broker thought your UK broker had it covered?
…or vice versa?
La Playa is an award-winning independent insurance broker with offices in New York and London. We’re one of the few specialist brokers who can look after your operations on both sides of the Atlantic – and deliver boutique-style service.
We’ve created this guide as a convenient, plain-English explanation of essential insurance components for businesses looking to expand to the UK
FREE white paper on risk and insurance: Doing Business in the UK.
With windows rattling in the wind and temperatures at rock bottom, we're all wondering whether we’ll get snowed in, cut off, flooded or lose windows in the gales.
Although winter storms rarely cause significant risk to life, the frequency of low-level damage and interruption to services is high, and businesses can be crippled for days or even weeks after a severe storm.
Gallery owners in particular may have cause for concern for several reasons;
In addition to physical damage to art or premises, winter weather brings increased risk to public safety for which your business may be liable, as well as the possibility that you may have to stop trading for a period of time.
Easy Risk Management:
There are many simple risk management measures you can take that cost little.
The good news is, when it comes to protecting your business, it’s easy. Once you have done everything you can to guard against the effects of bad weather, ensuring your insurance policy is up to date and provides cover for all eventualities, is critical.
If you are not sure you have the right coverage or would like a health check of your insurance, La Playa offer a complimentary surgery. We are happy to take a quick look over your policy and make sure you have all the coverages you need to the right levels, at no cost. We will also quote against your current provider to ensure you are being charged appropriately. If you like what we do for you and decide to place your business with us, as an AWAD member you are entitled to a 10% discount off your premium.
Call us or drop us a line in the UK on: +44 1223 200650 e: hello@laplaya.co.uk or in the US on: +1 646 665 7737 e: hello@laplaya.com to discuss your needs.
The perpetrator is Bruce Monk, who worked for the ballet between 1984 and 2015 and who has been accused of having taken intimate photos of students. According to lead plaintiff Sarah Doucet, the photographer pressured her and others into allowing him to take sexualized, semi-nude photographs of them, and later publishing, selling and distributing some of them online, without their consent. Monk is being accused of breaching his fiduciary duty to the students, breaching their confidence and trust, invading their privacy, and committing the tort of public disclosure of private facts. As for the ballet company, it has been accused of systemic negligence and vicarious liability for the improper conduct of its teacher.
The case is being brought or supported by more than 60 former dancers and students with the ballet, who are now adults and who have self-identified as potential class members or witnesses in the case. The women are seeking $75 million in damages, and all say that they felt that as students of the ballet, they felt compelled to follow the photographer and instructor’s orders, and only later found their images being sold online. The claim that Monk forced them to pose topless, and sometimes directed them to pose in even more revealing positions between 1984 and 2015.
When asked for comment, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet issued a statement saying, “We cannot comment on the specific details of the legal process or June 27th’s procedural motion.
Our primary focus is the safety, security and well-being of every student entrusted to our care; It is a responsibility that we take very seriously, and we assess and evaluate our processes and procedures on an ongoing basis.
We can share with you that our Child Protection Policies and Procedures Manual was developed in keeping with guidelines from the Canadian Centre for Child Protection. All staff working with our students are trained on our policy and supporting procedures.”
A police complaint was filed against Monk in 2015, and though no criminal charges were pursued, he was fired by the ballet in 2015.
Arts organizations face enormous challenges, including employing instructors and others in position of authority over young participants who may take advantage of their positions of power. At La Playa Insurance, we can help you protect your organization, supporting you with advice on best practice in managing your risks, and providing coverage for legal costs (even unfounded allegations are expensive to defend) and damages if the worst happens. Call us today to speak to one of our specialists.
One was a recent case that was quickly resolved, while the other was a 30-year-old crime that is still being figured out.
