Art insurance: A guide to protecting your collection
Whether you’re a seasoned collector with a gallery-worthy collection or you’ve just acquired your first piece, understanding how to insure artwork is crucial. Art insurance protects your valuable pieces, giving you peace of mind that your collection is secure.
In this guide, we’ll explore everything you need to know about fine art insurance in the UK, from getting an art insurance quote to choosing the right insurance for artworks.
Why do you need art collection insurance?
Your artwork isn’t just valuable – it’s often irreplaceable. Let’s look at a real-world scenario:
Imagine you’ve just invested in a contemporary piece from an up-and-coming artist for £5,000. Two years later, as the artist’s reputation grows, the piece is now worth £20,000. Standard home insurance typically has limits of £1,500 to £2,500 per item – nowhere near enough to cover your art’s appreciated value.
High-value art insurance goes beyond standard home contents cover to provide specialised protection for your pieces. Here’s what quality insurance for artwork should protect against:
Theft: Not just burglary, but also theft by deception or during transportation
Accidental damage: From a glass of red wine being knocked onto a canvas to damage during cleaning
Damage: A burst water pipe, fire, flood, and other events that could harm your collection
Transportation damage: Protection during moves, loans to galleries, or when sending pieces for restoration
Depreciation in value: If part of a pair or set is damaged, cover for the loss in value to the entire set
Types of art insurance cover
When looking for artwork insurance, UK collectors typically choose between:
Standalone fine art insurance
- Specialised policies focused solely on your art collection
- Often offers more tailored cover and higher limits
- May include additional services like access to art experts and conservators
High-value home insurance
- Comprehensive cover that includes art collections insurance alongside other valuables
- Often more cost-effective if you have multiple types of valuables
- Simplified management with one policy for all high-value items you own
Both options can be customised to your needs. For example, if you regularly loan pieces to exhibitions, you can add cover for transportation and display in public spaces.
The benefits of art insurance
There are a few benefits to getting specialist art insurance either as part of your high-value home insurance or as standalone cover, they both give the following cover benefits.
Agreed value cover: Unlike standard insurance that may depreciate values, art insurance typically offers agreed value cover. This means you’ll receive the full insured amount in the event of a total loss, without depreciation.
Market appreciation coverage: Some policies automatically increase coverage as your art appreciates in value. For instance, if you purchase a piece for £10,000 and its value doubles, you’re still fully protected without immediately updating your policy.
Automatic additions cover: When you’re growing your collection, you need to ensure protection is in place on the point of purchase, and you don’t want to have to be calling your broker before you buy something. Quality art insurance provides:
- 60 days of automatic cover for new purchases
- Protection up to a specified limit (often 25% of your total sum insured)
- Time to arrange proper valuations and update your policy
For example: If you spontaneously purchase a £50,000 piece at an art fair, it’s automatically covered for 60 days under your existing policy.
Artist death value appreciation: In the (un)fortunate event of an artist’s death, the value of their work often increases significantly.
Leading policies offer:
- Automatic increase in cover (typically up to 200% of the agreed value)
- Time to obtain new valuations (usually 6-12 months)
- Protection against rapid market value changes
How to insure artwork: A step-by-step guide
Document your collection
Proper documentation is crucial for both insurance and potential claims:
Photographs
- Take high-resolution photos of each piece from multiple angles
- Include close-ups of signatures, distinctive marks, and any damage
- Update photos annually or after any restoration work
Provenance documentation
- Keep all receipts and certificates of authenticity
- Document the history of ownership
- Store copies of these documents separately from your collection
Professional valuations
- Have valuations done every 3-5 years, or more frequently for contemporary art, this may be a requirement for your insurance
- Use certified valuers who specialise in your type of art
- Keep detailed records of all valuations
Determine your cover needs
Consider these factors when evaluating your insurance needs:
Total value: Not just purchase price, but current market value
Location risks: Is your art in a city prone to flooding? Do you live in an area with high crime rates?
Display methods: Are pieces properly mounted? Do you have appropriate climate control?
Transportation requirements: Do you frequently loan pieces to exhibitions? Are you planning to move house soon?
