$50k of Tools Stolen from Our Work Truck: Inland Marine Insurance Replaced Them
The Empty Truck and the Sinking Feeling
My contracting crew and I arrived at a job site one morning to find our work truck’s side locks broken. My heart sank. We opened the doors to find it completely empty. Thieves had stolen over $50,000 worth of our specialized tools—the very equipment we needed to do our jobs. Our commercial auto policy covered the damage to the truck, but not its contents. Thankfully, we had a separate Inland Marine policy. It was designed specifically to protect our tools and equipment while they were off-site, and it paid to replace every single stolen item.
Protecting Property That MOVES: Inland Marine Insurance Explained
Insurance for Property That Doesn’t Stay Put
Your standard property policy is great for things inside your office—your building, your desks, your inventory sitting on a shelf. But what about property that moves? My friend, a wedding photographer, has $40,000 worth of camera gear that travels with her to different venues every weekend. My other friend owns a food truck filled with expensive cooking equipment. Inland Marine insurance is built for this kind of “floating” property. It’s a flexible policy that protects your valuable business assets wherever they happen to be, whether in transit or at a temporary location.
What Does Inland Marine Cover? (Contractor’s Equipment, Goods in Transit, Fine Art, Computers)
The “Catch-All” for Unique and Mobile Property
Inland Marine insurance is like a specialized backpack for all the valuable stuff that doesn’t fit neatly into other policies. For my contractor friend, it holds his power tools and heavy equipment. For my logistics company, it protects our clients’ goods while they’re on our trucks. For the art gallery downtown, it covers their paintings whether they’re on the wall or being transported to a show. And for my IT consulting firm, it protects the expensive servers and laptops we take to client sites. It’s a flexible policy for unique, mobile property.
Bailee Coverage: Protecting Customer Property in Your Care (Dry Cleaners, Repair Shops)
The Day My Shop Ruined a $5,000 Wedding Dress
I own a high-end dry cleaning business. A bride brought in her $5,000 couture wedding dress for preservation. A chemical mishap in one of our machines left a huge, unfixable stain on it. The bride was distraught, and I was legally responsible for the full value of her dress. My standard liability policy didn’t cover it. But my Inland Marine policy included Bailee Coverage. It’s designed specifically to cover my customers’ property while it is in my care, custody, and control. It paid for the dress and helped me maintain my professional reputation.
Motor Truck Cargo Coverage: For Truckers Hauling Other People’s Goods
The Tipped Truck and the $200,000 Load of Electronics
My cousin runs a small trucking company. One rainy night, one of his drivers swerved to avoid a deer, and the truck tipped over, destroying its entire cargo: a $200,000 shipment of electronics destined for a big-box store. His Commercial Auto policy paid to repair his truck, but he was responsible for the value of the freight he was hauling. His Motor Truck Cargo policy—a specific type of Inland Marine insurance—was his savior. It paid the electronics company for their lost cargo, a loss that would have otherwise put him out of business.
Contractor’s Equipment Floater: Covering Your Mobile Machinery Anywhere
The Backhoe That Was Swallowed by a Sinkhole
My landscaping company owns a $70,000 backhoe. We were working on a large drainage project when the ground gave way, and the entire machine fell into a sinkhole created by a broken water main. It was a total loss. I panicked, wondering how we would ever afford to replace it. My agent assured me it was a classic case for our Contractor’s Equipment Floater. This policy, a form of Inland Marine, is designed to protect heavy mobile equipment from risks like theft, fire, or in my case, bizarre accidents, no matter where the job site is.
Comparing Inland Marine Policies: Scheduled vs. Unscheduled Property
The Camera I Forgot to List on My Policy
As a photographer, I have an Inland Marine policy for my gear. My most expensive items, like my $5,000 camera body and a specific $3,000 lens, are “scheduled”—listed individually on the policy. This gives them the best coverage. The rest of my gear—cables, tripods, memory cards—is covered under a blanket “unscheduled” limit of $10,000. When I bought a new, expensive drone, I forgot to schedule it. When it was damaged, I was only able to claim it under the unscheduled limit. It taught me to always list my high-value items specifically.
