Originally Posted by JBurgess  A lot of insurance co. will not pay if use it for making money, only if it for hobby. You might be wise to verify this if you sell anything you make.... |
It gets a lot worse than that unfortunately, there is something that everyone should be aware of;
Not long ago a business associate tried to add coverage for some basic home office equipment - not even machining stuff mind you. Just a copier, computers, laser printer, flatbed scanner, and one of those little Roland Pixza touch-probe scanners.
Unfortunately, this set off a chain of events unlike any I had ever seen or heard of until I tried to add coverage myself a month later for my home and had the same thing happen to me.
They directly stated that possession of a copier, scanner, etc. was "business equipment" no matter what he was using them for, and therefore his home policy was no longer valid and that he needed a drastically more expensive commercial policy for his home. He tried challenging this and the upshot was he was accused of fraud, ALL his policies including auto were cancelled immediately, and they tried billing retroactively to the beginning of his home policy for the business rate, and threatened him with insurance fraud charges if he didn't comply.
God knows what they would have thought of actual "commercial" equipment like a CNC mill.
I tried adding a small amount of additional coverage to my home policy for guns and antiques a month or so later, and got much the same thing. I wasn't even trying to cover anything close to business equipment. They asked some underwriting questions, including
whether or not I had any tools or a workbench on the property. Yes, you guessed it. The big sticking point that got my policy cancelled was
ownership of a propane torch in my own home. That was it. I was classed as too high a risk to insure the home at all, and while they were at it reclassified my auto policy to high risk, almost tripling it overnight. Apparently a lifetime clean driving record and a propane torch in my house cost more to get car insurance for than multiple-DUI drivers with no tools in their house at all. Needless to say I changed companies instantly and didn't ever mention tool ownership again.
In short, they made it very apparent that if you claim anything specific like tools or business equipment you risk being dropped like a hot rock, but if you don't claim them they will use it as a reason not to pay on any claims that may happen.
The insurance companies version of "don't ask, don't tell" that leaves the homeowner screwed no matter what.