By Rebecca Bisset
Having lived in Singapore for 19 years, enjoying a low-crime life, I understand that it’s easy to feel laissez-faire about theft here, and about insurance in general.
I’ve had my home broken into twice – once in Johannesburg and again in London. In both cases, the thieves took only a few small but valuable pieces: first time, it was a ring my mum and dad had given me and an expensive Mamiya medium-format camera they’d bought for my 21st birthday; next, it was a ring my great grandfather gave my grandmother in 1919. Though theft is not a significant risk in safe Singapore, all my own rings “disappeared” after a domestic move. On each of these occasions, the home insurance cover paid a nominal sum for my claim. So, I’m now completely “ring-less” – but wiser.
It’s not just about having general insurance for theft here. What I’ve learnt is that you need to ensure that your high-value pieces are covered wherever you are in the world, and AIG Singapore’s Premier Client Solutions (PCS) provides this – with customised limits for each piece, if you so choose. So it works out to be value for money and not just another big premium.
If your passion is nice watches, gems and jewellery, and you wear these or collect them during your travels, standard worldwide travel insurance won’t fully cover any losses. With high-value insurance complementing your travel insurance, you won’t end up, like me, with a claim payment far lower than the replaceable value.
PCS also covers damage and repair issues that many insurers don’t. If you were to come home from a holiday, for example, to find that bad weather had knocked out your power supply while you were away, AIG Singapore would pay up to $5,000 for food stored in the fridge as a spoilage loss. Or, if a diamond were to fall off your trilogy ring, AIG Singapore can look at replacing the entire ring in exchange for the damaged ring.
Those of you with a wine or whiskey collection will know that it’s valuable now, but it will be even more so in the future. PCS covers all high-value collections like these, and has a special group of adjustors and dedicated insurance specialists who understand the ins and outs of protecting your collections. PCS also allows you to minimise any disruption when you can’t stay in your home, by dealing smoothly with the issue of displacement cover. Imagine if the apartment above you floods and you have to move out until it gets sorted. You may still have to pay rent and the cost of a hotel or serviced apartment. You don’t want frustrating negotiations at a time like this, just a dedicated insurance specialist who will pull it all together effortlessly and quickly.
Keeping to the theme of customised cover, AIG Singapore’s Elite Auto Plan takes into consideration your age, driving experience and excesses so that you can choose the level of coverage you want for your prized high-value vehicles. It also includes a personal accident plan that includes cover for death and permanent disability for the driver and passengers. Plus, it pays over and above any existing life or personal accident policies in place for the drivers and passengers involved. This seems a brilliant solution that looks after one of the most valuable assets, the car, plus you and your family or friends. For any damage, you also get to choose which workshop you want to deal with. (If you’re a car enthusiast, you’ll know who you want touching your prized possession!)
If this has highlighted some exposure for you, give the team from AIG Singapore’s Premier Client Solutions a call at 6419 3099, and get someone round to assess your premier assets. That way, you can enjoy very precise coverage for your valuables and for personal liability too.
AIG Singapore’s Premier Client Solutions is a premier homeowner insurance policy offering worldwide coverage for loss and damage to homes and valuables. The policy:
• protects against property damage or loss, regardless of cause;
• allows damaged property to be repaired or replaced with new items;
• offers reimbursement at cost without depreciation in value;
• offers worldwide coverage for contents, and valuables damaged or lost outside of the home;
• has customised limits for treasured valuables.
AIG Singapore’s Elite Auto Plan is an auto insurance policy that covers high-value vehicles in the event of accidents, including:
•real-time SMS updates during claims services;
• coverage outside Singapore;
• no impact on No Claims Discount for flood or windstorm losses;
• personal accident cover for everyone in the car;
• car lock and key replacement due to break-in, robbery or theft;
• optional add-on for unlimited loss of use cover.
Policy coverage is subject to terms and conditions.
Brought to you by:
AIG
6419 3099 | aig.com.sg/premier
This article first appeared in the October 2017 edition of Expat Living. You can purchase a copy or subscribe so you never miss an issue!