The recent case involved the 400-year-old crown jewels of Sweden, which were stolen from Stragnas Cathedral last week. Police quickly leapt into action, while insurance companies and appraisers wondered what the thieves could possibly have been hoping to accomplish. The stolen items, most of which have since been recovered, included two crowns of King Karl IX and Queen Kristina, as well as a royal orb, are considered priceless, but they are also considered impossible to sell: criminologist Leif Persson told the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, “As far as I am aware there is no Swedish market for this.
Art thefts of famous pieces like the Swedish jewels leave thieves with few choices. One option is to break the goods down and sell the components, but doing so would significantly lower their value, which is largely historic. Some experts suggested that the thieves might use the iconic pieces as leverage in other criminal cases, offering them in exchange for lesser sentences, while insurance company representatives said thieves sometimes think that they can steal priceless items and then offer to resell them to the insurance company providing coverage. As for the authorities, they believe that the robbery was commissioned by a collector who wanted to keep the jewels for himself.
As for the older theft, it involved a priceless painting by Willem de Kooning that was stolen from the University of Arizona in 1985. The crime made headlines at the time because it was so brazen, and just as in the case of the Swedish jewels, experts wondered what the thieves would possibly do to dispose of the priceless painting. The painting, which was insured for $400,000 at the time of the theft, was recently found hanging in a New Mexico couple’s bedroom. They had apparently stolen it for their own enjoyment. “Woman-Ochre,” now valued at more than $100 million, has been returned to the museum and rehung in the frame that has continued to hang empty ever since the theft.
In the case of the de Kooning painting, security in the Arizona museum was far from high tech. There were no surveillance cameras, and the couple who stole the painting were able to enter the museum before it officially opened by slipping in behind an employee reporting for work, then distracting a security guard. The Swedish theft was a typical smash-and-grab in which the thieves stole historic pieces that were displayed to the public in glass cases.
Your art collection is might be just as valuable to you as the Swedish Crown jewels and the de Kooning painting – but the pieces are also part of our cultural heritage, and deserve to be protected for the enjoyment of generations to come . To make sure that you have the right insurance and protection, contact our specialist art brokers to get help with valuation, appropriate security, maintenance, and insurance for your possessions.
Are you in innovating? Working with images, brands, copy? Selling an IP-rich business?
Digital, tech and media businesses are wide open to allegations of plagiarism and patent/copyright breach on a global basis.
What if…
…Someone else had your idea first?
…You look a lot like another company?
…You use an unlicensed image?
…You use unlicensed music?
…Your content/design is too similar to someone else’s?
Do you have protection in place to fight that battle? The legal costs could be crippling – are you sure you have the right Intellectual Property (IP) Insurance? The average UK IP suit can cost anywhere between £1M and £6M – ouch!
If you’re not 100% sure you have the right IP Insurance in place, do get in touch – our advice is always free and without obligation.
In tech and creative sectors, intellectual property is the holy grail – everybody’s after the big new idea or the fresh new look. You may think your idea is completely original – but can you afford to prove it?
You could be sued from anywhere in the world; IP insurance is designed to cover the legal costs of defending yourself.
What kind of IP Insurance do you need?
1. Defence
This covers legal fees and expenses for defending yourself in court if you inadvertently infringe someone else’s IP (eg: plagiarism, passing off). A good IP solicitor may cost upwards of £500 per hour, and developments in communications technology such as the Internet mean that your infringement may be more easily identified. This cover is often included in a standard Professional Indemnity policy.
Example: you discover you’ve come up with the same sales slogan as Unilever, who have already registered; or that your new ad has already been written in the US.
2. Pursuit
This covers your legal expenses for pursuing people who infringe your own IP. It’s a “fighting fund”, and is a separate purchase to be added to your insurance portfolio.
Example: someone imitates your domain name and deflects your internet traffic to themselves.
3. Agreements
This covers the costs of pursuing or defending a case in which an existing IP exploitation agreement starts to go wrong.
Example: your distributor or licensee breaches the contract.
