What is an adequate insurance value for an instrument bought at an auction?

[Vafan]

Dear Maestros,

I have recently acquired a violin in an auction. What would be an adequate insurance value?

The violin cost me around 4.000 Euros, plus my luthier charged around 500 Euros for some magic to bring it into flawless playing condition (setup, sound adjustment, plane the fingerboard, etc). It is an original by a maker who deceased some years ago. It's condition is excellent, and it is delightful in all other aspects. Instruments from that maker which are currently for sale are priced considerably higher. So... What is the insurance value - what I actually paid, what I would pay if I bought one in the market, or something in between?

Thanks a lot for some advice!

[GeorgeH]

1 hour ago, Vafan said:

What is the insurance value - what I actually paid, what I would pay if I bought one in the market, or something in between?

Get a written insurance valuation appraisal from a qualified professional string instrument appraiser. It is a requirement to obtain insurance by the major musical instrument insurers for instruments over a certain price point.

[martin swan]

On the broader point, the price you paid is irrelevant. An insurance valuation should cover you should you need to replace the instrument with an equivalent instrument in a hurry. Average retail value plus 15% is standard.

[Richf]

My one experience in filing a claim on a damaged bow was that the insurance company asked me to get two appraisals.  Nothing in the policy had mentioned that, so you might ask your insurer what they require.  Also before paying the claim, they took the bow.  I wonder what happened to it -- I would have liked to have kept the frog.  If relevant, I filed my claim with my homeowners policy, not with one of the musical instrument insurors.  

Also, happy St. Martin's Day, Martin.

[deans]

1 hour ago, Richf said:

 I wonder what happened to it -

Most likely sold to a restorer for whatever they could get. In most cases once they pay the claim its theirs. I suspect that many restorers get much of their work via this route.

[martin swan]

2 hours ago, Richf said:

My one experience in filing a claim on a damaged bow was that the insurance company asked me to get two appraisals.  Nothing in the policy had mentioned that, so you might ask your insurer what they require.  Also before paying the claim, they took the bow.  I wonder what happened to it -- I would have liked to have kept the frog.  If relevant, I filed my claim with my homeowners policy, not with one of the musical instrument insurors.  

Also, happy St. Martin's Day, Martin.

Haha, thank you, I didn't even know it was my day!

Generally if you have a broken bow and file a claim, you can offer to buy it back at the salvage value.

[Blank face]

37 minutes ago, martin swan said:

Haha, thank you, I didn't even know it was my day

In fact it’s a very important day for German culture. Not only the start of carnival at 11.11 o’clock, but also the night of children’s lantern marches, singing “St. Martin rode through snow and wind, his steed carried him swiftly away” (I will need to make a more poetical translation).

[martin swan]

10 hours ago, Blank face said:

In fact it’s a very important day for German culture. Not only the start of carnival at 11.11 o’clock, but also the night of children’s lantern marches, singing “St. Martin rode through snow and wind, his steed carried him swiftly away” (I will need to make a more poetical translation).

My steed was a VWPassat hire car which carried me swiftly away to Cologne where Carnival was already well under way. The hotel was party central, very drunk people weaving dangerously in the lobby wearing clown wigs and holding balloons. For sure no one was behaving in a way that could remotely be described as saintly!

[Blank face]

The opinions about Carnival in Cologne are divided (I would strictly avoid the central station and surrounding areas f.e.), but it’s nature is the revolt against all, everything and everyone being holy and respectable.

[M Alpert]

On 11/11/2025 at 11:08 PM, deans said:

Most likely sold to a restorer for whatever they could get. In most cases once they pay the claim its theirs. I suspect that many restorers get much of their work via this route.

Hm. I wonder how I would get on that list... otoh, I wonder why I have too much work and I never heard of that idea?

On 11/12/2025 at 12:20 AM, martin swan said:

Generally if you have a broken bow and file a claim, you can offer to buy it back at the salvage value.

Never heard of this either, although I might do about one insurance claim per month. I'll ask about that next time!

Generally, they (insurance companies) ask questions, understandably wanting to avoid egregious frauds. But often they pay up without too much fuss. Devaluation claims are the most difficult to get through - only the instrument specialist insurers seem to understand those. The most obviously successful claims seem to be those which clearly state that the bow is beyond repair, and the cause was an accident (dropped, sat on, driven over, crushed in a door, etc.)

I have had bizarre cases, such as one in which a (rather well-known international) insurance company required a video of a bow being destroyed! Before paying out the compensation. I'm not sure how they would know which bow was being destroyed, I saw neither video nor communication about it, only heard from the owner.

[M Alpert]

Just now, M Alpert said:

Devaluation claims are the most difficult to get through - only the instrument specialist insurers seem to understand those. The most obviously successful claims seem to be those which clearly state that the bow is beyond repair, and the cause was an accident (dropped, sat on, driven over, crushed in a door, etc.)

Which brings up an interesting point:

How have you colleagues had success getting insurance claims fulfilled for devaluation damage, for example a snapped bow stick or a soundpost crack in the back?

Perhaps this should be a new thread...