Do Not Rely on State Farm if Living Abroad

If keeping a house back in the home country while working or living abroad, never assume that the home country homeowners insurance policy will provide any protection at all for international property insurance and international liability insurance.  In fact, if the home is empty or vacant for more than 60 days do not assume the traditional homeowners insurance company will cover a vacant home either.

We have seen people take expatriate assignments abroad and take over $50,000 of international personal property including $5,000 wedding rings, and assume companies like State Farm or Allstate are still providing the coverage even though they are living in Russia or Germany!  This is almost never the case if one has taken up residence abroad.

Yes, if you are traveling internationally on vacation for example, homeowners policies can offer some degree of protection but not if you are living abroad for say.. six months or longer.  In all cases these people need expatriate property insurance (a form of international property insurance) as well as international liability insurance.  In many cases they will need expatriate vacant home insurance coverage as well. 

International Liability Insurance More Important Than Personal Effects Coverage

In a recent survey of expatriates we find that for those that looking into international property insurance and international liability insurance, it's protecting their property that made them investigate insurance solutions.  Most expatriates seem to ignore the global liability protection?

At International Property Insurance Group we feel that international liability is far more important than protecting international personal effects, although of course we feel both are important.  What's more, international liability insurance is very inexpensive.

No one wants to have a $40,000 uninsured loss to property because of fire or smoke damage, or because there was a fire in the neighboring apartment but this loss does not have the potential to ruin your life.  A $1,000,000 lawsuit where you carry no international liability insurance on you and your family can bring financial ruin.  

Again, do not expect your employer can step in and pay a personal claim, no matter how important your expat assignment is.  Even if you flee the country to avoid the suit, and there may be no way the "judgement" can find you back in your home country, this could cost you your job and your career.  Employers expect employees to properly protect themselves and their families for overseas property insurance and global liability.

Overseas on Work Assignment, Don't Assume Employer is Covering Your International Personal Effects

Another major mistake that expatriates make when relocating internationally to work is assuming their employer has all of the following issues covered and they need to do nothing. In fact, the bigger (and more all-powerful) the employer, the more these individuals assume they don't need to take personal responsibility for the following:

• International Personal Property Insurance (to protect clothes, furniture, electronics, rings)
• International Liability Insurance (to protect personal net worth from lawsuit)
• International Renters Insurance (which is a global property and liability package policy)

Here are the facts. 95% of employers have no insurance policies that will cover the personal losses of an expatriate on foreign assignment. Whether this be a claim for a fire loss, theft, or a damage award from a local magistrate for $50,000, there is no coverage via commercial policies. There are legal and tax reasons why an employer cannot step in to bail out an expatriate's losses.

Surveys from International Property Insurance Group indicate this as the # 1 reason expatriates don't proactively look for these lines of insurance on their own.

Taking Valuable Articles Into Your International Assignment

When people leave their home country to live internationally, or take an expatriate assignment for a few years, the last thing they think about is insuring their personal effects with the proper international property insurance policy, and protecting their valuable articles in the new location. The most common valuable people need to protect is a diamond wedding ring.

When people arrive in their host country, and when they get around to looking for insurance for their property and valuables, they may find all of the following:

• There is no recognizable insurance market in the host country. What are my options?
• Insurance companies will not work with "foreigners" in the local country.
• An insurance market exists, but the level of coverage and the reputation of the insurer is impossible to determine. What am I buying and what will happen at the time of claim?

The good news is there are insurance companies and brokerages that specifically work with people that are living away from their home country. International Property Insurance Group works with expatriates in 80 countries and all of them need sound international personal effects insurance with a strong global liability policy.

Just like in the home country, valuable articles need to be scheduled and named in the insurance policy, insured up to their true value. However, once secured, the insurance should work worldwide. For example, a theft of a diamond ring in the host country, home country, or even while traveling to a third country would be fully covered if the item was properly scheduled with the insurance company before-hand.

Biggest Mistake Expatriates Make, Forgetting the International Property Insurance

One of the biggest mistakes expatriates make when they go to live internationally on a work assignment, is believing they have to take no action to insure their international property and to provide themselves international liability insurance. The reason is, they falsely believe their employer is either providing these coverages for them, or in the event of loss, the employer would financially bail them out.

This is almost never the case. Employees need to understand that as soon as the moving truck backs away, it is their own responsibility to secure international property insurance and international liability insurance to protect their financial net worth or risk everything. Many expatriates will not take this initiative or even investigate options for their international personal effects believing the employer will be there for them in the event of a personal claim.

The legal and tax reasons why employers cannot get involved is explained at www.internationalpropertyinsurance.com

Welcome to Expatriate Insurance Blog, Sponsored by InternationalPropertyInsurance.com

Welcome to our blog. Here we will not only discuss issues related to international property insurance and global liability insurance but ANY and ALL insurance topics relevant for people living and working outside of their home country. We welcome all your feedback and please share your personal experiences, whether they be positive, or your horror stories.