4. M&A Transactions
Don’t let Intellectual Property disputes jeopardise the deal
Picture this. You’ve worked hard. You and your partners have taken risks. Naturally, you’ve had to leap a few hurdles and dodge a few bullets over the years – but it looks like it’s all about to pay off. They love your tech. They like your team and they’re ready to sign. The Champagne is on ice.
But their lawyers are insisting on bullet-poof IP representations, with cast iron warranties of non-infringement and title. They want cash held in escrow, just in case there’s a problem.
With Transactional IP Insurance, you can ring fence your IP liabilities and transfer the IP risk to your insurer before your deal comes unstuck. It provides security and peace of mind in the sale or purchase of intangible assets, covering the Representations and Warranties around the validity or non-infringement undertakings applying to IP Rights (Patent, Design, Copyright and Trade Mark):
Transactional IP Insurance can cover…
…with options to extend cover for Open Source infringements & Trade Secrets
If your involvement with IP is largely Internet-based, you can also buy protection in a Cyber-liability package. As well as data corruption/loss etc., this covers all your IP exposures online, including damage to your website, and infringement by you/employees of intellectual property or copyright material from the Internet.
Our advice is:
Current Fair Use image copyright laws state that you’re financially liable for posting copyrighted images, even if:
"Jane Byde is Head of Fine Art at La Playa Limited, a boutique specialist insurance brokerage with offices in Cambridge, London and New York. Her clients include private and corporate art and jewellery collectors, galleries and dealers"
Tell us about your work
As a broker, my job is to listen and understand clients’ needs, assess the products available and advise as appropriate, making sure the client is doing everything they should to make it work for them. We are not employed by insurance companies, nor are we lawyers, so cannot advise on the minutiae of what will be decided in a court of law if anything goes wrong. Ultimately, it is about managing expectations, being a go-between for clients and underwriters and explaining why the cover costs what it does.
What led you to your current role? Are you yourself passionate about art?
I have always been an art lover, visiting museums and galleries from a very early age, so it was natural to study Art History at undergraduate and Museum Studies at postgraduate level. After university I worked for six months in galleries on Cork Street, before ending up in hospitality management, gaining a diploma from the Wines & Spirits Education Trust. In the course of my work, I met many people in the insurance industry who encouraged me to become a broker because attention to client needs is critical for both roles.
I found a role in marine insurance with a top-three insurance brokerage and studied alongside my job for three years to obtain my ACII, which is the equivalent of an insurance 'degree'. Another five years later an opportunity opened up in the Fine Art sector and I jumped at the chance as the role allowed me to progress my career, but utilises my knowledge base and passion for art.
How can you make your insurance work for you?
Many people are understandably frustrated when what they feel is a legitimate claim is declined or the value paid out below what they expect. Frequently though, the reasons for insurance not performing as you expect are simple and result from poor housekeeping which could easily be avoided.
Having an up-to-date valuation of your treasures is critical for getting the most out of your insurance. Most of the contentious claims we see are where an assured has little evidence of the value they are claiming for.
A private insurance policy is usually based on Agreed Value which means that in case of a loss, insurers will pay up to the value of the item as listed in the inventory, which is based on the latest professional valuation of your collection. Insurers expect valuations to be done every 3-5 years. Some insurers will pay an increase to the inventory price to match the current Market Value if prices have gone up since the valuation, but this is often capped at a level which may be insufficient for certain artists and jewellery in particular.
Most auction houses will do a simple low-cost appraisal of your art and antiques whilst professional appraisal firms will do a thorough one for somewhat more. There are many services available and it is not essential to use one of the big three auction houses.
What if you have lots of items to insure? It seems like this could become a bit of a time drain for serious collectors!
All policies covering art and antiques will have a limit at which all items under this value are lumped in together as a “total unspecified value”. Each item exceeding this value needs to be listed on the inventory or schedule, which your valuer will provide. Standard High Net Worth homeowner’s policies usually have an unspecified article limit of £10-15,000, whilst a dedicated art collection insurance policy will normally have a much higher limit of £25-30,000 per item. This means you will only need to list your significant pieces and not every last silver salt shaker.