Get an art insurance quote
When seeking quotes, be prepared to provide:
- Detailed inventory of your collection – standard home insurance require you to disclose items valued over £1,500 normally. This is increased to £10,000 high-value home insurance policy and is £25,000 for rivr home and contents insurance policies.
- Recent valuations
- Security measures in place
- Claims history (if any)
The cost of insuring artwork
The cost of art insurance varies widely based on several factors:
Value of collection: Typically, the higher the value, the lower the percentage rate applied against the value but roughly it costs 20p for every £100 of value. So if a painting is worth £20,000 it would cost £40.
Type of art: Some mediums are more fragile and cost more to insure
Security measures: Better security often means lower premiums
Location: Both your location and where the art is stored matter
For example: For a collection valued at £500,000, with good security in a low-risk area, you might pay between £100-£800 annually for comprehensive standalone cover.
It is more cost effective to insure your art collection as part of you high-value contents insurance, although it can be harder to compare quotes due to other items being included in the quote like your general contents and other valuable items.
Choosing between art insurance brokers
When selecting insurance for artworks, consider these crucial factors:
Expertise: Do they understand the specific needs of your collection type? Is the cover they offer specialised to cover art insurance?
Cover options: Do they offer worldwide cover? What are their exclusions and limits?
Claims process: Do they have art experts on staff? What’s their average claim settlement time?
Why choose rivr for your art collection insurance
At rivr, we’ve reimagined art insurance for the modern collector. Our high-value home insurance includes comprehensive cover for your art collection:
Worldwide cover: Your art is protected wherever it goes
High single-item limits: No need to list items valued under £25,000
All-risks cover: Protection against virtually all types of loss or damage
Simple digital management: Update your policy instantly as your collection grows
Ready to protect your collection?
Don’t leave your precious art collection unprotected. rivr can help ensure your pieces are properly covered along side your home and other valuables.
Get a quote today and join the many collectors who trust rivr for their art insurance needs. With rivr, you can focus on enjoying and growing your collection, knowing it’s protected by comprehensive, hassle-free cover.
Learn more about our high-value contents cover here
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Frequently asked questions
The policy covers a lot of things and it depends on whether you buy Home Insurance (Contents and Buildings cover combined), Contents Insurance or Buildings Insurance. To know exactly what you are covered for you need to read the policy wording in full. We do provide a summary of your cover on our product information pages for home, contents and buildings insurance. These pages only include a summary of the cover so does not include everything and all the details, such as specific exclusions or inner limits.
High-value contents insurance is designed for homes that require cover above the limits offered by standard home insurance, and offers a more comprehensive form of insurance. It offers tailored insurance cover that is designed for homes with a higher standard of finish and contains expensive personal belongings such as luxury or antique furniture, electronics, jewellery and art.
All Risks insurance provides a broader form of coverage compared to standard home insurance policies. It typically offers protection for both personal possessions and valuables at home and worldwide. It also covers accidental damage. All Risks cover still has some exclusions such as wear and tear or mechanical breakdown. You would need to check the policy for specific exclusions and limits.
Normally home insurance providers will not cover your home if any building works are being carried out. At rivr we still insure your home when building works are being carried out as long as the contract for the works is less than £75,000. If the works are costing more than this we can arrange separate specialist cover for renovations through our specialist insurance partner.
Standard buildings insurance covers typical homes, while high-value buildings insurance is designed for properties with a higher rebuild cost or unique features. High-value insurance provides more extensive coverage for expensive materials, luxury finishes, and special architectural elements that may not be fully covered by a standard policy. It also often includes higher claim limits and additional protection options.
Our contents insurance covers is extensive and covers most of the items in your home, but some examples are: - Furniture and furnishings - Jewellery and watches - Art and antiques - Bicycles and sports equipment - Electronic items such as laptops, phones, TVs and sound systems. All of these items are covered worldwide as standard.
Combined building and contents insurance covers both the structure of your home and your personal belongings inside it. This means that if your home is damaged by events like fire, floods, or storms, and your possessions are lost, damaged, or stolen, you can claim for both under the same policy.
