Re: [Leica] How can a Leica not come from an "authorized Leica dealer"?

[Bryan Caldwell <bcaldwell51@earthlink.net>]

On 2/10/03 1:11 PM, "bdcolen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net> wrote:

> The passport is one hell of a deal, an, unlike virtually everything else
> Leica makes, well worth the extra you pay for it. :-)


B.D.,

Call your insurance carrier. Passport protection is far from being "one hell
of a deal." As I posted here the other day, Passport adds about $350.00 to
the price of an M7 (or about $116.00 per year). Anyone with an existing
homeowners insurance policy should be able to get an all-risk rider with no
deductible for far less than that. My rider costs about $10.00 per year per
$1,000.00 covered (or about $22.00 per year for an M7). By buying without
Passport and simply adding an M7 to my existing rider I would save $284.00
over the duration of the 3 year Passport.

Most standard homeowners polices put a low cap on camera equipment and
require a rider to get into the value of Leicas. Aside from the price,
Passport leaves you woefully under covered in that it does not cover fire,
theft or any incident in which the remains of the camera cannot be recovered
and returned (just a guess, but I would think that theft is by far the
greatest loss of Leicas). Aside from theft, drop your camera into the ocean
or off a cliff and you're out of luck with Passport. This is not the case
with an all-risk insurance rider. If any piece of my camera equipment is
stolen or otherwise lost or damaged, I fax a claim form to my insurance
carrier and they send me a check. The one time I made a claim under my
camera rider (for a camera that was damaged), I had a full check from my
insurance company in less than five business days. I've also found that the
inventory my insurance company sends me annually with my bill works great in
place of a carnet when passing through customs - proof of what I had when I
left the country.


In short, if you rely on Passport protection alone, you are substantially
under covered . If you take out a homeowners rider, you have better coverage
and the Passport protection plan becomes redundant - so why pay for it?


Of course, if you are a "professional" photographer, your insurance rates
will differ a great deal. Then, the Passport might be worth the extra
expense.

Also, please note that I am NOT a fan of insurance companies - nor am I
connected with one in any way other than paying for coverage I seldom use.

Bryan

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