Insurance for Wine Collections

For many centuries investors have purchased and collected wine for drinking enjoyment and as an investment. Growing wine collections can soon accumulate value but are often overlooked when it comes to stating your insurance requirements.

Most household insurance policies will offer some level of insurance cover for wine collections but generally if it is not specified a policy limit will apply. This may be in the region of £5000, a drop in the ocean for many collections. Enhanced household insurance policies tend to offer a broader ‘all risks’ cover with higher limits that protect against some typical losses such as:

• Theft
• Water damage to labels that will devalue bottles
• Accidental bottle breakage

Note that some policies will not provide cover for ‘damage due to climatic conditions’ or ‘seepage’; therefore damage due to the failure of your cooling system or the corks may be excluded.

To obtain the best rate and insurance cover for your valuable wines they should be specified as a collection in your policy. When arranging your insurance be sure to state:

• The value of your collection – this should be reviewed every five years
• The number of bottles in the collection
• Single article limits for high value bottles
• Your home and cellar security
• Climatic conditions of the storage area

Not all wine is stored at home - some is kept in specialist warehouses and often wine bought ‘en primeur’ is stored for you prior to bottling at the Chateau. This is likely to be insured but you should check the policy is wide enough to cover all likely perils.

Please contact your cherrypicked insurance broker for information on insuring your wine collection.

Last reviewed 2/11/2011

To talk to an expert in your area and get a quote, contact your local insurance broker.