Home owners insurance & reloading

[Ron Burgundy]

I'm on the process of selling my dump and buying a slightly less dumpy house. The good news is that my next house should have some room for a reloading setup.

Any recommendations on reloading friendly insurers? Any insurers to stay away from?

I'm not a fan of don't ask, don't tell when it comes to something as important as insurance.

[andrewP]

Interesting question, and one I had honestly never considered before. My brain just filed it under "it's perfectly legal, what issue could insurers possibly have with it?" I look forward to the replies of more knowledgeable people...

[Pat Cannon]

My brain just filed it under "it's perfectly legal, what issue could insurers possibly have with it?" I look forward to the replies of more knowledgeable people...

Hmm, that's kinda where I was at too. We just changed insurers (to State Farm) and I didn't think to ask about that. I do remember that guns are covered by our policy up to $2500. (My wife does not yet understand that we are wasting money on the premium until I buy more guns to get the total value up to $2500.)

[Ron Burgundy]

I would guess that in the event of a fire, even if unrelated to powder/primers, the insurer will be less than helpful. Yes, I get that the stuff in m garage is a much greater hazard than smokeless powder but I'm paranoid.

I'd be interested in hearing if others store to SAMMI specs (1" walls, pressure relief) for components.

[shooter115]

I've got an additional rider on my policy to cover guns, ammo and shooting gear. I had to take pictures, videos, record SN's so I could prove what I had, but reloading specifically, never even came up. I do know that my presses are in the video they had me take.

The thousands of loaded rounds popping off would be much more lively than the "fizzle" of an undisclosed amount of powder.

[Pat Cannon]

'Yoffione' on The High Road says:

I have been an insurance agent for 20 years. You will have no issues on a home inspection and the reloading supplies. I would not worry about it. As for coverage on your reloading equipment, it is covered as personal property with no specific value limits. If you have replacement cost ( make sure you do ) it will apply to the reloading stuff.

In the same thread, 'RevolverDan' says:

...I actually asked my agent about the OPs question when I started reloading a few years back. I wanted to make sure there wasn't some other rider or extra fire coverage I needed. I get my insurance from State Farm. Their reply was that having the materials would have not change the outcome of a legitimate claim (ie - the materials needed to be stored properly) and there would be no additional coverage required.

--Which is nice to hear since that's my insurance company.

[Ron Burgundy]

Read something similar on THR. Thanks, Pat.

My concern is "stored properly."

[shooter115]

Well ya, but you need to look into it further than that. For instance most policies have a cap on firearms at $2-5K without an additional rider. The same goes for any collectible items that might be worth more than face value i.e. coins/currency, sports memorabilia, art, jewelry, comic books,. Reloading components and shooting accessories should be covered if the claim falls under fire, wind, theft and such if you have a replacement value policy.

But....let's say you keep all your reloading gear in a basement like I do. Most policies also have a set amount for flood or sewer damage, the typical cap is $5K unless you've upped your coverage. Now, your water main bursts and floods your basement...... $5K doesn't go real far when you have to gut a basement and replace everything damaged and it would't even come close if my shooting gear was destroyed.

If you have an agent that's worth half of their commission, they should be happy to stop by and fully explain the different coverage's and what you might want to add to get to a comfortable level of security. It might take a little extra effort on your end to get some rider's, but they are generally pretty inexpensive. I'm going off the top of my head here, but I'm thinking it was like $100 per year to add a $15K rider covering guns and shooting gear, giving me $20K total coverage.

[Pat Cannon]

Read something similar on THR. Thanks, Pat.

My concern is "stored properly."

Yeah. I was just looking at SAAMI's rules, which I'm told are in the law in many places: http://www.saami.org/specifications_and ... rimers.pdf

For one thing, no more than 10,000 primers in a residence. I've only got 4K right now, but I'm thinking maybe I should get/build a box for them. Though that part is under "Recommended".

[Pat Cannon]

Aha, yes, MN state law seems to be essentially SAAMI rules:

7500.3600 SMALL ARMS AMMUNITION PRIMERS.
Subpart 1. Restricted scope. This section does not apply to the transportation of small arms ammunition primers governed by Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 2. Transportation and storage. Small arms ammunition primers must not be transported or stored except in the original shipping container approved by the Department of Transportation in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 3. Truck or rail transportation. Truck or rail transportation of small arms ammunition primers must comply with the Department of Transportation regulations in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 4. Quantity limitations. Not more than 25,000 small arms ammunition primers may be transported in a passenger vehicle.
Not more than 10,000 small arms ammunition primers may be stored in residences.
Not more than 10,000 small arms ammunition primers may be displayed in commercial establishments.
Subp. 5. Separate storage. Small arms ammunition primers must be separated from flammable liquids, flammable solids as classified by the Department of Transportation in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983), and oxidizing materials by a fire-resistive wall of one-hour rating or by a distance of 25 feet.
Subp. 6. Storage of large quantities. Quantities of small arms ammunition primers in excess of 1,000,000 must be stored in magazines in accordance with part 7500.0800.
Statutory Authority: MS s 299F.71 to 299F.83
History: 11 SR 6
Posted: July 26, 2007

Sounds like the primers should maybe be 25 feet away from the powder and gun-cleaning solvents and such.

[Ron Burgundy]

Bingo. I wonder if the municipality I'm moving to has further restrictions.

Good find, Pat. I'd hate to have 10,001 primers or have them located 24 ft from powder after a small fire (like when i try to cook) and have my claim void.

If nothing else, I learned in my reading that pressure relief is uber important when storing powder and primers. I would have thought a gun safe would be fine, not realizing a sealed safe would turn into a bomb. Science is neat!

[OldmanFCSA]

I asked State Farm when I moved to Wisconsin.
If I have a business, I'm not covered!
If its a hobby, it's covered.
Limit is 20 pounds of powder total, and 1000 primers, stored per fire code.

Let it BURN.
320 pounds of various powders.
20,000 primers.
Fizzle - Flash - Pop - all gone. What proof???

[Holland&Holland]

Aha, yes, MN state law seems to be essentially SAAMI rules:

7500.3600 SMALL ARMS AMMUNITION PRIMERS.
Subpart 1. Restricted scope. This section does not apply to the transportation of small arms ammunition primers governed by Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 2. Transportation and storage. Small arms ammunition primers must not be transported or stored except in the original shipping container approved by the Department of Transportation in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 3. Truck or rail transportation. Truck or rail transportation of small arms ammunition primers must comply with the Department of Transportation regulations in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983).
Subp. 4. Quantity limitations. Not more than 25,000 small arms ammunition primers may be transported in a passenger vehicle.
Not more than 10,000 small arms ammunition primers may be stored in residences.
Not more than 10,000 small arms ammunition primers may be displayed in commercial establishments.
Subp. 5. Separate storage. Small arms ammunition primers must be separated from flammable liquids, flammable solids as classified by the Department of Transportation in Code of Federal Regulations, title 49, parts 100 to 199 (1983), and oxidizing materials by a fire-resistive wall of one-hour rating or by a distance of 25 feet.
Subp. 6. Storage of large quantities. Quantities of small arms ammunition primers in excess of 1,000,000 must be stored in magazines in accordance with part 7500.0800.
Statutory Authority: MS s 299F.71 to 299F.83
History: 11 SR 6
Posted: July 26, 2007

Sounds like the primers should maybe be 25 feet away from the powder and gun-cleaning solvents and such.

So if one reads this right you can have 10,000 at home and the rest in your car right?

[BigDog58]

Damn! Now I have to start selling primers

[RJWesleyIII]

Damn! Now I have to start selling primers

How much I could use some spp and srp. Haha


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