Couldn’t a wealth manager take care of all of that?
Most wealth managers are not specialists in insurance and in all but the most straightforward cases will involve an insurance broker in your case anyway. In the High Net Worth sector in particular, time-poor clients frequently become highly reliant on their trusted advisers to organise their affairs on their behalf. Whilst strong relationships are an important part of keeping your affairs in good shape, don’t be afraid to question them, talk to other people or set the challenge of proving they are interrogating your coverage correctly. Finally, make sure they are speaking to a specialist broker who is trained and experienced in the appropriate sector.
I have had my insurance policy for years and it seems to suit me fine. Why should I look elsewhere?
Insurance moves with the times just like everything else. Risks that weren’t covered or were costly years ago may be feasible now and vice versa; some elements you have taken for granted may no longer be covered depending on your circumstances or the claims experience of the industry. Take time to consider one or two alternative insurance providers as far in advance of your renewal date as you can, ideally a month or so ahead.
What is the single highest value item you have insured?
A few years ago I helped insure a single cut diamond for display at a well-known London department store, with an insured value of £50,000,000. As you can imagine, the security measures surrounding the item would have fit well into a Mission Impossible script! Individual paintings or antiques are rarely insured on a stand-alone basis other than for exhibition or transit purposes as economies of scale and risk-spread normally mean a collection is best insured as a whole.
What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to someone looking for insurance?
Insurance is built on trust. Underwriters rely on the information we provide them with and if a claim arises from a risk they weren’t informed about, that trust can be broken and problems paying claims may arise. Of course unexpected accidents happen and that’s what insurance is for, but being honest and upfront, disclosing everything can about the risk you are looking to insure is a good start.
Allow your broker to visit your home or spend time chatting to them on the phone and they will do much of the work for you. One of the benefits of using a Lloyd’s Broker over an online tool or a volume broker, is that we still speak face to face with underwriters about your circumstances. We look them in the eye and develop relationships to win their trust, just as we do with you as clients. It is a powerful communication tool which helps us get the best terms for you, and differentiates us as a quality specialist broker.
Finally, if you cut corners by not disclosing critical details, your upfront premium could be wrong and this in itself could be problematic if you have a claim, due to underinsurance. Your insurer may be within their rights to decline to pay all or part of the value because you didn’t disclose facts relevant to the risk.
Can you give some examples of these critical details that may affect a claim?
Not advising that you kept certain artworks stored in a basement could be one. Or perhaps failing to disclose that you only have security cameras pointing to the front of the house and not the back, or that you don’t have locks on the windows of your ground floor apartment.
What if your circumstances change?
Admin is tedious but necessary. Ensuring the correct individuals and locations are listed on your insurance policy helps avoid disappointment. On a good quality homeowner’s insurance policy, your art collections should be covered anywhere in the world including in transit, if securely and adequately packed. If you move home or purchase an additional property and move artwork there you need to inform your insurance company, because the security measures will be different. Sometimes, such changes are for the better and occasionally will improve your premium, for instance if you move away from a flood-prone area or transfer your most valuable painting from the ground floor of a townhouse to a second floor apartment in a gated and concierge-monitored block.
What happens to property insurance if a policy owner dies?
You may not be aware that property insurance does not operate like a life insurance policy; there is no automatic beneficiary and the policy does not automatically transfer to heirs upon death of the original owner. Making sure your heirs and trusted advisers are aware of the insurances you have in place, and potentially listing heirs as joint-assureds, is a sound idea for ensuring protection of homes and collections in the event of your death.
Let’s say Mrs Smith, a widow of ten years, passes away leaving her home and the art collection inside to her son. He holds on to the property as he is considering moving into it with his own family, but does not think to transfer the insurance policy into his own name. A few months later a burst pipe damages some of the furniture and art work. In this case the homeowners’ insurance would be unlikely to pay any restoration or replacement costs for the art work except possibly on an “ex-gratia” goodwill basis, as the new property owner is not listed on the contract of insurance.
