Insurance During Fieldwork

[Alexander King]

I think that there are two reasons to buy insurance. The first is to safeguard against huge costs, that while of low probability would nevertheless bankrupt a person if they were incurred. Hence medical coverage and emergency evacuation are an excellent idea. The second is provide a bit of financial recompense for the loss of stuff. Rarely does insurance provide 'new for old', so if you stuff is stolen or destroyed, the settlement will not replace your camera or computer, but give you a bit of cash toward buying a new one. 

More importantly, what are the likely causes of equipment damage and loss? Theft? Fire? Flood? I have found the best way to safeguard my stuff is to make sure that it is well padded and travels in waterproof bags or cases. In the 1990s, I made a padded cover for my tape recorder our of carpet padding and then put the whole thing in a small riverbag purchased at a camping store. I have used larger riverbags, the size of backpacks, and dufflebags made from waterproof material (but not water tight across the zipper. I use lots of ziplocs and memory cards and other small things go into locking tupperware containers. I know a colleague who lost his video camera and his still camera when the boat he was riding in was swamped by a wave as they came ashore. No real danger, but everything was drenched in salt water. Once when I was traveling with horses to a village, the horse jumped badly across a stream, spilling much of its load. I saw my video camera go into the water, but I wasn't worried as it was a bright red, water-tight bag with lots of padding, and fishing it out was easy.

For protecting against theft, I follow the lead of a colleague who kept his professional quality Nikon in an old, ragged canvas bag, especially when traveling by bus or otherwise alone. I also make friends I can trust with expensive bits of equipment while I am out of the village. I know a colleague who lugged a large metal footlocker to the arctic and then chained it to a radiator and locked it up. I often carry my backup hard disk wherever I go. Others leave a second hard disk with friends living in another house, so that if their own house burns down with all their data, they lose only a couple of days' work at most.

-Alex


On 11 May, 2013, at 10:23 AM, Mercedes Douglass <mercedesdouglass at YAHOO.COM> wrote:

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