We have had a couple of instrument in my circle of friends and I’m thinking of insuring my flute, but I’m not sure what it’s value is to the rest of the world right now. It’s a fully keyed Grinter made in 2000. Does anyone have an idea?
Hi Jack! That was a thread hijack…
Eight-keyed Grinter going for EUR3200 from the man himself, last time I checked. Cheers,
Rob
Thanks, Rob…so I guess that would be considered replacement value? I’m wondering are they selling for more than that second hand or not.
In 2006, an 8-key Grinter in cocuswood sold for approx. USD $3,800.
About the same for a Blackwood one in 2005.
Price could depend on style of flute (since recent Grinters are of different design), wood, and any fancy trim.
Most home insurance coverage will pay for items lost when not in the home, including instruments, if they were taken out for pleasure, and not used professionally. Proof of an item’s worth, then, is a matter of a receipt of some kind, or better, an appraisal, possibly factored into your home insurance coverage in the first place. While a Grinter is a pricey flute, it’s not a lot of money in terms of most home coverage, and proof of its existence shouldn’t raise your coverage much, if at all.
If you do play professionally (for profit, regularly), then you should probably ask whoever is your company agent about whatever instruments you take out for work regularly, and then weigh the cost of coverage against the cost of replacement. Might be worth it, since Grinters are not easy to come by, quickly; OTOH, it’s not a 30K + instrument, either, and yearly insurance costs might negate the point; cheaper to set aside the money, just in case, then hand it to some big outfit gambling on your loss.
all my flutes are insured on a rider to my homeowner’s policy.
if you have the sales receipt (and that would include an eBay page printout), that proves worth when you bought it and allows for logging of replacement value.
If you believe it has a higher value – or your agent believes it is lower than what you paid – you typically must provide an independent expert appraisal.
Often the threshold on that is $5,000, but it varies by carrier.
Of course, that’s just my opinion on the matter.