Filing an Inland Marine Claim for Goods Damaged in Transit or Stolen Off-Site
Proof of Ownership and Proof of Loss
My business transports and installs delicate medical equipment. A piece of machinery worth $80,000 was severely damaged when the truck carrying it was rear-ended. To file the Inland Marine claim, we needed two key things. First, we provided the original bill of lading and invoice to prove what was being shipped and its value. Second, we took dozens of photos of the damaged machine and got a detailed report from the receiving hospital confirming the extent of the damage. This clear documentation made for a smooth and successful claim.
Does Inland Marine Cover Items Stored at Temporary Locations?
The Trade Show Booth That Went Up in Smoke
My company invested $25,000 in a beautiful, custom-built booth for trade shows. While it was being stored at a convention center warehouse in Las Vegas ahead of a big show, a fire broke out and destroyed everything. Our main property policy wouldn’t cover it because it wasn’t at our insured business address. But our Inland Marine policy did. It was designed to protect our property “in transit” or at a “temporary location,” which included the off-site warehouse. It paid to rebuild our booth, saving our marketing budget for the year.
My Laptop Was Stolen While Traveling for Business: Inland Marine Coverage?
The Cafe That Cost Me My Computer
I was working from a coffee shop while on a business trip. I got up to get a refill, and when I came back, my $3,000 work laptop was gone. My company’s standard property policy had a high deductible and only covered items at our main office. However, our Inland Marine policy had a “Computer Floater” endorsement. It provided worldwide coverage for our portable electronics with a much lower deductible. I was able to file the claim and get a new laptop quickly, a crucial save for a business traveler.
Accounts Receivable Coverage: Reconstructing Records After Loss
The Fire That Destroyed More Than Just Paper
A fire destroyed our office, including the file cabinet that held all our paper invoices and payment records. We had no idea which of our 200 clients still owed us money or how much. It was a potential loss of tens of thousands of dollars. Our Inland Marine policy included Accounts Receivable coverage. It didn’t just pay to replace the file cabinet; it paid for the extra labor hours our accountant needed to painstakingly reconstruct the records, call clients, and figure out what we were owed. It insured our ability to collect our money.
Valuable Papers and Records Coverage (Business Version)
The Blueprints That Would Have Cost a Fortune to Redo
My architectural firm’s office suffered a major water leak, destroying years’ worth of physical blueprints, client files, and site surveys. While some were backed up digitally, many were original, signed documents. The cost to have surveyors and engineers recreate those records would have been astronomical. Thankfully, our Inland Marine policy included Valuable Papers and Records coverage. It provided the funds—over $40,000 in our case—to pay the professionals needed to research and reproduce those critical, one-of-a-kind documents so we could continue our work.
Installation Floater: Covering Materials Before They’re Installed
The Custom Windows That Broke Before They Were Ours
My construction company was hired to install $60,000 worth of custom-made windows in a new office building. The windows had been delivered to the site, but we hadn’t installed them yet. Overnight, a vandal smashed nearly all of them. A fight began: was it our responsibility or the owner’s? Our Installation Floater policy made the argument moot. This specialized Inland Marine coverage protects a contractor’s materials after delivery but before they are installed and accepted by the owner. It paid for the new windows and kept the project moving.
Protecting Your Business Assets Wherever They Go
Your Business Doesn’t End at Your Front Door
Think about all the valuable things your business owns that don’t just sit in your office. Your salespeople have laptops, your technicians have tools, your trade show team has displays, and your products are shipped across the country. Your business operates far beyond your four walls. Inland Marine insurance is the policy that recognizes this reality. It’s the flexible, mobile coverage that travels with your assets, ensuring they are protected whether they are in the back of a truck, at a hotel, or on a client’s job site.
Inland Marine: Flexible Coverage for Property Off-Premises
The Insurance That Follows Your Stuff
My standard business property policy is like a home security system—it protects my stuff as long as it’s inside my office. But the moment my property leaves the building, it’s out on its own. Inland Marine insurance is like a personal bodyguard that I hire to follow my most valuable assets wherever they go. It protects my survey equipment on a remote job site, my laptop in an airport lounge, and my products on a delivery truck. It’s the essential, flexible coverage for any business whose property doesn’t stay put.