What can you do if your (ex) spouse is the policy holder, and they refuse to disclose valuations?
If your (ex) spouse is refusing to add your new property to the insurance policy as above or will not provide a copy of the current valuation, there’s not much you can do without instructing your lawyer to pursue them specifically on this point. It is much simpler and no doubt significantly cheaper to get another valuation done and obtain your own policy for the items you are keeping within the divorce agreement.
What is the most unusual insurance claim you’ve ever encountered?
Thankfully fine art claims are rare because collectors generally take good care of their valued possessions, but we did once have a claim for artwork shipped with an obvious dent and tyre marks on the packaging, from having been run over, presumably by the shipper’s own van! The worst claim we have seen was a damaged old master canvas torn by a rolled up magazine flying at it, during a row. In the wider Private Client team I work with we have seen a Porsche roll into a pond when the handbrake was left off and a pheasant-rearing shed on a smallholding burn down, killing several thousand tiny occupants.
How have technological advancements affected the responsibility placed on the individual?
Previous generations relied on paper ledgers, hand-written receipts or even a handshake from their dealer as proof of purchase. In this day and age, lack of attention to records for valuable purchases and failure to ensure your evidence is backed up, just doesn’t cut it. Technology has streamlined our record-keeping via use of email, retailer’s databases and the advent of cloud storage, meaning that even storing files exclusively on a home computer is an unnecessary risk to take. Most valuers or appraisers will provide an e-copy inventory with photographs as well as a hard copy. It sounds obvious but you can even take your own pictures and store them digitally. If you receive paper receipts from a purchase, snap a picture of the invoice on your smart phone or scan it in using local facilities. Ensure your broker has a copy of your inventory and that you also have it saved somewhere secure, preferably in a secure online storage facility such as iCloud or Dropbox.
If you’re skiing at half term, take a minute to make sure your travel insurance is all in order – and make time to talk through some winter sports safety points* with your family or group.
Despite the safe ‘bubble’ feeling on the slopes these days, you’re still at the mercy of the elements and the weather – and as we’ve seen recently, accidents and avalanches are a real threat.
Even the most competent skiers and snowboarders can be involved in collisions or accidents. Read our top tips for staying safe on the slopes*:
Many of La Playa’s home policies include winter sports travel insurance, but do check – and be aware that if you go off piste, you’re not covered!
Happy ski-ing!
If you’re organising events this year, it’s worth considering the impact if they were cancelled – do you need Cancellation Insurance to protect your finances?
Cancellation insurance is an affordable, flexible solution; you can insure any portion of your budget – and opt to insure the key risks that would hit your bottom line the hardest.
4 Top Tips on Cancellation Insurance
I’ve you’ve got questions about cancellation insurance for your event, get in touchanytime.
La Playa Arts & Entertainment: Insurance with Intelligence
People like you like us.
Passionate. Discerning. Independent.
Recent tragic events in Paris and Belgium are a sad reminder that terrorism is rarely confined to government or military targets – all public venues and transit routes are considered fair game.
Your business could be affected not only by a terrorism incident but also by a threat or false alarm. If roads are closed or access restricted, that could hit your income – and without separate Terrorism cover, your insurance is unlikely to cover it.
For some time now, UK insurers have been unwilling to provide full cover for loss, damage or interruption due to terrorism – preferring instead to pass on the majority of such risks to Pool Re, the government-backed terrorism insurance programme.
Most insurers providing commercial property and consequential loss insurance (more commonly referred to as business interruption) in the UK are members of Pool Re and are able to offer terrorism cover to any client who requests it, as part of the relevant commercial policy they issue.
But Terrorism Insurance has to be bought separately. If you don’t have Terrorism Insurance and would like a quote, or if you’re unsure if your current policy covers terrorism, do get in touch – my advice is always free and without obligation.
646 665 7737